These nine nonfiction books, recommended for preschool, primary, and/or intermediate readers, offer a glimpse at the variety of work scientists (including a president!) can do — from biology to psychology to astronomy. See also the Scientists tag in the Guide/Reviews Database.

Thomas Jefferson’s Battle for Science: Bias, Truth, and a Mighty Moose!
by Beth Anderson; illus. by Jeremy Holmes
Primary, Intermediate    Calkins/Astra    48 pp.
5/24    9781635926200    $18.99
e-book ed.  9781635928624    $11.99

As a product of the Age of Reason, Thomas Jefferson was long fascinated by science in general and the natural world in particular. Consequently, when he first read a French encyclopedia by the renowned scientist Comte de Buffon that declared the American colonies inferior because the native animals were neither as large nor as ferocious as their European counterparts, Jefferson questioned Buffon’s reasoning — partly because of the audacious comments, partly because of national pride, and partly because Jefferson did not want to discourage immigration. For years he challenged these assumptions by asking questions; creating counterarguments; conducting experiments (which included the shipping of a dead moose to France to verify its large size); and formulating and publishing his conclusions. In other words, he followed the scientific method, nicely summarized in the back matter. The mixed-media illustrations, crafted with woodblocks and pencil, are highlighted in unusual and effective layouts. The written narrative appears in text boxes, acting either as previews for the often-humorous illustrations (for example, ideas explode from Jefferson’s head as he writes his own book challenging Buffon) or as comic panels. A concluding author’s note explains the sources and dangers of misinformation and ways to identify and combat such rumors, as well as a timeline of Jefferson’s life and a bibliography — appropriately, for the topic — divided into primary and secondary sources. BETTY CARTER

Close Up & Far Out: Seeing the World Differently
by Mary Auld and Adria Meserve; illus. by Adria Meserve
Primary, Intermediate    Creative Editions    40 pp.
8/24    9781568463537    $19.99

Seventeenth-century “natural philosophers” Galileo Galilei (who looked out into the universe using a telescope) and Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (who looked closely into water droplets with a microscope) made their important scientific discoveries in astronomy and microbiology, respectively, using innovative improvements to the glass lens. As the cleverly constructed narrative moves chronologically through the lives of both scientists, it steps back and forth between them, highlighting the parallels in their experiences as well as emphasizing the practices and passions of science. Both men had creative aha moments, were meticulous inventors, and remained patient in the face of setbacks on their paths to discovery. They also depended on the scientific community and larger society for patronage and acceptance or rejection of their published scientific models, which led to challenges — Galileo with the Catholic church and Leeuwenhoek with his unwillingness to share his lens technologies. Meserve’s entertaining and informative illustrations are filled with details about the scientists, their objects of study, and the places and times in which they lived; the compositions employ inventive designs to underscore common features of the scientists’ lives and work. Galileo and Leeuwenhoek are united in spirit in the final illustration of stars, planets, and the Milky Way filling the sky above a pond crowded with bacteria, microbes, and other tiny living creatures. DANIELLE J. FORD

Space: The Final Pooping Frontier
by Annabeth Bondor-Stone and Connor White; illus. by Lars Kenseth
Primary, Intermediate    Godwin/Holt    40 pp.
7/24    9781250222886    $19.99
e-book ed.  9781250386663    $11.99

The words “go boldly” are boldly recontextualized in this newest addition to the ever-growing collection of poop-focused nonfiction titles for kids. This truncated history of American space exploration specifically focuses on the challenges (both new and old) of defecating in zero gravity, along with the argument that the easier it is for astronauts to poop, the healthier and more comfortable (and effective) they will be. Real-life complications such as limited privacy, adhesive poop bags, and frozen storage tanks (which caused frozen feces to “come back up the tubes”) are delivered through a combination of conversational text and irreverent cartoon imagery. Innovations, largely fueled by the Apollo program’s need for astronauts to spend extended periods of time in space, eventually led to the invention of the game-changing space toilet (depicted in diagram form). Looking toward the future, NASA’s 2016 Space Poop Challenge sought out inventors with designs for “a better way to poop in space.” A doctor from Texas won first prize, although the book refrains from describing how the wearable device (composed of tubes, bags, and screw-on caps) functions. Recurring caption boxes provide supplementary facts, including launch dates, mission objectives, and the number of bathrooms per spacecraft. The colorful illustrations effectively shift between playful and expository, mimicking the tone-shifts in the text while handling the potentially unsavory subject matter with relative discretion. Back matter includes sources along with “More Poop Fun Facts (and Beyond!).” PATRICK GALL

What We Wear When We Take Care
by Sarah Finan; illus. by the author
Preschool    Candlewick    32 pp.
6/24    9781536227703    $17.99

Safety equipment such as hard hats, helmets, and noise-canceling headphones take center stage in this dynamic picture book, which begins by asking, “What do we wear when we take care?” Each page features children or adults of various genders, skin colors, and abilities engaging in activities that require protective gear, whether those activities be construction work, skateboarding, or fighting fires. Finan explains in simple language why each piece of equipment is used and provides examples in different contexts — first on the job, then with a scene from a kid’s perspective. One double-page spread states, “Sometimes we wear goggles to protect our eyes from things that fizz, spark,” and features goggle-clad chemists and a welder at work. A page-turn shows two children snorkeling: “splish, or splash.” The action words used throughout the book are mostly in bold black type. A section on wearing masks “to protect from germs” depicts medical professionals and a school bus where most of the children are masked. The hand-painted, digitally colored illustrations are full of movement and primarily feature shades of blue with yellow as a vibrant accent color. The book ends with the question, “What do YOU wear to take care?” and an illustration showing three kids in protective garb. A fine introduction to the many ways we can stay safe. MARVA ANNE HINTON

Evidence!: How Dr. John Snow Solved the Mystery of Cholera
by Deborah Hopkinson; illus. by Nik Henderson
Primary, Intermediate    Knopf    40 pp.
8/24    9780593426814    $19.99
Library ed.  9780593426821    $22.99
e-book ed.  9780593426838    $11.99

During the Industrial Revolution, vast numbers of workers moved to cities that housed the new factories. These laborers lived in crowded and often squalid conditions, in areas where the air was thick with noxious odors. One such place was London’s Broad Street, overtaken by a cholera outbreak in 1854. Although the accepted thinking of the time was that such illnesses were transmitted through “bad, smelly air,” Dr. John Snow (1813–1858) does not buy that explanation. He asks questions: why are some individuals sick and others free from disease? How could the air cause diarrhea and vomiting? He investigates by visiting homes of the victims, asking pertinent questions, and creating a map of the affected areas; he then theorizes that cholera must come from something ingested. But what? Here readers see the scientific method at work as Snow determines it is the water, notoriously contaminated by human waste, that causes cholera. Modern epidemiology is born. Henderson’s mixed-media illustrations, in shades of brown, depict the thick, noxious air of Broad Street but lighten as Snow finds evidential proof for his theory. Besides highlighting a historical moment in time, Hopkinson deftly presents a nondidactic object lesson about evaluating information, showing the value of making decisions with facts rather than unverified opinions. The back matter includes information about the Broad Street pump (where cholera victims got their water) and Snow; a glossary of other infectious diseases; and resources for further inquiry. BETTY CARTER

The Next Scientist: The Unexpected Beginnings and Unwritten Future of the World’s Great Scientists
by Kate Messner; illus. by Julia Kuo
Primary, Intermediate    Chronicle    64 pp.
8/24    9781452176963    $19.99

This attractive, informative, and ambitious collective biography begins with a challenge: “Quick! Name the world’s greatest scientist.” Messner (The Next President, rev. 3/20) introduces well-known and lesser-known scientists throughout history and organizes the book by theme (scientists as observers, as artists, as readers, etc.). A typical spread depicts three scientists as children engaged in a similar activity, such as tinkering (James West, Grace Hopper, Ayah Bdeir) or skygazing (Johannes Kepler, Maria Mitchell, Adriana Ocampo). Short captions provide information about each as a child, and the book then reveals their corresponding grown-up versions and achievements. This clever structure allows for a smooth flow and offers connection and comparison among scientists across time, cultures, and locales. “Snapshot” interludes provide brief information about specific shared interests (sewing/knitting; the study of Pluto). Kuo’s digital illustrations in clear black line and a rich color palette have a paper doll–like quality while still being dynamically posed and presented on the pages. Thoughtful curation results in representation of a wide range of identities, fields of study, and challenges throughout the history of modern science. Culminating in a hopeful call for future scientists to create “a better world,” the book presents supplemental mini-biographies, further reading, selected sources, and a list of some of the scientists’ favorite books. PATRICK GALL

Remembering Rosalind Franklin: Rosalind Franklin & the Discovery of the Double Helix Structure of DNA
by Tanya Lee Stone; illus. by Gretchen Ellen Powers
Primary, Intermediate    Ottaviano/Little, Brown    40 pp.
2/24    9780316351249    $18.99

Stone’s dedication — “For anyone who did something awesome and didn’t feel the love” — sets the reparative tone for this picture-book biography of scientist Franklin (1920–1958), whose Photo 51 cracked the DNA code while competing researchers James Watson and Francis Crick took the credit (and the 1962 Nobel Prize). As she weaves science and history, Stone unravels dual mysteries centering on the double helix: how the “secret of life…makes you — YOU” and how a “twist of fate” triggered Franklin’s posthumous recognition. Powers’s watercolors perfectly blend representative and expressive styles. Realistically rendered characters and period details set the story in its mid-twentieth-century milieu, while experimental techniques offer evocative visual commentary; for example, when Franklin argues with Watson and Crick, blue watercolor blotches disrupt the tidy floral border and explode the ground beneath them. Although Stone opens by warning, “This true story doesn’t really have a happy ending,” Powers’s accompanying fairy tale–esque castle, adorned with scientific instruments, foreshadows a time in which readers are empowered to interrogate the historical record and reclaim the stories of little-heralded figures. An author’s note explains the Matilda Effect, a historical pattern in which men take credit for women’s work. SHELLEY ISAACSON

Comet Chaser: The True Cinderella Story of Caroline Herschel, the First Professional Woman Astronomer
by Pamela S. Turner; illus. by Vivien Mildenberger
Primary    Chronicle    56 pp.
3/24    9781452145433    $19.99

Turner tells the amazing story of Caroline Herschel (1750–1848), a pioneering woman in STEM, from her young life as family housekeeper to the discovery of a comet that earns her a paid retainer from the king of England. Despite her mother’s insistence on keeping her as a helper in the home, Herschel’s curiosity and hard work mean that she is able to first support and eventually work side by side with her brother in both music and astronomy. The scientific siblings create and build new telescopes that can see further into space than anyone has before, leading to a series of remarkable discoveries. (Many readers will be fascinated to learn that pounded horse dung was the innovation that allowed the Herschels to build their telescope and change astronomy.) Turner peppers the text with direct quotes from Herschel’s memoir and with memorable moments, such as the winter night when even Caroline’s ink freezing in the inkwell did not stop her journey of discovery. Mildenberger’s painted illustrations have a historical feeling and are often muddy or dark, but bright stars and faces shine out of the blues and browns. Her characters’ animated facial expressions bring scenes to life. Back matter includes additional biographical information, a glossary, sources for quotations in the text, and further reading. LAURA KOENIG

The Doll Test: Choosing Equality
by Carole Boston Weatherford; illus. by David Elmo Cooper
Primary    Carolrhoda    32 pp.
11/24    9781728477930    $18.99

This powerful picture book brings to life the essential research of psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark, whose work significantly influenced the fight against segregation, having concluded that “school segregation made Black children feel as if they were not as good as white children.” Narrating from the unusual perspective of the dolls in the Clarks’ renowned 1939 experiment (which presented schoolchildren with two dolls, one white and one Black, and asked them to choose which one was “bad,” among other questions), Weatherford distills a complex moment from the past into an accessible and profound story for young readers. Cooper’s digital illustrations in a muted palette make innovative use of off-kilter perspectives reflective of the warped perceptions created by segregation and systemic racism to bring emotional depth. Cooper’s visuals enhance Weatherford’s assured storytelling, creating a harmonious blend that amplifies the story’s impact. Weatherford’s elegant and relatable explanation of the significance of the Clarks’ work is more than a recounting of facts; this book is a call to action, prompting readers to consider the ongoing pursuit of equality and justice. Back matter includes author and illustrator notes, historical background, and suggestions for further reading. ANNISHA JEFFRIES

From the October 2024 issue of Notes from the Horn Book.