8 World-Expanding Science Books to Spark Curiosity

There is a plethora of strange beauty in the animal world. Peacocks’ display of gorgeous feathers is one example referenced in A Taste for the Beautiful by Michael J. Ryan. 

The author explains how the impractical nature of a peacock’s feathers led Charles Darwin to his theory of sexual selection.  The book looks to take it a step further by bringing neuroscience into the conversation. 

The text is an interesting dive into the beauty that drives sexual and reproductive behavior in animals. After reading, your mind will be spinning on how we all came to be here. 

Indigenous botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer shares a new way to view the world, down at the lowest ground level, with mosses. 

While this may not seem exciting at first, looking at this tiny slice of life is full of surprises. Kimmerer shares about this small but mighty player in the web of life that is planet Earth. 

Even if you’re someone who doesn’t know anything about nature or plants, Kimmerer shares information through stories that make the subject easier to understand, appreciate, and be excited about. 

Bernd Heinrich is a beloved biologist and naturalist. This book contains some of his best work, which makes it a great introduction or a way to return to his writing. 

Heinrich shares this collection of essays, which spans a wide range of topics, to really drive home how nature permeates every area of our lives.  

From soil to trees, insects, and birds, and all life in between, Heinrich invites the reader to look at the world around them with curious eyes. 

Robin Wall Kimmerer has no shortage of brilliant scientific knowledge to share, and does so while including personal stories and Indigenous wisdom. 

Braiding Sweetgrass is another book from Kimmerer with a simple message: we exist in connection with the earth. The author draws on her wisdom to share important lessons and to ask us how we want to contribute to our relationship with the land. 

This book will have you opening your heart and mind. Soon you’ll be looking at the world around you with new eyes, looking to approach nature with reciprocity and care. 

Writer Zoë Schlanger begins The Light Eaters by discussing how burned out she was as a writer covering the climate crisis. Looking for a little ray of hope, she finds herself falling into the rabbit hole of studying plants. 

She spends every spare moment reading new scientific research papers, eventually taking the topic further by speaking with some of the scientists themselves. 

It seems as though our symbiotic green friends have their own way of figuring out how to live. Science is just beginning to uncover some of this mystery, and Schlanger shares her journey of awe straight to its center.

Poet Aimee Nezhukumatathil enchants readers with the essay collection World of Wonders. She shares knowledge about delightfully curious creatures and how we can learn from them.

Nezhukumatathil paints a picture of her connection with her teachers through the stories she shares. The book is an inspiring work of awe-induced learning. 

The way the author brings together personal experience with scientific information about known and unknown creatures will leave readers basking in wonder.

I Contain Multitudes invites us to look inward, to our microbiome. The book looks at the many different roles microbes play within us and the planet as a whole. 

It turns out microorganisms play a much larger role in life on Earth than you might think. They help not only with our own gut health but also with other environments and creatures.

Yong shares the information in this book in an approachable, entertaining way, making for an exciting exploration for anyone curious about the smaller worlds within our world.

In 10 Women Who Changed Science and the World, authors Catherine Whitlock and Rhodri Evans share some of history’s most influential women scientists. 

From Marie Curie to Rachel Carson, the reader is provided with the backstory of each of these historic women, painting the scene that led them to their crowning achievements. 

These women worked hard for a place in the world doing work they love. Not only did they carve a path for future generations of women, but they also did so by charging to the top of their respective fields. 

It’s a book everyone should read, not only for the incredible scientific discoveries but also for the inspirational women behind them.