Did you once dream of becoming a swash-buckling pirate, of unearthing dinosaur bones in far-off deserts, or of blasting into the stars on a mission to Mars? Maybe you imagined living in a royal palace, building epic LEGO worlds, or discovering uncharted lands. The good news is that it's never too late to dive back into these dreams! This list of books is packed full of real-life adventures, fascinating facts, and epic discoveries. Whether you're finding new planets, braving the Antarctic's frozen expanse, or preparing for your royal debut, these reads are sure to reignite your childhood sense of wonder.
Alien earths : the new science of planet hunting in the cosmos
Kaltenegger, Lisa, 1977- author.
523.24 /Kaltenegger
Nonfiction, Science
For thousands of years, humans have wondered whether we're alone in the cosmos. Now, for the first time, we have the technology to investigate. Astrophysicist Lisa Kaltenegger has built a team of tenacious scientists from many disciplines to create a specialized toolkit to find life on faraway worlds. In "Alien Earths," she demonstrates how we can use our homeworld as a Rosetta Stone, creatively analyzing Earth's history and its astonishing biosphere to inform this search. With infectious enthusiasm, she takes us on an eye-opening journey to the most unusual exoplanets that have shaken our worldview - planets covered in oceans of lava, lonely wanderers lost in space, and others with more than one sun in their sky! With the James Webb Space Telescope and Dr. Kaltenegger's pioneering work, she shows that we live in an incredible new epoch of exploration.
The LEGO story : how a little toy sparked the world's imagination
Andersen, Jens, 1955- author.
338.7688725 /Andersen
Nonfiction, Business, History
The extraordinary inside story of the LEGO company--producer of the most beloved and popular toy on the planet--based on unprecedented access to the founding family that still owns the company, chronicling the brand's improbable journey to become the empire that it is today.
Did LEGO-building become your pandemic hobby that never went away? Have you ever cursed a brick that found its way underfoot? Whether you're a Master Builder or a casual fan, Jens Andersen's deep dive into the origin of the toy that shaped the world is great for anyone who has ever enjoyed the creativity that is LEGO.
- Madison C
The underworld : journeys to the depths of the ocean
Casey, Susan, 1962- author.
551.46 /Casey
Nonfiction, Nature, Science
For all of human history, the deep ocean has been a source of wonder and terror, an unknown realm that evoked a singular, compelling question: What's down there? Unable to answer this for centuries, people believed the deep was a sinister realm of fiendish creatures and deadly peril. Now, cutting-edge technologies allow scientists and explorers to dive miles beneath the surface, and we are beginning to understand this strange and exotic underworld: A place of soaring mountains, smoldering volcanoes, and valleys 7,000 feet deeper than Everest is high. For "The Underworld," Susan Casey traversed the globe, joining scientists and explorers on dives to the deepest places on the planet, interviewing the marine geologists, marine biologists, and oceanographers who are searching for knowledge in this vast unseen realm. Throughout this journey, she learned how vital the deep is to the future of the planet, and how urgent it is that we understand it in a time of increasing threats from climate change, industrial fishing, pollution, and the mining companies that are also exploring its depths.
As scientists continue to study the vast reaches of space's "final frontier," only five percent of Earth's oceans have been explored. From total darkness, extreme cold, and crushing pressures, discovering the fathomless parts of Earth's watery depths is not for the faint of heart. In "The Underworld," Susan Casey takes readers on a first-hand exploration of our planet's deepest, darkest seas, where Earth's greatest mysteries have yet to be discovered.
- Madison C
The rise and fall of the dinosaurs : a new history of a lost world
Brusatte, Stephen, author.
567.9 /Brusatte
Nonfiction, History, Nature, Science
A sweeping narrative scientific history that tells the epic story of the dinosaurs, examining their origins, their habitats, their extinction, and their living legacy.
For anyone who is still a child at heart and misses being asked what their favorite dinosaur is, "The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs" is the book for you! As someone who grew up wanting to be the next Dr. Alan Grant of paleontology, I can say with confidence that Steve Brusatte's book is the perfect fit for anyone fascinated by the wonders of paleontology and golden age of dinosaur discoveries.
- Madison C
Pirate hunters : treasure, obsession, and the search for a legendary pirate ship
Kurson, Robert, author.
910.453 /Kurson
Adventure, Nonfiction, History
'Pirate Hunters' is a gripping account of two courageous divers' quest to uncover the shipwrecked vessel of Joseph Bannister, one of history's most infamous pirates.
Sometimes, real-life treasure hunting is just as wild as the movies. Robert Kurson's book follows two modern-day treasure hunters in pursuit of the sunken ship of one of history's most elusive pirates, Joseph Bannister. Part history, part true crime, part action, this book is ideal for anyone who is interested in shipwrecks, buried treasure, and real-life swashbuckling adventures.
- Madison C
Crown & sceptre : a new history of the British monarchy, from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II
Borman, Tracy, author.
941 /Borman
Nonfiction, History, Political
Since William the Conqueror crossed the English Channel in 1066 to defeat King Harold II and unite England's various kingdoms, forty-one kings and queens have sat on Britain's throne: "shining examples of royal power and majesty alongside a rogue's gallery of weak, lazy, or evil monarchs," as Tracy Borman evocatively describes them in her sparkling chronicle, "Crown & Sceptre." Ironically, during very few of these 955 years has the throne's occupant been unambiguously English. Appealing to the intrinsic fascination with British royalty, Borman lifts the veil to reveal the remarkable characters and personalities who have ruled and, since the Glorious Revolution of 1688, have more ceremonially reigned-a crucial distinction explaining the staying power of the monarchy as the royal family has evolved and adapted to the needs and opinions of its people, avoiding the storms of rebellion that brought many of Europe's royals to an abrupt end.
If you've ever dreamed of living in a castle, wearing a crown, and ruling your own kingdom (without the coups), then Tracy Borman's book is perfect for you! Tracing the history of the British monarchy, from William the Conqueror to King Charles III, "Crown & Sceptre" brings centuries of royal history to life.
- Madison C
Impossible monsters : dinosaurs, Darwin, and the battle between science and religion
Taylor, Michael (Michael Hugh), 1988- author.
567.90941 /Taylor
Nonfiction, History, Religion, Science
When the twelve-year-old daughter of a British carpenter pulled some strange-looking bones from the country's southern shoreline in 1811, few people dared to question that the Bible told the accurate history of the world. But Mary Anning had in fact discovered the 'first' ichthyosaur, and over the next seventy-five years--as the science of paleontology developed, as Charles Darwin posited radical new theories of evolutionary biology, and as scholars began to identify the internal inconsistencies of the Scriptures--everything changed. Beginning with the archbishop who dated the creation of the world to 6 p.m. on October 22, 4004 BC, and told through the lives of the nineteenth-century men and women who found and argued about these seemingly impossible, history-rewriting fossils, "Impossible Monsters" reveals the central role of dinosaurs and their discovery in toppling traditional religious authority, and in changing perceptions about the Bible, history, and mankind's place in the world.
Dinosaurs not only rocked the Earth but also rocked the very foundations of religious belief. Blending science history and societal upheaval, Michael Taylor's novel explores how giant fossilized "monsters" upended centuries of theology and sparked a scientific revolution. This book is great for readers interested in history-making discoveries, especially those that helped give rise to the secular age.
- Madison C
Packing for Mars : the curious science of life in the void
Roach, Mary.
571.0919 /Roach
Humor, Nonfiction, Science
The author of "Stiff and Bonk" explores the irresistibly strange universe of space travel and life without gravity. Space is a world devoid of the things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. How much can a person give up? How much weirdness can they take? What happens if you vomit in your helmet during a space walk? To answer these questions, space agencies set up all manner of quizzical and startlingly bizarre space simulations. As the author discovers, it's possible to preview space without ever leaving Earth. From the space shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA's new space capsule (cadaver filling in for astronaut), she takes us on a surreally entertaining trip into the science of life in space and space on Earth.
Have you ever wondered about the unsexy side of space travel - from going to the bathroom to getting motion sickness? Mary Roach's laugh-out-loud book about the more practical side of space travel is perfect for those who have ever wondered how scientists keep our fragile bodies alive in the void of space.
- Madison C
What if? : serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions
Munroe, Randall, author, illustrator.
500 /Munroe
Humor, Nonfiction, Science
Fans of xkcd ask Munroe a lot of strange questions: What if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90 percent the speed of light? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? What would happen if the moon went away? In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators runssponses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, complemented by his signature xkcd comics. (They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion.) In celebration of 10 years of unusual insight, Randall Munroe has revised his classic blockbuster to ask what if? x 10. The result is 10x the adventure of scientific inquiry. "What If?" explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel much smarter for having read.
Author Randall Munroe is here to answer all the ridiculous questions you have always been wondering about but never brave enough to ask. Have you pondered what humanity's odds are in a robot apocalypse? What about how much Force power Yoda can output? This witty, bizarre, laugh-out-loud read is perfect for curious minds and the young at hear who never stopped asking, "Why?".
- Madison C
The royal art of poison : filthy palaces, fatal cosmetics, deadly medicine, and murder most foul
Herman, Eleanor, 1960- author.
364.1523 /Herman
Nonfiction, History, Science, True Crime
Traces the history of poison in centuries of royal courts, from the intentional posionings to the unintentional side effects of commonly used makeup and medications.
Royal life isn't all fancy ball gowns, glittering jewels, and lavish banquets - it also came with the near-constant fear of being poisoned (sometimes from actual, malicious people, more often from the royal family's own unbeknownst doing). For anyone intrigued by the surreal realities behind the glitz and glamor of royal life, Eleanor Herman's meticulously researched book pulls back the curtain on the poisonous side of European royalty.
- Madison C
Endurance : Shackleton's incredible voyage
Lansing, Alfred.
919.8904 /Lansing
Adventure, Nonfiction, History
Bound for Antarctica, where polar explorer Ernest Shackleton planned to cross on foot the last uncharted continent, the Endurance set sail from England in August 1914. In January 1915, after battling its way for six weeks through a thousand miles of pack ice and now only a day's sail short of its destination, the Endurance became locked in an island of ice. For ten months the ice-moored Endurance drifted northwest before it was finally crushed. But for Shackleton and his crew of twenty-seven men the ordeal had barely begun. It would end only after a near-miraculous journey by Shackleton and a skeleton crew through over 850 miles of the South Atlantic's heaviest seas to the closest outpost of civilization. This astonishing tale of survival by Shackleton and all twenty-seven of his men for over a year on the ice-bound Antarctic seas, as Time magazine put it, "defined heroism."
In what could be considered the ultimate survival story, Alfred Lansing expertly recounts Ernest Shackleton's doomed Antarctic expedition. Almost stranger than fiction, Shackleton and his crew were up against incredible odds: a hopelessly trapped ship, freezing temperatures, diminishing food supplies, and zero chance of rescue...to somehow live to tell the tale. This real-time account of the Shackleton expedition is perfect for readers who crave stories of the indomitable spirit of the human will, and the lengths one will go to survive.
- Madison C
Long ago, the Earth was once believed to be the only planet in the universe. Today, nearly 6,000 exoplanets have been discovered! In this impressive exploration across the cosmos, Lisa Kaltenegger takes readers behind the scenes of the real-life search for alien worlds that have the possibility of hosting life. This book is perfect for readers who look up at the night sky and marvel at the mysteries of the universe.
- Madison C