Mega Science Book Review #STEM Part 1

Disclosure: I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This Saturday we are going to STEM Saturday at Hazel's school. In honor of STEM Saturday I am sharing several science books with you. We will cover animals, plants, space and more!! Are you ready? We will start with some general science and information books. Our first book is What Would Happen? by Crispin Boyer. 

Ok, this one is not completely just science, but most of it is. Have you ever wonder what if? This book is for you. It answers many silly questions like "What if you ate nothing but ice cream?" or "What if the Earth had rings like Saturn?" Do you have any of those kinds of questions you want to know the answers? Well this book has the answers and they are serious and well researched. Want to know what will happen if we run out of fossil fuels? It is in here. Or how about what would happen if Thomas Jefferson did not make the Louisiana Purchase?

This book is wonderful and packed full of scientific answers to some very silly yet interesting questions. It will peak your curiosity as well as get your child feeling like a know-it-all. Be sure to check it out!

Our next book is A World of Information by James Brown and Richard Platt. This book is packed full about a variety of topics. There are things like knot classifications to regular polygons and the periodic table of elements. Each topic has a two-page spread. It goes into history, science and more depending on the topic. There are illustrations for each page as well. 

So what does your child want to know about? It is probably in here. This book is a must have for reference in any home. It gives quick information on such a huge range of topics. I hope you will check it out!!

Our next book is Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved a Mystery that Baffled All of France by Mara Rockliff and illustrated by Iacopo Bruno. Now when studying the United States Revolutionary War (or just by watching Liberty's Kids like we do all the time), you learn that Ben Franklin went to France to try to talk King Louis XVI into supporting America in fighting England. However when he was there all of Paris was talking about Dr. Mesmer. Mesmer claimed to be curing people using a new force that people could not see or feel. Ben being the scientist he was, wanted to know more. He investigated and discovered there was no force. I will leave it there for you to discover the rest of this interesting story. However the word "mesmerized" comes from Dr. Mesmer and his cure.

The illustrations in this book are a bit cartoonish for lack of a better word. There is a lot going on in them. It does a wonderful job of explaining the scientific method with a wonderful example of Ben's investigation. 

For more general science check out STEM in Summer, Spring into Science, Learning Some Science Part 1, Science Fun, Girls Who Code, Ibn al-Haytham, Jack and the Geniuses, and Science DVDs. 

Our next book is A Journey Through Transport by John Haslam and illustrated Chris Oxlade. Since man has been alive he has been on the move. How has moving progressed? From walking to horses and chariots to space shuttles it is all in this book. Take the historic journey through how we get from here to there. Do you know where the first car was built and when? What about the history of bicycles? This book goes through a bit of everything and then has some quizzes and activities at the end. See what you can learn?

For more on transportation check out: Trains and Charlie Rides. 

Speaking of transportation let's go to space and talk about transportation. Our next book is Space Machines: Build Your Own Working Machines by Ian Graham and illustrated by Carles Ballesteros. This book goes into various space transportation. It includes rockets, shuttles and rovers. Then there are some to build with punch out sheets on a peg board.

Check out the Mars Rover. Isn't it fun? It reminds me of my post on Life on Mars and Bethany Ehlmann. There is a place to move the scoop up and down. I do wish they were more three-dimensional so kids could actually play with the space machines, but I love that you can keep rebuilding them. They are fairly easy to build. Some of the cardboard holes are a bit tight, but they will loosen the more they are played with. So get this fun, interactive book for your space engineer.

Our final book for tonight is National Geographics Kids Ultimate Space Atlas. Do you have a child who loves space? Hazel does and even more so Steven does. This book has a bit of everything space-related. It has everything from constellations, our solar system, the Milky Way, and beyond. There is so much information packed into this book. I haven't gotten too much alone time with this book. Steve and Hazel keep taking it from me. They love it. It is packed full of information and then has a few activities at the end for kids. I can see why they like it. It has real photographs as well as facts and details. I also love how it "looks" into the future with space hotels on Mars and more. In the beginning of the book there is also a caution to kids to make sure when going on-line or outside and of course not to look directly at the sun. This is perfect for any space loving person!! Be sure to check it out!!

For more on space be sure to visit Endeavour's Long Journey, Back-to-school Science Lessons Part 2, Add STEM to Your Summer, Katherine Johnson, Summertime Family Fun, Mars, Women from Hidden Figures, and  Phases of the Moon and Ramadan.

Well these are the first half of our space books. Next week we will do the rest of them on animals and plants. I hope you will join us. For now be sure to check out these great books!! I know you will love them and so will your kids!