100 Best Earth Science Books of All Time (Updated for 2026)

1

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Yuval Noah Harari

5.0

100,000 years ago, at least six human species inhabited the earth. Today there is just one. Us. Homo sapiens.

How did our species succeed in the battle for dominance? Why did our foraging ancestors come together to create cities and kingdoms? How did we come to believe in gods, nations and human rights; to trust money, books and laws; and to be enslaved by bureaucracy, timetables and consumerism?

Recommended by Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Reid Hoffman, and 34 others.

Barack Obama

Former USA President

Fact or fiction, the president knows that reading keeps the mind sharp. He also delved into these non-fiction reads. [source]

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

Both Melinda and I read this one, and it has sparked lots of great conversations at our dinner table. Harari takes on a daunting challenge: to tell the entire history of the human race in just 400 pages. He also writes about our species today and how artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, and other technologies will change us in the future. Although I found things to disagree with—especially Harari’s claim that humans were better off before we started farming—I would recommend Sapiens to anyone who’s interested in the history and future of our species. [source]

Reid Hoffman

CEO/LinkedIn

A grand theory of humanity. [source]

2

The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History

Elizabeth Kolbert

5.0

Preview Summary

Over the last half-billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around, the cataclysm is us.

In prose that is at once fran

Recommended by Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and 6 others.

Barack Obama

Former USA President

The president also released a list of his summer favorites back in 2015: All That Is, James Salter The Sixth Extinction, Elizabeth Kolbert The Lowland, Jhumpa Lahiri Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates Washington: A Life, Ron Chernow All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr [source]

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, by Elizabeth Kolbert. Climate change is a big problem—one of the biggest we’ll face this century—but it’s not the only environmental concern on the horizon. Humans are putting down massive amounts of pavement, moving species around the planet, over-fishing and acidifying the oceans, changing the chemical composition of rivers, and more. Natural scientists posit that there have been five extinction events in the Earth’s history (think of the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs), and Kolbert makes a compelling case that human activity is leading to the sixth. Unlike a lot of people who write about the environment, Kolbert doesn’t resort to hype. She just lays out the facts and wraps them in memorable anecdotes. It’s a sobering but engaging and informative read. [source]

Jeff Bezos

Founder/Amazon

"In his autobiography, Walmart's founder expounds on the principles of discount retailing and discusses his core values of frugality and a bias for action — a willingness to try a lot of things and make many mistakes. Bezos included both in Amazon's corporate values," Brad Stone writes. [source]

3

A Brief History of Time

Stephen Hawking

4.7

Preview Summary

In the ten years since its publication in 1988, Stephen Hawking's classic work has become a landmark volume in scientific writing, with more than nine million copies in forty languages sold worldwide. That edition was on the cutting edge of what was then known about the origins and nature of the universe. But the intervening years have seen extraordinary advances in the technology of observing bot

Recommended by Richard Branson, Adam Hart-Davis, Anurag Ramdasan, and 2 others.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

Adam Hart-Davis

When Stephen Hawking wrote A Brief History of Time..his publisher told him that every equation he left in would halve the number of readers [source]

Anurag Ramdasan

My first intro into the world of physics and this got me completely hooked!

4

Cosmos

Carl Sagan

4.6

Preview Summary

Cosmos has 13 heavily illustrated chapters, corresponding to the 13 episodes of the Cosmos television series. In the book, Sagan explores 15 billion years of cosmic evolution and the development of science and civilization. Cosmos traces the origins of knowledge and the scientific method, mixing science and philosophy, and speculates to the future of science. The book also discusses the underlying

Recommended by Richard Branson, Ante Shoda, Anurag Ramdasan, and 1 others.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

Ante Shoda

It explains 14 billion years of the evolution of the universe, a sort of engineering experiment on the largest possible scale. It spans all scales of space and time, describing everything from the largest scales of the universe to the smallest scales of molecules and atoms. It’s a good book for putting everything in perspective. [source]

Anurag Ramdasan

This book helped draft a great perspective on the world and the universe at large and made me a fan of the Cosmos!

5

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Michael Pollan

4.6

Preview Summary

What should we have for dinner? For omnivore's like ourselves, this simple question has always posed a dilemma: When you can eat just about anything nature (or the supermarket) has to offer, deciding what you should eat will inevitably stir anxiety, especially when some of the foods on offer might shorten your life. Today, buffeted by one food fad after another, America is suffering from what can

Recommended by Barry Estabrook, Gabriel Coarna, Paul Rozin, and 1 others.

Barry Estabrook

Michael Pollan looks at food production through four meals. One is a fast-food meal, the other is an industrial-scale organic meal, then there is a small-scale organic meal and finally he actually goes out and either grows or kills, in the case of the meat, the entire meal himself. That is the narrative. [source]

Gabriel Coarna

Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma" --more precisely, the first 3rd of it-- was what first made me realize how badly the Earth, as an ecosystem, is out of balance. [source]

Paul Rozin

Michael Pollan is an excellent journalist who specializes in the food domain.He proposes relying more on whole foods and less on processed foods, like Oreo Cookies. He argues that unprocessed foods are more nutritious, more wholistic and better for the environment. [source]

6

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants

Robin Wall Kimmerer

4.5

Preview Summary

As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these lenses of knowledge together to show that the awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celeb

Recommended by Oliver Sacks Fdn. and Sarah Taber.

Oliver Sacks Fdn.

As a writer, Oliver Sacks found gardens essential to the creative process. Check out our year-end newsletter, devoted to some beautiful books by botanist-writers that would make great gifts for all your plant-loving friends. https://t.co/2U8iEv4L1x https://t.co/IK1cgIMJhE [source]

Sarah Taber

Yeah that's because most of those books are actually just sanctimonious classists pretending they're trying to fix problems. That's why they're depressing If you want a book that's actually about moving forward, "Braiding Sweetgrass" is FANTASTIC. https://t.co/Drr1tmwhSs [source]

7

Thinking in Systems: A Primer

Donella H. Meadows

4.5

Preview Summary

Meadows’ Thinking in Systems, is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute’s Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world, showing readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leader

Recommended by Tobi Lütke, Kate Raworth, and Mira Kirshenbaum.

Tobi Lütke

Founder & CEO/Shopify

Tobi Lütke recommended this book on the podcast "The Knowledge Project". [source]

Kate Raworth

It was a real revelation for me to discover such a different approach to thinking and analysing challenges. [source]

Mira Kirshenbaum

A nice overview of how initial conditions lead to patterns that determine what the relationship feels like to the people in it [source]

8

A Short History of Nearly Everything

Bill Bryson

4.5

Preview Summary

In Bryson's biggest book, he confronts his greatest challenge: to understand—and, if possible, answer—the oldest, biggest questions we have posed about the universe and ourselves. Taking as territory everything from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization, Bryson seeks to understand how we got from there being nothing at all to there being us. To that end, he has attached himself to a host of the

Recommended by Amanda Palmer, David Goldberg, and Fabrice Grinda.

Amanda Palmer

Amanda Palmer recommended this book in the book "Tools of Titans". [source]

David Goldberg

What I really liked about A Short History of Nearly Everything is that it gives an excellent account of a lot of the personalities and the interconnectedness of important discoveries in cosmology and elsewhere. He does such a great job of bringing together our understanding of cosmology, evolution, paleontology, and geology in a very, very fluid way. [source]

Fabrice Grinda

I have lots of books to recommend, but they are not related to my career path. The only one that is remotely related is Peter Thiel’s Zero to One. That said here are books I would recommend. [source]

9

What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions

Randall Munroe

4.4

Randall Munroe left NASA in 2005 to start up his hugely popular site XKCD 'a web comic of romance, sarcasm, math and language' which offers a witty take on the world of science and geeks. It now has 600,000 to a million page hits daily. Every now and then, Munroe would get emails asking him to arbitrate a science debate. 'My friend and I were arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck

Recommended by Bill Gates, Astro Teller, Fabrice Grinda, and 1 others.

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

The subtitle of the book is “Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions,” and that’s exactly what it is. People write Munroe with questions that range over all fields of science: physics, chemistry, biology. Questions like, “From what height would you need to drop a steak for it to be cooked when it hit the ground?” (The answer, it turns out, is “high enough that it would disintegrate before it hit the ground.”) Munroe’s explanations are funny, but the science underpinning his answers is very accurate. It’s an entertaining read, and you’ll also learn a bit about things like ballistics, DNA, the oceans, the atmosphere, and lightning along the way. [source]

Astro Teller

The kids are obsessed with this. They can quote it from memory. They’ve learned probably more science from this book than they have from their science class in the last two years. [source]

Fabrice Grinda

I have lots of books to recommend, but they are not related to my career path. The only one that is remotely related is Peter Thiel’s Zero to One. That said here are books I would recommend. [source]

10

A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There

Aldo Leopold

4.3

First published in 1949, A Sand County Almanac combines some of the finest nature writing since Thoreau with an outspoken and highly ethical regard for America's relationship to the land.

Written with an unparalleled understanding of the ways of nature, the book includes a section on the monthly changes of the Wisconsin countryside; another part that gathers informal pieces written by Leopold over

Recommended by Isabella Tree, Mark Boyle, and Mike Phillips.

Isabella Tree

Leopold wrote that one of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. To me, that rings painfully true. [source]

Mark Boyle

I love many books, but I am in love with A Sand County Almanac. [source]

Mike Phillips

It speaks to the need for us to recognize we’re just as much a part of this planet as the wondrous diversity of life that still surrounds us. [source]

11

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed

Jared Diamond

4.3

In Jared Diamond’s follow-up to the Pulitzer-Prize winning Guns, Germs and Steel, the author explores how climate change, the population explosion and political discord create the conditions for the collapse of civilization

Environmental damage, climate change, globalization, rapid population growth, and unwise political choices were all factors in the demise of societies around the world, but some

Recommended by Bill Gates, Daniel Headrick, David Pilling, and 3 others.

Bill Gates

CEO/Microsoft

I found this to be an interesting follow-up to the excellent Guns, Germs, and Steel. It examines the downfall of some of history's greatest civilizations. [source]

Daniel Headrick

I found Jared Diamond’s book Collapse more valuable in influencing my own thinking, because it shows the importance of culture in determining how humans deal with environmental threats. …….The author investigates the successes and failures of a number of civilisations which had reached a crisis point, and looks at why some succeeded and others hadn’t. [source]

David Pilling

This is a warning that societies can do this. We, as a human society, could do this if we’re not careful. If we stretch the earth beyond its planetary limits, we could ruin the soil, we could ruin the ocean, we could ruin the air, and we could drain the ocean of fish. He sees evidence all around that we’re doing precisely that. He sees a limit to technology to solve our problems. [source]

12

1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

Charles C. Mann

4.3

In this groundbreaking work of science, history, and archaeology, Charles C. Mann radically alters our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of Columbus in 1492.

Contrary to what so many Americans learn in school, the pre-Columbian Indians were not sparsely settled in a pristine wilderness; rather, there were huge numbers of Indians who actively molded and influenced the land around them

Recommended by Adam Conover, Colin Calloway, and Scott Keyes.

Adam Conover

@TheBaltimoreSon @CharlesCMann Sure it! A total revolution in my understanding of history, all in one book. Amazing stuff. [source]

Colin Calloway

The book provides a huge hemispheric overview. [source]

Scott Keyes

It’s one of those books that takes everything you thought you knew about the history of European colonialists and indigenous groups in the Americas and turns it on its head. Just a fascinating deep-dive into early American history that questions a lot of dogma we were taught in school. [source]

13

Your Inner Fish: A Journey Into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body

Neil Shubin

4.3

Preview Summary

Why do we look the way we do? What does the human hand have in common with the wing of a fly? Are breasts, sweat glands, and scales connected in some way? To better understand the inner workings of our bodies and to trace the origins of many of today's most common diseases, we have to turn to unexpected sources: worms, flies, and even fish.

Neil Shubin, a leading paleontologist and professor of ana

14

The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection: Or, the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life

Charles Darwin

4.3

Darwin's theory of natural selection issued a profound challenge to orthodox thought and belief: no being or species has been specifically created; all are locked into a pitiless struggle for existence, with extinction looming for those not fitted for the task.

Yet The Origin of Species (1859) is also a humane and inspirational vision of ecological interrelatedness, revealing the complex mutual in

Recommended by Neil deGrasse Tyson, Mark Kurlansky, Adam Maloof, and 3 others.

Neil deGrasse Tyson

Astrophysicist, Author & Science Communicator

Which books should be read by every single intelligent person on planet? … On the Origin of Species (Darwin) to learn of our kinship with all other life on Earth. If you read all of the above works you will glean profound insight into most of what has driven the history of the western world. [source]

Mark Kurlansky

It is one of the most important books written, and I always urge people to read it. [source]

Adam Maloof

For me (and many others) this book forms the foundation for modern biology. It is all about humans’ concept of themselves. [source]

15

Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World

Tim Marshall

4.3

Preview Summary

In the bestselling tradition of Why Nations Fail and The Revenge of Geography, an award-winning journalist uses ten maps of crucial regions to explain the geo-political strategies of the world powers.

All leaders of nations are constrained by geography. Their choices are limited by mountains, rivers, seas, and concrete. To understand world events, news organizations and other authorities often focu

Recommended by Lee Mckenzie, Lucas Morales, and Sunil Chhetri.

Lee Mckenzie

This is a great book and by far the best thing I have read for a while. If you are curious about the world in which we live, geopolitics or just fancy something a little different, you couldn’t do much better than this. Coffee optional! @Itwitius 👏🏻 #prisonersofgeography https://t.co/Gd3G2tDVyT [source]

Lucas Morales

Depending on your interest and goals, if you are like me and always looking for the trends in the big picture then I highly recommend being an active contrarian reader. Read what no one else is reading. Your goal is to think outside the box. To look at the world and ask “why hasn’t this been solved?” And that gives you a roadmap as to what opportunities may exist for your entrepreneurial efforts. So to that, here’s a snapshot, in no particular order, of what might help you push your intellectual boundaries: Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism by Ha-Joon Chang Postcapitalism: A Guide to Our Future by Paul Mason Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty Who Gets What--And Why: The New Economics of Matchmaking and Market Design by Alvin E. Roth The Political Economy of Participatory Economics by Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism by Jeremy Rifkin Why America Misunderstands the World by Paul R. Pillar A Theory of Justice by John Rawls Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall [source]

Sunil Chhetri

@TaranaRaja The cover got me and I'm sure the book is very, very interesting! [source]

16

The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World

Peter Wohlleben

4.3

Preview Summary

In The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the amazing scientific processes behind the wonders of which we are blissfully unaware. Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they

Recommended by Emma Watson.

17

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster

Jon Krakauer

4.3

When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six h

Recommended by Richard Branson, Cristina Riesen, Fabrice Grinda, and 2 others.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

Cristina Riesen

First, a word on career paths. In time, I realised that career paths are like one-way streets. Magic happens in unexplored territories. Plus life is how you choose to live every moment, every day. So today, rather than building a career, I prefer to make lateral moves in life, working with great people and being part of ambitious projects impacting the world. There are a few books that got me here: … Jon Krakauer "Into Thin Air". [source]

Fabrice Grinda

I have lots of books to recommend, but they are not related to my career path. The only one that is remotely related is Peter Thiel’s Zero to One. That said here are books I would recommend. [source]

18

Annals of the Former World

John McPhee

4.3

The Pulitzer Prize-winning view of the continent, across the fortieth parallel and down through 4.6 billion years

Twenty years ago, when John McPhee began his journeys back and forth across the United States, he planned to describe a cross section of North America at about the fortieth parallel and, in the process, come to an understanding not only of the science but of the style of the geologists

Recommended by Daniel Pink.

19

Underland

Robert Macfarlane

4.3

From the best-selling, award-winning author of Landmarks and The Old Ways, a haunting voyage into the planet’s past and future.

Hailed as "the great nature writer of this generation" (Wall Street Journal), Robert Macfarlane is the celebrated author of books about the intersections of the human and the natural realms. In Underland, he delivers his masterpiece: an epic exploration of the Earth’s unde

Recommended by Alastair Humphreys, Cal Flyn, and Jonathan Green.

Alastair Humphreys

The cleverest and nicest man in the world of travel writing has just published a brilliant new book which you should definitely buy. And so has @robgmacfarlane... 😂 https://t.co/7tWMRoB08W https://t.co/2UmUfDUqpt [source]

Cal Flyn

Having climbed the highest heights in his debut Mountains of the Mind, Macfarlane now dives down to the lowest of the lows. He goes caving in limestone caverns deep underground, rattles through salt mines under the sea in carts and stumbles across (literal) underground subcultures in the Paris catacombs, all interwoven with learned digressions into geological epochs and classical conceptions of the underworld. What can I say? Macfarlane is the most remarkable writer. [source]

Jonathan Green

@mmbrenn yes the best book i read last year without question. beautiful. harrowing. [source]

20

Silent Spring

Rachel Carson

4.3

Preview Summary

Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was first published in three serialized excerpts in the New Yorker in June of 1962. The book appeared in September of that year and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s passionate concern for the future of our planet reverberated powerfully througho

Recommended by John Kerry.

John Kerry

I’d start with Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, which looked at how pesticide use was harming, and in some cases killing, animals and humans, and really was the first book of its kind to illustrate this environmental destruction. I’ve been so involved in the environment for years and years and that has been a great guideline – it was really the awakening, if you will, to the environmental movement and to the progress we’ve made over the last quarter century or more. [source]

21

The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism

Naomi Klein

4.2

Preview Summary

In her ground-breaking reporting from Iraq, Naomi Klein exposed how the trauma of invasion was being exploited to remake the country in the interest of foreign corporations. She called it "disaster capitalism." Covering Sri Lanka in the wake of the tsunami, and New Orleans post-Katrina, she witnessed something remarkably similar. People still reeling from catastrophe were being hit again, this tim

Recommended by Donna Dickenson, George Monbiot, and Mat Whitecross.

Donna Dickenson

Naomi Klein’s argument is that capitalism actually requires deliberately engineered shocks to the economic systems. [source]

George Monbiot

The Shock Doctrine explains some of the mechanisms by which patrimonial capital acquires power and enhances its wealth. It’s a brilliant piece of work, and one of those rare books that changes the way you perceive the world. [source]

Mat Whitecross

It starts with the theory that moments of crisis have been utilised by the right wing in the US and other countries to manipulate people into following their agenda. [source]

22

The Silk Roads: A New History of the World

Peter Frankopan

4.2

Preview Summary

The sun is setting on the Western world. Slowly but surely, the direction in which the world spins has reversed: where for the last five centuries the globe turned westwards on its axis, it now turns to the east...For centuries, fame and fortune was to be found in the west - in the New World of the Americas. Today, it is the east which calls out to those in search of adventure and riches. The regi

Recommended by Professor Frank Mcdonough and Raoul Pal.

Professor Frank Mcdonough

Christmas is coming and if you want to give a thought-provoking book to that history fan in your life then the recent books by the brilliant @peterfrankopan will satisfy. Some write books, this guy changes perceptions. https://t.co/gWZWZnv5TN [source]

Raoul Pal

@The92ers @zerohedge It’s fascinating. The Peter Frankopan book on the Silk Roads told history well from the perspective of Iran in particular [source]

23

Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change

Elizabeth Kolbert

4.2

Elizabeth Kolbert's environmental classic Field Notes from a Catastrophe first developed out of a groundbreaking, National Magazine Award-winning three-part series in The New Yorker. She expanded it into a still-concise yet richly researched and damning book about climate change: a primer on the greatest challenge facing the world today.

But in the years since, the story has continued to develop; t

Recommended by Gaia Vince and Kate Marvel.

Gaia Vince

Field Notes was refreshing, a trailblazer. Kolbert actually went to communities affected, on the frontline of climate change. [source]

Kate Marvel

Kolbert gives glimpses into what climate change actually means. She shows the interconnectedness of climate and ecosystems and society. [source]

24

The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth's Past Mass Extinctions

Peter Brannen

4.2

As new groundbreaking research suggests that climate change played a major role in the most extreme catastrophes in the planet's history, award-winning science journalist Peter Brannen takes us on a wild ride through the planet's five mass extinctions and, in the process, offers us a glimpse of our increasingly dangerous future

Our world has ended five times: it has been broiled, frozen, poison-ga

25

Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth - Updated Edition

Andrew H. Knoll

4.2

Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites--such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a

Recommended by Andrew Scott, Paul Falkowski, and Richard Fortey.

Andrew Scott

Knoll shows the intimate relationship between the evolution of life and the evolution of the planet. [source]

Paul Falkowski

What Andy has done is really exposed us to the world before animals and plants, when there was strong evidence of life but the world was totally controlled by single celled organisms, the protists. [source]

Richard Fortey

It’s very important, when we muck around with the atmosphere as we’re doing, to realise that what we have is actually a product of this ineffable and long period of planetary evolution. [source]

26

Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet

Mark Lynas

4.2

Recommended by Aleks Krotoski and Rosamund McDougall.

Aleks Krotoski

Watts has been looking at the small world phenomenon to identify whether the web itself has shrunk our world, and in fact it hasn’t. [source]

Rosamund McDougall

It’s a very fast-moving explicit scenario about what might happen on earth to all of us, with each degree of global warming temperature rise. [source]

27

Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History

Stephen Jay Gould

4.2

High in the Canadian Rockies is a small limestone quarry formed 530 million years ago called the Burgess Shale. It hold the remains of an ancient sea where dozens of strange creatures lived—a forgotten corner of evolution preserved in awesome detail. In this book Stephen Jay Gould explores what the Burgess Shale tells us about evolution and the nature of history.

Recommended by Richard Fortey.

Richard Fortey

Regarded almost as a demi-god, Gould’s written a number of good books. He writes extremely well, but the book that touched me most was this one. [source]

28

Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History

Erik Larson

4.2

National Bestseller

September 8, 1900, began innocently in the seaside town of Galveston, Texas. Even Isaac Cline, resident meteorologist for the U.S. Weather Bureau failed to grasp the true meaning of the strange deep-sea swells and peculiar winds that greeted the city that morning. Mere hours later, Galveston found itself submerged in a monster hurricane that completely destroyed the town and kil

Recommended by Deborah Blum.

Deborah Blum

That is exactly right – the Galveston Hurricane in 1900. It killed thousands of people. I was just thinking after this latest round of tornadoes what a storm-torn continent we are. But that was the worst of them. There has never been a hurricane like that to hit the United States and essentially to remove a community, destroy a generation living there. [source]

Cover unavailable

29

The Science Book: Everything You Need to Know About the World and How It Works

National Geographic and Marshall Brain

4.2

The Science Book: Everything You Need to Know About the World and How It Works encapsulates centuries of scientific thought in one volume. Natural phenomena, revolutionary inventions, scientific facts, and the most up-to-date questions are all explained in detailed text that is complemented by visually arresting graphics.

Six major sections ranging from the universe and the planet Earth to biology

30

Crystals for Beginners: The Guide to Get Started With the Healing Power of Crystals

Karen Frazier

4.2

AGATE:
• Reinforces the effects of other stones of the quartz family (mostly crystal clear).
• Tones and strengthens body and mind. Diffuses sense of strength and courage.
• Help discern the truths and accept circumstances.
• Chakras and working with attitudes in accordance with the color of the stone.
AGATE RED:
• Symbolizes strength. Stimulates curiosity and initiative.
• Help out of lethargy.
•

31

Inside the Earth (The Magic School Bus, #2)

Joanna Cole, Bruce Degen

4.2

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Scholastic is re-releasing the ten original Magic School Bus titles in paperback. With updated scientific information, the bestselling science series ever is back!

Rock collecting has never been quite like this! When the class forgets to do its homework, a fieldtrip through the Earth's crust, into the center of the Earth, and out through a volcano will teach them

32

The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements

Sam Kean

4.2

Why did Gandhi hate iodine (I, 53)? Why did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium (Cd, 48)? How did radium (Ra, 88) nearly ruin Marie Curie's reputation? And why did tellurium (Te, 52) lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history?

The periodic table is one of our crowning scientific achievements, but it's also a treasure trove of passion, adventure, betrayal and obsession. The f

Recommended by Michelle Francl and Timothy J. Jorgensen.

Michelle Francl

Sam Kean brings the periodic table to life with the stories you didn’t hear in high school chemistry but will wish you did. [source]

Timothy J. Jorgensen

I do like the story of radium. [source]

33

What the Eyes Don't See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City

Mona Hanna-Attisha

4.2

The dramatic story of the Flint water crisis--an inspiring tale of scientific resistance by a relentless physician who stood up to power.

Flint was already a troubled city in 2014 when the state of Michigan--in the name of austerity--shifted the source of its water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River. Soon after, citizens began complaining about the water that flowed from their taps--but offi

Recommended by Lexi Alexander.

Lexi Alexander

Congrats Doctor Hanna-Attisha. Well deserved. It’s a great book https://t.co/XgoMjECOOW [source]

34

The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet

Robert M. Hazen

4.2

Hailed by The New York Times for writing “with wonderful clarity about science . . . that effortlessly teaches as it zips along,” nationally bestselling author Robert M. Hazen offers a radical new approach to Earth history in this intertwined tale of the planet’s living and nonliving spheres. With an astrobiologist’s imagination, a historian’s perspective, and a naturalist’s eye, Hazen calls upon

35

Water Is Water: A Book About the Water Cycle

Miranda Paul, Jason Chin

4.2

Drip. Sip. Pour me a cup. Water is water unless...it heats up.
Whirl. Swirl. Watch it curl by. Steam is steam unless...it cools high.

This spare, poetic picture book follows a group of kids as they move through all the different phases of the water cycle. From rain to fog to snow to mist, talented author Miranda Paul and the always remarkable Jason Chin (Redwoods, Coral Reefs, Island, Gravity) combi

36

Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses

Robin Wall Kimmerer

4.2

Living at the limits of our ordinary perception, mosses are a common but largely unnoticed element of the natural world. Gathering Moss is a beautifully written mix of science and personal reflection that invites readers to explore and learn from the elegantly simple lives of mosses.Robin Wall Kimmerer's book is not an identification guide, nor is it a scientific treatise. Rather, it is a series o

Recommended by Caspar Henderson.

Caspar Henderson

She writes vividly about what it’s like to walk across moss in bare feet and to notice it for the first time and to notice the incredible world within moss and the creatures that live within it. [source]

37

Earth Science

Edward J. Tarbuck, Frederick K. Lutgens, et al.

4.2

For introductory courses in earth science.
Use dynamic media to bring Earth Science to life Earth Science answers the need for a straightforward text that excites readers about the world around them. Perfect for individuals with little-to-no background in science, the text covers geology, oceanography, meteorology, and astronomy clearly and without technical jargon. Tarbuck, Lutgens, and Tasa are

38

Let's Review Earth Science: The Physical Setting

Edward J. Denecke Jr.

4.2

Always study with the most up-to-date prep! Look for Let's Review Regents: Earth Science--Physical Setting 2020, ISBN 978-1-5062-5398-5, on sale January 07, 2020.

Publisher's Note: Products purchased from third-party sellers are not guaranteed by the publisher for quality, authenticity, or access to any online entitles included with the product.

39

Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge

Terence McKenna

4.2

s/t: A Radical History of Plants, Drugs & Human Evolution
For the first time in paperback, the critically acclaimed counterculture manifesto by the wildly popular McKenna. "Deserves to be a modern classic on mind-altering drugs & hallucinogens."--The Washington Post. Photos & illustrations.

40

The Street Beneath My Feet

Charlotte Guillain, Yuval Zommer

4.1

This double-sided foldout book takes you on a fascinating journey deep underground. One side of the foldout shows the ground beneath the city, whilst the other side of the foldout shows the ground beneath the countryside. The scenes in the book, by the widely acclaimed illustrator Yuval Zommer, are continuous, so contrasting underground sections, from tunnels and pipes to burrowing creatures, laye

41

Trapped in a Video Game: The Complete Series

Dustin Brady

4.1

Five books in one box! With nonstop action, huge plot twists, and tons of humor, this series will quickly have your 7- to 12-year-old video game fan begging for just one more chapter.

Getting sucked into a video game is not as much fun as you'd think. Sure, there are jetpacks, hover tanks, and infinite lives, but what happens when the game starts to turn on you? In this best-selling series, 12-year

42

The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World

Michael Pollan

4.1

Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—s

Recommended by David George Haskell and Kenneth Cox.

David George Haskell

Through the stories of four familiar plant species–apples, tulips, marijuana, and potatoes–he demolishes the erroneous impression that we’re in charge. [source]

Kenneth Cox

You can’t fail to be fascinated by this exposition of the motivations of plants to cuddle up to humans. One of several excellent Michael Pollan books, it’s a fun read. [source]

43

All That the Rain Promises and More: A Hip Pocket Guide to Western Mushrooms

David Arora

4.1

Full-color illustrated guide to identifying 200 Western mushrooms by their key features.

44

Scribble Stones

Diane Alber

4.1

Friendship, fun, and romance await you in Berry High's theatre class...if you can make it through your first day!

Reading Progress Percentage:
1) 7%
2) 13%
3) 20%
4) 27%
5) 33%
6) 40%
7) 47%
8) 53%
9) 60%
10) 67%
11) 73%
12) 80%
13) 87%
14) 93%
15) 100%

45

The Last Kids on Earth Collection 4 Books Set By Max Brallier Netflix Original

Max Brallier and Douglas Holgate

4.1

46

History of the World Map by Map

DK Publishing

4.1

More than 140 detailed maps tell the story of pivotal episodes in world history, from the first human migrations out of Africa to the space race.

Custom regional and global maps present the history of the world in action, charting how events traced patterns on land and ocean--patterns of exploration, discovery, or conquest that created empires, colonies, or theaters of war. Thoughtful organization

47

Overwatch: The Official Cookbook

Chelsea Monroe-Cassel

4.1

Cook up more than ninety recipes inspired by the heroes of Blizzard Entertainment’s hit game with Overwatch: The Official Cookbook.

Based on Blizzard Entertainment’s global phenomenon Overwatch, this official cookbook is packed with scores of authentic recipes inspired by the game’s diverse heroes hailing from all corners of the universe.

Building from the game’s compelling narrative and variety of

Recommended by Anjali Bhimani.

Anjali Bhimani

@westofhouse It’s such a great book, I’m paralyzed by indecision what recipe to make first!!! [source]

48

The Emerald Planet: How Plants Changed Earth's History

David Beerling

4.1

Global warming is contentious and difficult to measure, even among the majority of scientists who agree that it is taking place. Will temperatures rise by 2C or 8C over the next hundred years? Will sea levels rise by 2 or 30 feet? The only way that we can accurately answer questions like these is by looking into the distant past, for a comparison with the world long before the rise of mankind. We

Recommended by Andrew Scott and Jonathan Silvertown.

Andrew Scott

Beerling clearly shows that plants shaped the world in which we live and played a more important role on the evolution of our planet that is often acknowledged. [source]

Jonathan Silvertown

The Emerald Planet is a serious talking to about why plants must not be ignored. [source]

49

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

Neil deGrasse Tyson

4.1

Preview Summary

What is the nature of space and time? How do we fit within the universe? How does the universe fit within us? There’s no better guide through these mind-expanding questions than acclaimed astrophysicist and best-selling author Neil deGrasse Tyson.

But today, few of us have time to contemplate the cosmos. So Tyson brings the universe down to Earth succinctly and clearly, with sparkling wit, in tasty

Recommended by Vinod Khosla.

Vinod Khosla

Co-Founder/Sun Microsystem

Great, very quick overview of astrophysics. Easily accessible. [source]

50

The Death and Life of the Great Lakes

Dan Egan

4.1

A master reporter’s landmark work of contemporary ecology.

The Great Lakes hold 20 percent of the world’s freshwater, and they provide food, work, and weekend fun for tens of millions of Americans. Yet they are under threat as never before.

In a work of narrative reporting in the vein of Rachel Carson and Elizabeth Kolbert, prize-winning reporter Dan Egan delivers an eye-opening portrait of our nati

51

The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World

Steve Brusatte

4.1

Brusatte traces the evolution of dinosaurs from their inauspicious start as small shadow dwellers—themselves the beneficiaries of a mass extinction caused by volcanic eruptions at the beginning of the Triassic period—into the dominant array of species every wide-eyed child memorizes today, T. rex, Triceratops, Brontosaurus, and more. This gifted scientist and writer re-creates the dinosaurs’ peak

52

Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World

Paul Stamets

4.1

Mycelium Running is a manual for the mycological rescue of the planet. That’s right: growing more mushrooms may be the best thing we can do to save the environment, and in this groundbreaking text from mushroom expert Paul Stamets, you’ll find out how.

The basic science goes like this: Microscopic cells called “mycelium”--the fruit of which are mushrooms--recycle carbon, nitrogen, and other essenti

53

All About Weather: A First Weather Book for Kids

Huda Harajli

4.1

Get ready―let’s go on a weather adventure!

Welcome to the wonderful world of weather! Of all the weather books for kids, All About Weather has been specifically created to educate and entertain children ages 3 to 5.

From the warm, balmy days of summer to the cold, crisp nights of winter, youngsters will learn all about the four seasons, as well as what the sun is, how clouds form, why it rains, what

54

Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000

L. Ron Hubbard

4.1

Suspense, politics, war, humor and intergalactic finance. A towering masterwork of science fiction adventure and one of the best-selling science fiction novels of all time, L. Ron Hubbard's Battlefield Earth opens with breathtaking scope on an Earth dominated for 1,000 years by an alien invader and man is an endangered species. From the handful of surviving humans a courageous leader emerges Jonni

Recommended by Edward Parkin.

Edward Parkin

A totally amazing book. https://t.co/9dBO8bqYSi [source]

55

Kindness Rocks

Sonica Ellis

4.1

Cover unavailable

56

Everything You Need to Ace Science in One Big Fat Notebook: The Complete Middle School Study Guide

Workman Publishing, Michael Geisen, et al.

4.1

It’s the revolutionary science study guide just for middle school students from the brains behind Brain Quest.

Everything You Need to Ace Science . . . takes readers from scientific investigation and the engineering design process to the Periodic Table; forces and motion; forms of energy; outer space and the solar system; to earth sciences, biology, body systems, ecology, and more.

The BIG FAT NOTE

Cover unavailable

57

The Book of Stones: Who They Are and What They Teach

Robert Simmons, Naisha Ahsian, et al.

4.1

Often dubbed the "crystals bible," this comprehensive reference guide to the spiritual and healing qualities of 455 sacred stones has become the go-to book for looking up the properties of gems and minerals. Each entry includes vivid color photographs for each stone to aid identification and to showcase its beauty, as well as listing its scientific information, its element and chakra correspondenc

58

Caesar's Last Breath: Decoding the Secrets of the Air Around Us

Sam Kean

4.1

It's invisible. It's ever-present. Without it, you would die in minutes. And it has an epic story to tell.

In Caesar's Last Breath, New York Times bestselling author Sam Kean takes us on a journey through the periodic table, around the globe, and across time to tell the story of the air we breathe, which, it turns out, is also the story of earth and our existence on it.

With every breath, you litera

59

The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming

David Wallace-Wells

4.1

It is worse, much worse, than you think. If your anxiety about global warming is dominated by fears of sea-level rise, you are barely scratching the surface of what terrors are possible. In California, wildfires now rage year-round, destroying thousands of homes. Across the US, "500-year" storms pummel communities month after month, and floods displace tens of millions annually.

This is only a prev

Recommended by Elizabeth Kolbert, Gerald Butts, Jonathan Safran Foer, and 1 others.

Elizabeth Kolbert

Author

David Wallace-Wells argues that the impacts of climate change will be much graver than most people realize, and he's right. The Uninhabitable Earth is a timely and provocative work. [source]

Gerald Butts

This is a terrific book. Not as depressing as it may sound, even oddly hopeful in the end. Great read if you suddenly have time on your hands. https://t.co/2Bo5DeT3Aa [source]

Jonathan Safran Foer

Most of us know the gist, if not the details, of the climate change crisis. And yet it is almost impossible to sustain strong feelings about it. David Wallace-Wells has now provided the details, and with writing that is not only clear and forceful, but often imaginative and even funny, he has found a way to make the information deeply felt. [source]

60

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Rocks and Minerals

National Audubon Society

4.1

Perfect for mountain climbers and hikers, this valuable reference covers more rocks and minerals in North America than any other available guide. 794 full-color photographs depict all the important rocks, gems, and minerals -- in many variations of color and crystal form -- and the natural environments in which they occur; written descriptions provide information on field marks, similar rocks and

61

Oxygen: The Molecule That Made the World

Nick Lane

4.1

In Oxygen, Nick Lane takes the reader on an enthralling journey as he unravels the unexpected ways in which oxygen spurred the evolution of life and death. He shows how oxygen underpins the origin of biological complexity, the birth of photosynthesis, the sudden evolution of animals, the need for two sexes, the accelerated aging of cloned animals like Dolly the sheep, and the surprisingly long liv

62

Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883

Simon Winchester

4.1

The bestselling author of The Professor and the Madman and The Map That Changed the World examines the enduring and world-changing effects of the catastrophic eruption off the coast of Java of the earth's most dangerous volcano — Krakatoa.

The legendary annihilation in 1883 of the volcano-island of Krakatoa — the name has since become a byword for a cataclysmic disaster — was followed by an immens

Cover unavailable

63

Ocean Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of the World under the Sea

Julia Rothman

4.1

Julia Rothman’s best-selling illustrated Anatomy series takes a deep dive into the wonders of the sea with Ocean Anatomy. Follow Rothman’s inquisitive mind and engaging artwork along shorelines, across the open ocean, and below the waves to explore the hows and whys of the watery universe, from how the world’s oceans formed to why the sea is salty. Oceanic phenomena such as rogue waves, anatomical

64

How to Dig a Hole to the Other Side of the World

Faith McNulty, Marc Simont

4.1

‘[An] irresistible account of a child’s imaginary 8,000-mile journey through the earth to discover what’s inside. Facts about the composition of the earth are conveyed painlessly and memorably.’ —SLJ. ‘An exciting adventure. . . . Illustrations [by Caldecott Medal winner Marc Simont] explode with color and action.’ —CS. Best Books of 1979 (SLJ)
Children's Choices for 1980 (IRA/CBC)
A Reading Rainbow

65

An Inconvenient Truth: The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It

Al Gore

4.1

Book by Al Gore

Recommended by Richard Branson.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

66

The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World

Andrea Wulf

4.1

The acclaimed author of Founding Gardeners reveals the forgotten life of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world—and in the process created modern environmentalism.

Alexander von Humboldt (1769 – 1859) was an intrepid explorer and the most famous scientist of his age. In North America, his name still graces four counties, thirtee

67

A Rock Is Lively

Dianna Hutts Aston, Sylvia Long

4.1

From the award-winning creators of An Egg Is Quiet, A Seed Is Sleepy, and A Butterfly Is Patient comes a gorgeous and informative introduction to the fascinating world of rocks. From dazzling blue lapis lazuli to volcanic snowflake obsidian, an incredible variety of rocks are showcased in all their splendor. Poetic in voice and elegant in design, this book introduces an array of facts, making it e

68

Timefulness: How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World

Marcia Bjornerud

4.1

Why an awareness of Earth's temporal rhythms is critical to our planetary survival

Few of us have any conception of the enormous timescales in our planet's long history, and this narrow perspective underlies many of the environmental problems we are creating for ourselves. The passage of nine days, which is how long a drop of water typically stays in Earth's atmosphere, is something we can easily g

69

The Dinosaur Hunters: A True Story of Scientific Rivalry and the Discovery of the Prehistoric World

Deborah Cadbury

4.0

The story of two nineteenth-century scientists who revealed one of the most significant and exciting events in the natural history of this planet: the existence of dinosaurs. In 'The Dinosaur Hunters' Deborah Cadbury brilliantly recreates the remarkable story of the bitter rivalry between two men: Gideon Mantell uncovered giant bones in a Sussex quarry, became obsessed with the lost world of the r

Recommended by Paul Barrett.

Paul Barrett

This [source]

70

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Weather

David M. Ludlum

4.0

Interest in our nation's weather patterns is rising -- as witnessed in the popularity of the Weather Channel -- and this guide is the most popular reference to every type of weather system, cloud formation, and atmospheric phenomenon common to North America. The 378 dramatic photographs capture cloud types, precipitation, storms, twisters, and optical phenomena such as the Northern Lights. Essays

71

Bringing Nature Home: How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens

Douglas W. Tallamy

4.0

As development and subsequent habitat destruction accelerate, there are increasing pressures on wildlife populations. But there is an important and simple step toward reversing this alarming trend: Everyone with access to a patch of earth can make a significant contribution toward sustaining biodiversity.

There is an unbreakable link between native plant species and native wildlife—native insects c

72

American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America

Colin Woodard

4.0

- A New Republic Best Book of the Year - The Globalist Top Books of the Year - Winner of the Maine Literary Award for Non-fiction -

Particularly relevant in understanding who voted for who in this presidential election year, this is an endlessly fascinating look at American regionalism and the eleven "nations" that continue to shape North America

According to award-winning journalist and historian

73

The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth: Understanding Our World and Its Ecosystems

Rachel Ignotofsky

4.0

An illustrated journey through the world’s ecosystems that chronicles the plants and animals that live there and explains how they–and planet Earth–work, from the New York Times best-selling author of Women in Science.

Beautifully combining art and science, The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth is an illustrated tour of the planet that reveals ecosystems large and small, from reefs, deserts, and ra

74

Ricky, the Rock That Couldn't Roll

Jay Miletsky

4.0

Get ready to meet a new rock group! From zippy, little pebbles to big strong boulders, the rocks (and their ladybug friend) get together to play and roll around their favorite hill, only to find that one of their friends, Ricky, can't roll with them. Unlike all of the others, who are all round, Ricky can't roll because he's flat on one side. Determined not to leave their friend behind, the rocks a

75

Nature's Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard

Douglas W. Tallamy

4.0

Douglas W. Tallamy’s first book, Bringing Nature Home, sparked a national conversation about the link between healthy local ecosystems and human well-being. In Nature's Best Hope, he takes the next step and outlines his vision for a grassroots, home-grown approach to conservation.

Nature's Best Hope advocates for homeowners everywhere to turn their yards into conservation corridors that provide wi

76

I Am Earth: An Earth Day Book for Kids

James McDonald and Rebecca McDonald

4.0

I Am Earth introduces kids to the basic concepts of earth science while also encouraging the importance of taking care of our special planet through environmental awareness and sustainability. Keeping Earth a happy healthy place to live is important for everyone big and small. In this Earth science book for beginners, kids learn what makes our planet so uniquely special and how people can work tog

77

The Diversity of Life

Edward O. Wilson

4.0

In this book a master scientist tells the story of how life on earth evolved. Edward O. Wilson eloquently describes how the species of the world became diverse and why that diversity is threatened today as never before. A great spasm of extinction — the disappearance of whole species — is occurring now, caused this time entirely by humans. Unlike the deterioration of the physical environment, whic

Recommended by Beth Shapiro.

Beth Shapiro

I should start by saying that in my field, genetics, stuff that people publish is generally out of date within six months. The kind of literature I read is really fast-moving, short papers published in journals, and there’s often a rush to get them out. There are a few books that everybody reads. I chose this book, The Diversity of Life as E. O. Wilson is really well known as the king of biodiversity studies. He’s a conservation biologist, a really deep-thinking ecologist and he cares a lot about understanding how life exists, the diversity of life that exists, how many species there are, how many different habitats there are, and in particular what our influence on these different habitats has been. [source]

78

Psilocybin Mushrooms of the World: An Identification Guide

Paul Stamets

4.0

From the author of GROWING GOURMET AND MEDICINAL MUSHROOMS comes the only identification guide exclusively devoted to the world's psilocybin-containing mushrooms. Detailed descriptions and color photographs for over 100 species are provided, as well as an exploration of their long-standing (and often religious) use by ancient peoples and their continued significance to modern-day culture. Some of

79

The One-Straw Revolution

Masanobu Fukuoka

4.0

Fukuoka demonstrates how the way we look at farming influences the way we look at health, the school, nature, nutrition, spiritual health and life itself. He joins the healing of the land to the process of purifying the human spirit and proposes a way of life and a way of farming in which such healing can take place.

80

The World Without Us

Alan Weisman

4.0

Preview Summary

A penetrating, page-turning tour of a post-human Earth

In The World Without Us, Alan Weisman offers an utterly original approach to questions of humanity's impact on the planet: he asks us to envision our Earth, without us. In this far-reaching narrative, Weisman explains how our massive infrastructure would collapse and finally vanish without human presence; which everyday items may become immorta

Recommended by Richard Branson.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

81

The Magic School Bus Blows Its Top: A Book About Volcanoes

Gail Herman, Joanna Cole, Bob Ostrom

4.0

Ms. Frizzle's class is having a hard time putting together a giant globe of the world. A piece is missing...an island so new it hasn't been discovered yet! Before they know it, the kids are beneath the oceans's surface, exploring an underwater volcano. Join the class as they learn about volcanoes.

82

Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time

Dava Sobel

4.0

Anyone alive in the eighteenth century would have known that "the longitude problem" was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day—and had been for centuries. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land. Thousands of lives, and the increasing fortunes of nations, hung on a resol

Recommended by Richard Branson.

Richard Branson

Founder/Virgin Group

Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]

83

The Big Ones: How Natural Disasters Have Shaped Us and What We Can Do about Them

Dr. Lucy Jones

4.0

By a veteran seismologist of the U.S. Geological Survey, a lively and revealing history of the world's most disruptive natural disasters, their impact on our culture, and new ways of thinking about the ones to come

Natural disasters emerge from the same forces that give our planet life. Earthquakes have provided us with natural springs. Volcanoes have given us fertile soil. A world without floods w

84

The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks

Joanna Cole, Bruce Degen

4.0

When Ms. Frizzle, the strangest teacher in school, takes her class on a field trip to the waterworks, everyone ends up experiencing the water purification system from the inside.

85

The Science of Self: Man, God and the Mathematical Language of Nature (Volume I)

Supreme Understanding

4.0

THIS BOOK WILL CHANGE THE WAY YOU SEE SCIENCE
The Science of Self is a dynamic tour of reality, covering the formation of our universe, the development of life, and the laws that govern these processes and personify themselves as Man. The book introduces readers to hundreds of scientific fields, peering into what quantum mechanics, genetics, anthropology, mathematics, and archaeology have to say ab

86

My First Book About Our Amazing Earth

Patricia J. Wynne and Donald M. Silver

4.0

What is our planet made of? Why do volcanoes erupt, and where are fossils found? These and other questions are answered in this engaging, well-researched coloring book. My First Book About Our Amazing Earth explores the scientific facts behind everything from rocks and minerals to earthquakes, tsunamis, the water cycle, mountain formation, and more.
Forty-six fun-to-color illustrations with easy-t

87

Rocks & Minerals

Chris Pellant

4.0

Created in association with Smithsonian Institution, this authoritative guide features more than 500 rocks and minerals. Packed with photographs and details on characteristics, distinguishing features, and more, Smithsonian Handbooks: Rocks and Minerals makes identification easy.

Designed for beginning and experienced collectors alike, this guide explains what rocks and minerals are, how they are c

88

Origins: The Evolution of Continents, Oceans, and Life

Ron Redfern

4.0

Changes in climate and sea level are nothing new - over the last 700 million years, the Earth has been slowly but constantly changing from within. We now know that our planet’s surface, far from being fixed or stable, is composed of tectonic plates in continual movement, drifting in oceans which themselves appear and disappear over millennia. Such insecurity lies at the heart of both the physical

Cover unavailable

89

Gemstone Crystal Properties

Inc. BarCharts

4.0

Identify 135 of the most sought after and popular gemstones, minerals and crystals through photos and descriptions of color variety, luster and transparency range. Scientific and metaphysical properties of each gemstone plus significant meanings or historical uses, or how it is formed.

Suggested uses:

o Buying Guide – identify metaphysical or historical uses of stones for you personally or as a me

90

Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming

Paul Hawken

4.0

- New York Times bestseller -

The 100 most substantive solutions to reverse global warming, based on meticulous research by leading scientists and policymakers around the world

"At this point in time, the Drawdown book is exactly what is needed; a credible, conservative solution-by-solution narrative that we can do it. Reading it is an effective inoculation against the widespread perception of doom

Recommended by Andreas Kuhlmann, Jessica Rolph, John Elkington, and 1 others.

Andreas Kuhlmann

Drawdown is an exceptional example of cooperation between some of the sharpest thinkers on climate and energy matters, an atlas that has the potential to save the planet. [source]

Jessica Rolph

This book is a beautiful, inspiring, and deeply satisfying read. Most importantly it is no more doom and gloom. It is OPTIMISTIC and empowering. Paul Hawken is a true visionary and a brilliant voice for real solutions. [source]

John Elkington

I am blown away by Drawdown. Like hearing an advance copy of Sergeant Pepper, back in the day. [source]

91

The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology

Simon Winchester

4.0

In 1793, a canal digger named William Smith made a startling discovery. He found that by tracing the placement of fossils, which he uncovered in his excavations, one could follow layers of rocks as they dipped and rose and fell -- clear across England and, indeed, clear across the world -- making it possible, for the first time ever, to draw a chart of the hidden underside of the earth. Determined

92

Awesome Science Experiments for Kids: 100+ Fun Steam Projects and Why They Work!

Crystal Chatterton

4.0

Cover unavailable

93

Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us About Ourselves

James Nestor

4.0

“An engaging exploration of the depths of the world's oceans and the human connection to the rapidly changing world below. This is popular science writing at its best." — Christian Science Monitor

“The reader could not wish for a better guide … Deep is a fascinating, informative, exhilarating book.” — Wall Street Journal

“The deeper [Nestor] ventures into the ocean, the more dramatic and unusual t

94

Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures

Merlin Sheldrake

4.0

Preview Summary

A mind-bending journey into the hidden world of fungi that will change your understanding of life on earth

"A dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing book . . . I ended it wonderstruck at the fungal world--the secrets of which modern science is only now beginning to fathom."--Robert Macfarlane, author of Underland

When we think of fungi, we likely think of mushrooms. But mushrooms are only fruiting bodi

95

Life: A Natural History of the First Four Billion Years of Life on Earth

Richard Fortey

4.0

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice

"Extraordinary. . . . Anyone with the slightest interest in biology should read this book."--The New York Times Book Review

"A marvelous museum of the past four billion years on earth--capacious, jammed with treasures, full of learning and wide-eyed wonder."--The Boston Globe

From its origins on the still-forming planet to the recent emergence of Homo sapi

96

The Water Will Come: Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World

Jeff Goodell

4.0

What if Atlantis wasn't a myth, but an early precursor to a new age of great flooding? Across the globe, scientists and civilians alike are noticing rapidly rising sea levels, and higher and higher tides pushing more water directly into the places we live, from our most vibrant, historic cities to our last remaining traditional coastal villages. With each crack in the great ice sheets of the Arcti

Recommended by John Green and Elizabeth Kolbert.

John Green

Author

This harrowing, compulsively readable, and carefully researched book lays out in clear-eyed detail what Earth's changing climate means for us today, and what it will mean for future generations... It's a thriller in which the hero in peril is us [source]

Elizabeth Kolbert

Author

Jeff Goodell has taken on some of the most important issues of our time, from coal mining to geoengineering. In The Water Will Come, he explains the threat of sea level rise with characteristic rigor and intelligence. The result is at once deeply persuasive and deeply unsettling. [source]

97

Whose Boat Is This Boat?: Comments That Don't Help in the Aftermath of a Hurricane

The Staff of The Late Show with…

4.0

100% of The Late Show’s proceeds from this book go to disaster relief.

Whose Boat Is This Boat? Comments That Don’t Help in the Aftermath of a Hurricane is a picture book made entirely of quotations from President Donald Trump in the wake of Hurricane Florence. It is the first children’s book that demonstrates what not to say after a natural disaster.

On September 19, 2018, Donald Trump paid a visit

98

Journey to the Center of the Earth (Extraordinary Voyages, #3)

Jules Verne

4.0

The intrepid Professor Liedenbrock embarks upon the strangest expedition of the nineteenth century: a journey down an extinct Icelandic volcano to the Earth's very core. In his quest to penetrate the planet's primordial secrets, the geologist--together with his quaking nephew Axel and their devoted guide, Hans--discovers an astonishing subterranean menagerie of prehistoric proportions. Verne's ima

Recommended by Roxana Bitoleanu, Simon Winchester, and Tullis Onstott.

Roxana Bitoleanu

If I have to choose only one non-business book I would pick Jules Verne's "A journey to the center of the earth", as a symbolic journey to the unknown, deep down, just like our personal search for meaning, for our inner driver. [source]

Simon Winchester

A fantastic piece of science fiction – it’s basically about explorers who want to know what’s inside the earth. [source]

Tullis Onstott

The book has just enough science that it seems real. [source]

99

Planet Earth: What Planet Are You On? (Basher Science)

Simon Basher and Dan Gilpin

4.0

Basher Science: Planet Earth, What planet are you on? Created & illustrated by Simon Basher, written by Dan Gilpin

From Basher, the illustrator who showed the periodic table in a whole new light and gave us his fresh spin on physics, biology, astronomy and rocks and minerals, comes Planet Earth, a book that sheds light on this rock we live on, from its mountains and ocean depths to the storms that

100

National Geographic Kids Everything Volcanoes and Earthquakes

Kathy Furgang

4.0

The natural world experts at National Geographic have compiled the perfect reference book for readers aged 8 to 12. Filled with fabulous photos and peppered with great facts, this is a must-have for all young nature lovers, sure to satisfy kids' curiosity about natural disasters and the powers of nature.

National Geographic Kids Everything Volcanoes and Earthquakes explodes with incredible photos a