best nonfiction books for book reports

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The Best Book-Report Books for Middle Schoolers

No need to dread a book report! When kids find titles that are engaging, interesting, and thought-provoking, they're hooked. If it's fiction, students can dissect plot, theme, and characters. If it's nonfiction, they can plunge into a subject that fascinates them or learn a lot about something they've never heard of before. Here's a list of surefire selections for students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. For even more ideas, check out 50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They're 12 .

Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl

Inspiring wartime journal reveals teen's inner life.

The Apothecary, Book 1

Cold War kids use magic to save world in brilliant novel.

Everything Sad Is Untrue: (A True Story)

Young refugee's story is told in memories, myths, fables.

Goodbye Stranger

Bittersweet, lovely story of friendship and social media.

Genesis Begins Again

Teen learns to love herself in uplifting tale of misfits.

Hold on tight for an intense tale of survival.

A Long Walk to Water

Touching take on Lost Boys of Sudan, based on true story.

One Crazy Summer

A gem, with strong girl characters, '60s black history.

Poverty, being unhoused explored in hopeful tale.

The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights

Little-known disaster gets overdue, in-depth treatment.

The Red Badge of Courage

Compelling Civil War novel questions morality of battle.

Uglies: Uglies Quartet, Book 1

Thoughtful sci-fi about the price of beauty.

Interned girl, Native boy find common ground in moving tale.

All-American Muslim Girl

Captivating coming-of-age tale explores identity, racism.

American Ace

Moving, fast-paced novel-in-verse; great for teen boys.

Bomb: The Race to Build -- and Steal -- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon

Complex, suspenseful story of developing The Bomb.

The Boys Who Challenged Hitler: Knud Pedersen and the Churchill Club

Thrilling true story of teenagers who stood up to the Nazis.

Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings

Poignant memoir-in-verse recalls Cuban American's childhood.

Long Way Down

Gripping, unnerving story of teen boy contemplating revenge.

My Name Is Not Easy

Fascinating story of Alaskan kids growing up in the 1960s.

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Blog – Posted on Monday, Jun 01

The 60 best nonfiction books of all time.

The twenty-first century is still young — yet it has already produced an incredible array of nonfiction books probing all facets of human life. From uncovering invisible histories, to reflecting lyrically on medical conditions, to calling readers to political action, nonfiction writers can take us anywhere. They show us who we are, where we came from, and where we might be going.

We asked our community of 200,000 readers to vote for the most revelatory nonfiction books of all time. Without further ado, here are 60 of the best nonfiction books to peruse. These must-reads will keep you informed, inspired , entertained, and exhilarated as you journey through the most contentious and compelling topics in history and the contemporary world.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by the number of great nonfiction books to read, you can also take our 30-second quiz below to narrow it down quickly and get a personalized nonfiction book recommendation  😉

Which nonfiction book should you read next?

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1.  Between the World and Me  by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Between the World and Me  by Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful history of racial violence in the United States — and what it means to be black in this country today. Presented in the form of a letter to the author’s teenage son, this nonfiction book weaves the personal and the political together in a series of searing essays.

2.  The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer  by Siddhartha Mukherjee

A disarming “biography” of disease,  The Emperor of All Maladies  chronicles thousands of years of people grappling with the terrifying specter of cancer. From the patients who have fought it, to the doctors who have treated it and the researchers who have sought to eradicate it, this riveting account captures the ongoing battle against a deadly condition.

3.  The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History  by Elizabeth Kolbert

When the next major mass extinction hits the planet, as scientists foretell it soon might, humanity will be the victim — and the perpetrator.  The Sixth Extinction  charts the transformative, and potentially catastrophic, impact of human activity on the planet, forcing us to consider what change we must enact now to ensure the continued survival of our species — and all species.

4.  How to Survive a Plague  by David France

David France has been one of the key chroniclers of the AIDS epidemic in the United States since its beginnings.  How to Survive a Plague  follows his acclaimed documentary of the same name, compiling a definitive work on AIDS activism. France draws from firsthand accounts and meticulous historical research to cement the legacy of all those who have battled the disease and fought the government and pharmaceutical companies for the rights to treatment. This nonfiction book ensures that their memories are not forgotten.

5.  The Art of Cruelty: A Reckoning  by Maggie Nelson

Cultural critic Maggie Nelson’s  The Art of Cruelty  contends with the history of violence across media and the arts, scrutinizing the moral implications of our obsession with acts of brutality enacted against living bodies. This is an essential text for anyone interested in how ethics and aesthetics intersect.

6.  How to Do Nothing  by Jenny Odell

When was the last time that you can say you really, truly did nothing at all? In a capitalist society that encourages constant action and productivity, it seems nearly impossible to not be doing  something,  but  How to Do Nothing  shows that there is another way to live. So go ahead, do nothing… after, of course, you’ve read this book.

7.  100 Essays I Don’t Have Time to Write  by Sarah Ruhl

Sarah Ruhl has plenty to keep her busy: she is a prolific playwright as well as a mother, and routinely formulates more creative ideas than she has the time to fully realize.  100 Essays I Don’t Have Time   to Write  recounts all of those loose ends and sparks of inspiration that drive her as an artist. This collection of not-quite-essays bursts with wit and insight along its journey through the musings of a curious mind.

8.  An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States  by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States  is the first comprehensive account of the nation told from an indigenous perspective. It is a damning indictment of white violence, and the centuries of genocide and erasure of native history that have accompanied colonial expansion. It is a story of the United States that has never been told before...but should have been told long ago.

9.  The New Jim Crow  by Michelle Alexander

Legal scholar Michelle Alexander argues that justice is neither truly blind nor colorblind — in fact, the criminal justice system in the United States systematically targets people of color and enacts racial oppression.  The New Jim Crow  is both a call to awareness and a call to action, making clear the deep harm embedded in systems ostensibly designed to protect us all.

10.  The Year of Magical Thinking  by Joan Didion

In  The Year of Magical Thinking , an account of the year following the death of her husband John Gregory Dunne, literary icon Joan Didion offers an unguarded and revealing self-portrait of grief and anguish. Confronting bereavement occasionally leaves even one of America’s most lyrical writers at a loss for words. The stunningly vulnerable confessions that result are moving expressions of raw emotion.

11.  Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind  by Yuval Noah Harari

Where did we humans come from? Where are we going? And what does it even mean to be “human” in the first place? These are some of the massive questions that historian Yuval Noah Harari attempts to unpack in  Sapiens . While perhaps “brief” in its coverage on a scale of universal time,  Sapiens  still spans thousands of years of human life — showing us who we are as a species, as well as what we might become.

12.  Thinking, Fast and Slow  by Daniel Kahneman

Daniel Kahneman won the Nobel Prize in Economics for his groundbreaking research on cognitive biases and behavioral science. His book  Thinking, Fast and Slow  takes us through decades of his most essential research about how we think and why we make decisions the way we do — through the “fast” system of intuition and the “slow” system of logic. Kahneman’s conversational style makes even the most complex of psychological topics accessible to readers. After absorbing his insights, they’ll never think the same way again.

13.  A Short History of Nearly Everything  by Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson has garnered acclaim for his entertaining travelogues. Now he takes us along for the ride on the trip of a lifetime (and many previous lifetimes).  A Short History of Nearly Everything  is exactly what its title promises: a briskly paced adventure through the known universe, filled with plenty of wit and wondrous facts to fuel the journey.

14.  When Breath Becomes Air  by Paul Kalanithi

Doctor Paul Kalanithi confronted the possibility of death nearly every day in his work as a neurosurgeon… until one day the life at stake was his own.  When Breath Becomes Air  is his heart-wrenching memoir of coming to terms with his own mortality after a diagnosis of stage IV lung cancer. Though Kalanithi passed away from in 2015, his devastatingly beautiful reflection affirms the impact of his life on countless patients and readers.

15.  Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game  by Michael Lewis

In  Moneyball , Michael Lewis follows the story of the Oakland A’s and their unconventional strategy of scouting players, allowing them to choose the best talent for a fraction of the budget of other teams. On the surface, this is a story about baseball. But it is also a story about thinking differently and taking risks. Most importantly, it shows that when the game of life seems stacked against you, you don’t have to play along: you can reinvent the rules entirely.

16.  Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City  by Michael Desmond

Evicted  is a gripping exploration of life on the margins for the untold numbers of people in America living in poverty. Desmond weaves his narrative from the stories of eight families in Milwaukee, showing the dearth of resources and affordable housing options available to them.  Evicted  is unafraid to say what is often left out of the conversation about poverty, as it forces readers to look at the dire state of American housing and homeownership.

17.  Alexander Hamilton  by Ron Chernow

The definitive portrait of a founding father — and of the foundations of America’s history —  Alexander Hamilton  is a brilliant  biography , as audacious and awe-inspiring as its subject. It vividly portrays Hamilton’s intimate life as well as the grand scale of his impact, immortalizing the monumental figure who shaped the political spirit of a nation… and inspired a few Broadway musicals.

18.  This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate  by Naomi Klein

The climate is not the only thing that is changing — in  This Changes Everything , Naomi Klein shows us that life as we know it is changing, too. The entire future of the planet is now at stake. Addressing the climate crisis requires a radical transformation of our environmental and economic systems, and Klein’s wake-up call demands decisive action to ensure the continued liveability of the planet. 

19.  Dreamland  by Sam Quinones

Drawing from intense investigative reporting and heartbreaking personal stories of addiction,  Dreamland  reveals how and why the opiate industry has wrought destruction on communities in the United States and Mexico. From prescription painkillers to black tar heroin, these drugs have devastating consequences, as Quinones reminds us. His book makes clear that real people are being harmed by corrosive capitalism.

20.  The Warmth of Other Suns  by Isabel Wilkerson

The Warmth of Other Suns  is one of the greatest tales of American history you’ve never heard. Wilkerson chronicles the years between 1915 and 1970, when millions of black Americans embarked northward or westward in search of opportunity, hoping to leave behind the racial prejudice and economic oppression of the South. What unfolds is a profoundly sympathetic and richly rendered story of countless families, seeking acceptance and better lives in the nation they call home.

21.  Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick

Though the citizens of North Korea consistently confront poverty and famine under the censorship of a repressive regime, little details about their lives sometimes escape the country’s impenetrable borders.  Nothing to Envy  ventures inside the world’s most closed-off society, giving voice to everyday people as they try to live their lives amidst totalitarianism. It is a haunting look at their despair and disillusionment — and the dreams they continue to nurture in spite of it all.

22.  These Truths: A History of the United States  by Jill Lepore

From acclaimed historian and  New Yorker  staff writer Jill Lepore,  These Truths  traces the birth of a country “forged in contradiction,” from its mythos as a land of opportunity to its history of extermination and oppression. Examining contemporary identity and politics through the lens of history,  These Truths  calls for a comprehensive reassessment of America’s past as well as its future.

23.  Behind the Beautiful Forevers  by Katherine Boo

For the people of Annawadi, an impoverished community not far from the Mumbai airport, lives of luxury and economic prosperity are constantly within sight — but always out of reach. Though the building of upscale hotels and growth of the Indian economy initially gave residents hope of upward mobility, personal and political tragedy quickly dismantled their dreams.  Behind the Beautiful Forevers  is a shocking examination of pervasive inequality in contemporary India and the people left behind by the powerful elite.

24.  Nickel and Dimed  by Barbara Ehrenreich

For the millions of Americans who perform low-paying jobs, “unskilled” labor, the living wage they supposedly earn is by no means actually liveable. In  Nickel and Dimed , journalist Barbara Ehrenreich goes undercover, journeying from Florida to Maine to Minnesota working a series of minimum-wage jobs. She quickly gains firsthand experience of the nearly insurmountable hardships the working poor encounter when they attempt to secure jobs or homes and put food on the table. Her eye-opening narrative reveals the dire situation of low-wage workers and the failures of employers and governments to provide anything near adequate support.

25.  Blurred Lines  by Vanessa Grigoriadis

In the wake of the #MeToo movement that has had transformative effects around the world, college campuses have become intensely scrutinized battlegrounds for debates about sexual politics. Vanessa Grigoriadis travels to universities across the United States to examine how the movement has prompted students to think differently about their sexuality, as well as the sexism or sexual violence they confront on campus. Unafraid to tackle controversial topics and contentious debates,  Blurred Lines  is a complex account of radical changes to contemporary culture.

26.  Underland  by Robert Macfarlane

Underland  literally takes us beneath the surface of our world — venturing into underground caves, graves, and geological features. Yet Macfarlane also goes on a deep-time exploration and digs into the intertwined history of humans and nature, scrutinizing the traces we leave behind for generations to come. This riveting journey through time traverses the rich expanse of humankind’s past and future.

27.  All the Single Ladies  by Rebecca Traister

Journalist Rebecca Traister’s book  All the Single Ladies  underscores the collective power of single women, creating a vivid and diverse portrait of unmarried women in the United States. Composed of interviews and explorations of the history of women in intellectual and public life, this feminist book is a richly researched triumph.

28.  The Invention of Nature  by Andrea Wulf

You may not recognize the name Alexander von Humboldt. In  The Invention of Nature , however, Andrea Wulf argues that he has undoubtedly shaped our understanding of the environment and our role in protecting it. Von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and his then-radical ideas — that nature existed for more than human consumption — paved the path for contemporary conservation movements. Wulf’s luminous look at his life, full of ecological exploration and scientific advocacy, shows the lasting impact of his ideas.

29.  The Other Slavery  by Andrés Reséndez

While countries in the Americas continue to grapple with the enduring horrors of slavery, there is a side to this devastating history that has never been fully confronted: the enslavement of indigenous peoples.  The Other Slavery  is a revelatory examination of the native populations enslaved throughout the western hemisphere, exposing how deeply entrenched oppression was in the creation of the “new world.” Reséndez’s fierce prose delivers on its promise to be “myth-shattering” and enlightening.

30.  Devil in the Grove  by Gilbert King

Thurgood Marshall, the Supreme Court’s first black justice, is perhaps the most significant legal figure of the twentieth century, arguing landmark civil rights cases.  Devil in the Grove  looks at the toughest cases he confronted before he was on the Supreme Court: fighting for “The Groveland Boys,” black workers in Florida’s orange industry who were subjected to horrific violence and lynchings in the Jim Crow South. This account of  true crime  and the fight for justice delves into Marshall’s origins as a fearless crusader — something not to be missed.

31.  Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race  by Reni Eddo-Lodge

After watching intense debates about racism unfold in the United States, British journalist Reni Eddo-Lodge recognized that the same conversations were just as urgently necessary in Britain. This led her to write  Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race,  one of the most accessible and best nonfiction books about the difficulties of, well, talking about race. Eddo-Lodge analyzes modern Britain’s race relations, reminding British and international readers alike of imperialism’s complicated history.

32.  The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference  by Malcolm Gladwell

This massively successful book by Malcolm Gladwell investigates the process of things  going viral,  dissecting how and why certain ideas can take off.  The Tipping Point  explores phenomena ranging from the sharp decrease in street crime in 1990s New York to children’s television shows suddenly becoming all the rage among all age groups. This is a sharp book that cannot fail to capture its readers with its masterfully recounted sociological and psychological case studies.

33.  Quiet  by Susan Cain

Susan Cain’s  Quiet  argues that Western society (and especially American society) is structured in a way that valorizes extroverted personality traits, to the detriment of introverts. In this nonfiction book, she defines the concept of introversion, traces its history, and proceeds with a mind-blowing analysis of our everyday lives and the biases inherent in the way people are assessed in a social atmosphere.

34.  The Age of Surveillance Capitalism  by Shoshanna Zuboff

Shoshanna Zuboff’s  The Age of Surveillance Capitalism  takes as its subject our current technological state, where corporations have access to a  lot  of personal information. Zuboff investigates the power and peril of digital surveillance, arguing that we have now entered a new age of capitalism where information and personal data are tools in the hands of corporations. A fascinating and thorough book,  The Age of Surveillance Capitalism  is guaranteed to provoke deep thinking about our relationship to tech.

35. On Writing  by Stephen King

In  On Writing,  bestselling author Stephen King discusses his early-career struggles, offering advice to up-and-coming writers. Intimate, honest, and approachable, this book is one every aspiring author should read. This encouraging memoir thematizes the power of memory and the importance of perseverance. If you needed the inspiration to keep writing, this is one of the best nonfiction books for you.

36. Persepolis  by Marjane Satrapi

Marjane Satrapi’s  Persepolis  is an immersive  graphic memoir  based on the author’s childhood in the Iranian capital of Tehran during the Islamic Revolution. As she grows up during a tumultuous chapter of the country’s history, her story is both a coming-of-age tale and a historical chronicle. Satrapi’s stark, black-and-white artwork supplements her text to create a thoroughly memorable reading experience.

37.  Freakonomics  by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Freakonomics , the famous nonfiction book by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, reveals “the hidden side of everything,” as its subtitle makes clear. It’s a bold claim, but not one that it fails to live up to. The authors make the case for constantly asking questions, challenging accepted truths, and looking at facts and data in a novel way.  Freakonomics  is a witty, eye-opening interpretation of the economy, suitable to any reader with an interest in why things work the way they do.

38.  SPQR  by Mary Beard

Mary Beard’s  SPQR  is a sweeping and epic history of the Roman Empire, covering over 1000 years of the classical civilization’s story. In this cinematic account, Beard explores the growth of the empire and reflects on its multilayered legacy. Intelligent and informative,  SPQR  is an excellent choice for both devoted historians and casual nonfiction readers.

39.  The Uninhabitable Earth  by David Wallace-Wells

More urgent than ever,  The Uninhabitable Earth  by David Wallace-Wells draws attention to the pressing need to address the growing problem of climate change. This unsettling book warns about the potential devastation that awaits us in the near future — unless we can enact a revolution in how we tackle global warming.

40.  The Silk Roads  by Peter Frankopan

Another fascinating historical read,  The Silk Roads  by Peter Frankopan closes in on the relationship between the East and West. Examining and dismantling Eurocentric narratives, Frankopan’s illuminating work focuses on the history of countries lying on the “Silk Road,” the trade route connecting East and West, and attempts to re-balance history. In Frankopan’s version of world history, the center point of Western civilization is the Persian Empire.

41.  Why We Sleep  by Matthew Walker

Neuroscientist Matthew Walker’s  Why We Sleep  achieved sensational status due to its hyperfocus on a universal experience: sleep. Walker delves into the scientific specifics of why sleep is so important, and reminds his readers that sleep deprivation, though common in modern society, is a worrying phenomenon. This is one of the best nonfiction books to make a convincing case for being generous with our down-time and getting some rest.

42.  Playing to the Gallery  by Grayson Perry

Grayson Perry’s cheerful, informative, and inspiring  Playing to the Gallery  is a crash-course in art appreciation. According to Perry, no one is too ignorant to pursue an interest in art. This joyful and down-to-earth book is an excellent resource for anyone who’s interested in modern art but daunted by the sometimes-elitist institutions that represent it.

43.  How Language Works  by David Crystal

David Crystal’s  How Language Works  is a detailed, all-encompassing nonfiction book addressing the many questions that arise when you start to really think about the processes of using language. In learning more about language, you’ll also learn more about yourself, your idiolect, and your unconscious linguistic influences.

44.  Political Order and Political Decay  by Francis Fukuyama

In  Political Order and Political Decay , political scientist Francis Fukuyama (famous for his 1992 book  The End of History and the Last Man ) explores the historical development of political institutions in various countries. In this insightful book, Fukuyama asks important questions about corruption and its eradication — and what it might take to run a well-functioning state in the present day.

45.  Prisoners of Geography  by Tim Marshall

For cartography fans and or anyone with even a casual interest in geography, Tim Marshall’s  Prisoners of Geography  is a brilliant interpretation of ten modern maps. Marshall analyzes the geopolitical complexities of each region, showing the many layers and dimensions of our political reality as captured by cartographers. This book is guaranteed to change the way you view maps forever.

46.  This is Not Propaganda  by Peter Pomerantsev

Peter Pomerantsev’s  This is Not Propaganda  focuses on the complication and confusion of the current “disinformation” age. This book explores how surfaces can be deceiving, delving underneath them to examine (among other things) how Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook seep into our political thinking. This disturbing book provides fascinating insights important to everyone, but especially to readers troubled by the current involvement of digital technologies in the political realm.

47.  The Corporation  by Joel Bakan

Joel Bakan’s  The Corporation  draws an intriguing parallel between the psychopathic mindset and the way corporations grow. In this thought-provoking book, legal theorist Bakan uses his training in law to break down the potential of power to corrupt both individuals and corporations.He supplements this analysis with several informative interviews investigating the psychology of pursuing success. 

48.  Humans of New York: Stories  by Brandon Stanton

Brandon Stanton’s photo interview series “Humans of New York” initially became famous on Facebook for capturing everyday lives. This utterly heartwarming (and heart-wrenching) volume compiles multiple stories into a book you can hold. In  Humans of New York,  interviewees bare their souls to Brandon as they pose for his camera, creating a meaningful reminder of our shared and enduring humanity. 

49.  The Element  by Ken Robinson with Lou Aronica

Champion of creativity Ken Robinson urges artistic minds to follow their heart and identify their “element” in his inspirational nonfiction book  The Element . Your element, he explains, is where passion intersects with talent: that’s where you can harness your own power the most. Robinson argues for educational reform that will make helping students find their element a priority, as it is the key to unlocking creativity and innovation for the future.

50.  Eating Animals  by Jonathan Safran Foer

Written by successful novelist Jonathan Safran Foer,  Eating Animals  is a passionate testament to vegetarianism and a philosophical, ethical, and moral assessment of our eating habits, with a special focus on our consumption of animal products. It’s a provocative reading experience, and it’s sure to stay with you for a long time.

51.  Is That a Fish in Your Ear? by David Bellos

David Bellos’s  Is That a Fish in Your Ear?  is a witty, informative ode to the practice of literary translation. Bellos, himself a translator, details the individual aspects of style that complicate translation — like humor. As a result, he opens reader’s eyes to the countless artistic microdecisions obscured behind the curtain of translation. This exciting book will inspire you to seek translated books from other languages and open yourself up to new worlds.

52.  Late Bloomers  by Rich Karlgaard

In  Late Bloomers , Rich Karlgaard dispels the assumption that all genius must emerge in days of youth. He argues that our culture’s obsession with early achievement discourages older members of society from pursuing their passion and talents, pleading for the world to consider “a kinder clock for human development” instead. His book presents an alternative outlook that would empower more people among us to follow their dreams, because it’s never too late!

53.  How to Write an Autobiographical Novel  by Alexander Chee

Alexander Chee’s collection of essays,  How to Write an Autobiographical Novel,  muses on the subjects of art and identity, as well as the craft of writing itself. This thoughtful and reflective book is an impactful invitation into the interior world of one of America’s most acclaimed essayists.

54.  The God Delusion  by Richard Dawkins

A brutal and honest nonfiction book,  The God Delusion  is an unapologetic defense of atheism by Richard Dawkins. The author is entirely unconvinced by religion, and explains his reasoning in this detailed and expansive work. His provocative challenge to readers’ views is sure to prompt spiritual soul-searching for fellow atheists and religious readers alike.

55.  Afropean  by Johny Pitts

“European” doesn’t automatically mean “White.”  Afropean,  a captivating documentation of the history and experience of black Europeans, seeks to challenge this common assumption, turning the spotlight onto black communities in several European countries. This Jhalak Prize-winning work is exciting and invigorating, ready to take you along on a journey across Europe.

56.  A Secret Gift  by Ted Gup

One day, journalist Ted Gup discovered letters addressed to his grandfather from suffering families in Canton, Ohio, from the time of the Great Depression. Following that epistolary trail seventy-five years later, Gup uncovered the story of how his immigrant grandfather secretly helped fellow Cantonians, discovering more about his own grandfather as well as the history of America in the process.  A Secret Gift  is a masterful and moving tale about the past, and a reminder of the importance of kindness and generosity.

57.  The Glass Castle  by Jeanette Walls

Jeanette Walls’s  The Glass Castle  is a tender, humorous account of the author’s nomadic childhood, which has been adapted into an acclaimed movie. This astonishing memoir especially focuses on the author’s relationship with her bohemian-minded parents, whose flaws and eccentricities are described with deep affection, no matter how difficult they are to live with. Simply written and honestly told, this memoir is a true accomplishment.

58.  Know My Name: A Memoir  by Chanel Miller

Have you heard of Chanel Miller? Maybe not — but it’s likely you’ve heard of the man who sexually assaulted her on Stanford University’s campus: Brock Turner. In  Know My Name,  a searing memoir of trauma and recovery, Chanel writes herself back into the narrative, claiming the right to tell her own story. Brave and enlightening, this is a difficult but important read.

59.  1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus  by Charles C. Mann

The way most history textbooks tell it, Europeans brought civilization to the Americas with the arrival of Columbus in 1492. Not so fast, says Charles C. Mann’s  1491 , a book that’s here to challenge the accepted version of history. Mann offers an utterly transformative historical account of the Americas, reversing the general assumption that its inhabitants were simple villagers before the arrival of European colonizers.

60.  Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption  by Laura Hillenbrand

Laura Hillenbrand’s  Unbroken  tells the unbelievable story of Louis Zamperini, the rebellious American son of Italian immigrants who found himself a lieutenant in World War II. This breathtaking  tale about the Second World War  is sobering, informative, and brilliantly told — an essential read for anyone interested in the War’s effect on individual lives.

Eager for more of the best contemporary reads? Check out our list of the 21 best novels of the 21st century !

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Non Fiction Book Report: How to Write the Perfect Paper

The thought of a non fiction book report may bring to mind early school days. In fact, a parent could easily use this article to help their kids complete one of these report assignments. However, even college students may be asked to review or report on a nonfiction book. Thankfully, the standards for what makes a perfect analysis paper doesn’t change across grade levels. The content itself becomes more complicated but the principles stay the same.

There are two main principles to writing a perfect book report: describe and evaluate. Knowing how to perform each and how to balance them can help you, your students, or your kids write the best paper they can.

Describe: The Facts of the Non Fiction Book Report

Description in a book report includes names and major points in the book. This is not the time to state your analysis of the work but simply to list the relevant information so the reader knows where your analysis will go.

The information in the description portion of a nonfiction book report includes background on the author and relevant information on the creation of the book. State how the book has been assembled or organized, especially if it takes a unique genre form. This includes the author’s intention with the book as a thesis or a statement of purpose. Let the reader know that you have a big picture of the nonfiction book being discussed.

Finally, offer a summary of the nonfiction book to get your readers on the same “page” for your evaluation. By selectively summarizing information, the reader (or grader) knows what they should take from your analysis.

Evaluate: Make Your Points

When you begin evaluating, use the information you reviewed and summarized in the description section. Evaluation involves your opinion, but a supported opinion that includes relevant scholarship. This means that other writers’ reviews and journal articles that discuss the nonfiction book you’re studying can come in handy to back up your points.

You can observe the strengths and faults of the book based on your observations and experience. However, the more you can support your statements with the words of others and of the book itself, the better your report will be.

How to Start Writing a Book Report

As you read, you have to read the right way ! This means observing the author’s purpose quickly, learning the background information that will go into your report beforehand, and taking notes. As you read, note the author’s expertise and how they incorporate their thesis. When you see quotes that support the author’s ideas (or yours), take note of where they occur. This can only make writing the report easier in the long run.

The Takeaway

A non fiction book report sounds like a hefty obligation. However, whether it’s a college paper or a child’s school project, a book report doesn’t have to be a burden. Get the two qualities of description and evaluation clearly distinct in your head so that when you read, you can already sort and note the informtation that will make your paper work.

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The Best Reviewed Nonfiction of 2022

Featuring bob dylan, elena ferrante, kate beaton, jhumpa lahiri, kate beaton, and more.

We’ve come to the end of another bountiful literary year, and for all of us review rabbits here at Book Marks, that can mean only one thing: basic math, and lots of it.

Yes, using reviews drawn from more than 150 publications, over the next two weeks we’ll be calculating and revealing the most critically-acclaimed books of 2022, in the categories of (deep breath): Fiction; Nonfiction; Memoir and Biography; Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror; Short Story Collections; Essay Collections; Poetry; Mystery and Crime; Graphic Literature; and Literature in Translation.

Today’s installment: Nonfiction .

Brought to you by Book Marks , Lit Hub’s “Rotten Tomatoes for books.”

1. In the Margins: On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing  by Elena Ferrante, trans. by Ann Goldstein (Europa)

12 Rave • 12 Positive • 4 Mixed

“The lucid, well-formed essays that make up In the Margins  are written in an equally captivating voice … Although a slim collection, there is more than enough meat here to nourish both the common reader and the Ferrante aficionado … Every essay here is a blend of deep thought, rigorous analysis and graceful prose. We occasionally get the odd glimpse of the author…but mainly the focus is on the nuts and bolts of writing and Ferrante’s practice of her craft. The essays are at their most rewarding when Ferrante discusses the origins of her books, in particular the celebrated Neapolitan Novels, and the multifaceted heroines that power them … These essays might not bring us any closer to finding out who Ferrante really is. Instead, though, they provide valuable insight into how she developed as a writer and how she works her magic.”

–Malcolm Forbes ( The Star Tribune )

2. Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age by Dennis Duncan (W. W. Norton)

14 Rave • 8 Positive • 1 Mixed Read an excerpt from Index here

“The cleverly punctuated title of Dennis Duncan’s book, Index, A History of the, should signal that this isn’t a dry account of a small cogwheel in the publishing machine. Instead, it is an engaging tale of the long search for the quickest way to find what you need in those big, information-rich things called books. It is indeed an adventure, and ‘bookish’ in the most appealing sense … Duncan goes into fascinating detail about all this—page numbers get an entire chapter of their own—with digressions into curious byways of booklore and literature … From ancient Egypt to Silicon Valley, Duncan is an ideal tour guide: witty, engaging, knowledgeable and a fount of diverting anecdotes. The book skews toward the literary, but anyone interested in the 2,200-year journey to quickly find what one needs in a book will be enlightened, and will never again take an index for granted. The well-designed book also includes nearly 40 illustrations. As might be expected, the index—created not by the author but by Paula Clarke Bain—is magnificent.”

–Steven Moore ( The Washington Post )

3. We Don’t Know Ourselves by Fintan O’Toole (Liveright) 17 Rave • 4 Positive • 1 Mixed • 1 Pan

“One of the many triumphs of Fintan O’Toole’s We Don’t Know Ourselves is that he manages to find a form that accommodates the spectacular changes that have occurred in Ireland over the past six decades, which happens to be his life span … it is not a memoir, nor is it an absolute history, nor is it entirely a personal reflection or a crepuscular credo. It is, in fact, all of these things helixed together: his life, his country, his thoughts, his misgivings, his anger, his pride, his doubt, all of them belonging, eventually, to us … O’Toole, an agile cultural commentator, considers himself to be a representative of the blank slate on which the experiment of change was undertaken, but it’s a tribute to him that he maintains his humility, his sharpness and his enlightened distrust …

O’Toole writes brilliantly and compellingly of the dark times, but he is graceful enough to know that there is humor and light in the cracks. There is a touch of Eduardo Galeano in the way he can settle on a telling phrase … But the real accomplishment of this book is that it achieves a conscious form of history-telling, a personal hybrid that feels distinctly honest and humble at the same time. O’Toole has not invented the form, but he comes close to perfecting it. He embraces the contradictions and the confusion. In the process, he weaves the flag rather than waving it.”

–Colum McCann ( The New York Times Book Review )

4. Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne by Katherine Rundell (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

14 Rave • 4 Positive • 1 Mixed Read an excerpt from Super-Infinite here

“Rundell is right that Donne…must never be forgotten, and she is the ideal person to evangelise him for our age. She shares his linguistic dexterity, his pleasure in what TS Eliot called ‘felt thought’, his ability to bestow physicality on the abstract … It’s a biography filled with gaps and Rundell brings a zest for imaginative speculation to these. We know so little about Donne’s wife, but Rundell brings her alive as never before … Rundell confronts the difficult issue of Donne’s misogyny head-on … This is a determinedly deft book, and I would have liked it to billow a little more, making room for more extensive readings of the poems and larger arguments about the Renaissance. But if there is an overarching argument, then it’s about Donne as an ‘infinity merchant’ … To read Donne is to grapple with a vision of the eternal that is startlingly reinvented in the here and now, and Rundell captures this vision alive in all its power, eloquence and strangeness”

–Laura Feigel ( The Guardian )

5. Thin Places by Kerri ní Dochartaigh (Milkweed) 12 Rave • 7 Positive • 2 Mixed

“Can the Irish border be described as a ‘thin place’? Never have I read such an eloquent description for the omnipresent border in our psyche … Readers will draw their own meaning from Ní Dochartaigh’s words, and she allows space for them to ponder … This debut is not a memoir in the traditional sense; nor is it simply a polemic about the sectarian violence that tore through the author’s childhood in Derry; instead, it combines both of these elements under the insistent gaze of the poet-writer who is always keen to draw our attention to nature … Readers may be surprised at the depths that  Thin Places explores. Do not mistake its appreciation of the natural world for anything twee or solely comforting … This is not for the faint-hearted …

Ní Dochartaigh’s writing is generous and she leaves little for the reader to surmise in those dark days she describes in startling detail … The darkness in her subject matter lends itself to the light, however. The natural world at large is a balm for her … It might sound incongruous to write about the beauty of the whooper swan and the enduring effect of Troubles in the same paragraph, but Ní Dochartaigh’s manages it … This is a book full of hope found in dark places and it confronts some of the realities of the Irish border and the enduring effect it has on our lives.”

–Mia Colleran ( The Irish Independent )

6. Translating Myself and Others by Jhumpa Lahiri (Princeton University Press)

8 Rave • 14 Positive • 1 Mixed

“Lahiri mixes detailed explorations of craft with broader reflections on her own artistic life, as well as the ‘essential aesthetic and political mission’ of translation. She is excellent in all three modes—so excellent, in fact, that I, a translator myself, could barely read this book. I kept putting it aside, compelled by Lahiri’s writing to go sit at my desk and translate … One of Lahiri’s great gifts as an essayist is her ability to braid multiple ways of thinking together, often in startling ways … a reminder, no matter your relationship to translation, of how alive language itself can be. In her essays as in her fiction, Lahiri is a writer of great, quiet elegance; her sentences seem simple even when they’re complex. Their beauty and clarity alone would be enough to wake readers up. ‘Look,’ her essays seem to say: Look how much there is for us to wake up to.”

–Lily Meyer ( NPR )

7. Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton (Drawn & Quarterly)

14 Rave • 4 Positive Watch an interview with Kate Beaton here

“It could hardly be more different in tone from [Beaton’s] popular larky strip Hark! A Vagrant … Yes, it’s funny at moments; Beaton’s low-key wryness is present and correct, and her drawings of people are as charming and as expressive as ever. But its mood overall is deeply melancholic. Her story, which runs to more than 400 pages, encompasses not only such thorny matters as social class and environmental destruction; it may be the best book I have ever read about sexual harassment … There are some gorgeous drawings in Ducks of the snow and the starry sky at night. But the human terrain, in her hands, is never only black and white … And it’s this that gives her story not only its richness and depth, but also its astonishing grace. Life is complex, she tell us, quietly, and we are all in it together; each one of us is only trying to survive. What a difficult, gorgeous and abidingly humane book. It really does deserve to win all the prizes.”

–Rachel Cooke ( The Guardian )

8. The Philosophy of Modern Song by Bob Dylan (Simon & Schuster)

10 Rave • 15 Positive • 7 Mixed • 4 Pan

“It is filled with songs and hyperbole and views on love and lust even darker than Blood on the Tracks … There are 66 songs discussed here … Only four are by women, which is ridiculous, but he never asked us … Nothing is proved, but everything is experienced—one really weird and brilliant person’s experience, someone who changed the world many times … Part of the pleasure of the book, even exceeding the delectable Chronicles: Volume One , is that you feel liberated from Being Bob Dylan. He’s not telling you what you got wrong about him. The prose is so vivid and fecund, it was useless to underline, because I just would have underlined the whole book. Dylan’s pulpy, noir imagination is not always for the squeamish. If your idea of art is affirmation of acceptable values, Bob Dylan doesn’t need you … The writing here is at turns vivid, hilarious, and will awaken you to songs you thought you knew … The prose brims everywhere you turn. It is almost disturbing. Bob Dylan got his Nobel and all the other accolades, and now he’s doing my job, and he’s so damn good at it.”

–David Yaffe ( AirMail )

9. Stay True by Hua Hsu (Doubleday)

14 Rave • 3 Positive Listen to Hua Hsu read an excerpt from Stay True here

“… quietly wrenching … To say that this book is about grief or coming-of-age doesn’t quite do it justice; nor is it mainly about being Asian American, even though there are glimmers of that too. Hsu captures the past by conveying both its mood and specificity … This is a memoir that gathers power through accretion—all those moments and gestures that constitute experience, the bits and pieces that coalesce into a life … Hsu is a subtle writer, not a showy one; the joy of Stay True sneaks up on you, and the wry jokes are threaded seamlessly throughout.”

–Jennifer Szalai ( The New York Times )

10. Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative by Melissa Febos (Catapult)

13 Rave • 2 Positive • 2 Mixed Read an excerpt from Body Work here

“In her new book, Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative , memoirist Melissa Febos handily recuperates the art of writing the self from some of the most common biases against it: that the memoir is a lesser form than the novel. That trauma narratives should somehow be over—we’ve had our fill … Febos rejects these belittlements with eloquence … In its hybridity, this book formalizes one of Febos’s central tenets within it: that there is no disentangling craft from the personal, just as there is no disentangling the personal from the political. It’s a memoir of a life indelibly changed by literary practice and the rigorous integrity demanded of it … Febos is an essayist of grace and terrific precision, her sentences meticulously sculpted, her paragraphs shapely and compressed … what’s fresh, of course, is Febos herself, remapping this terrain through her context, her life and writing, her unusual combinations of sources (William H. Gass meets Elissa Washuta, for example), her painstaking exactitude and unflappable sureness—and the new readers she will reach with all of this.”

–Megan Milks ( 4Columns )

Our System:

RAVE = 5 points • POSITIVE = 3 points • MIXED = 1 point • PAN = -5 points

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The 10 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023

These are independent reviews of the products mentioned, but TIME receives a commission when purchases are made through affiliate links at no additional cost to the purchaser.

T he best nonfiction books of the year dug deep, mining both personal and global history to uncover essential truths. John Vaillant captured the horrors of a wildfire to study the consequences of climate change. Matthew Desmond dissected how poverty persists in the United States and made a compassionate call for greater equity. Tracy K. Smith detailed her complicated mission to learn more about her ancestry and urged us to examine whose stories we deem worth preserving. Their books are among the most impactful nonfiction published in 2023. Here, the 10 best books of the year.

More: Read TIME's lists of the best songs , albums , movies , TV shows , podcasts and video games of 2023.

10. King, Jonathan Eig

In the first major biography of Martin Luther King Jr . in decades, journalist Jonathan Eig paints a complex and fully human portrait of an American leader. Drawing on newly released FBI files, telephone transcripts, and more, Eig presents King like he’s never been seen before. The author unveils this research in fresh and exciting turns, unpacking the activist’s public work alongside his private life. King is a nuanced new look at a civil rights icon.

Buy Now: King on Bookshop | Amazon

9. Fire Weather , John Vaillant

At the center of John Vaillant’s Fire Weather is a horrific real-life story that serves as a deafening wake-up call. The book traces the events of the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire, in which 88,000 Canadians were displaced after their homes and neighborhoods were destroyed in a fiery blaze over the course of just one afternoon. In describing the natural disaster, Vaillant breaks down the science in accessible terms and offers an important account of the consequences of climate change.

Buy Now: Fire Weather on Bookshop | Amazon

8. Liliana's Invincible Summer , Cristina Rivera Garza

For three decades, poet Cristina Rivera Garza has been haunted by her sister’s murder. In July 1990, Liliana, an architecture student living in Mexico City who loved swimming and cinema, was killed. Though an arrest warrant was filed for Liliana’s ex-boyfriend, he disappeared during the investigation. So, in 2019, Rivera Garza decided to seek answers to what happened to her beloved sister herself. She recounts her quest for information and justice, and uses her sister’s story to tell a larger one about domestic violence and femicide .

Buy Now: Liliana's Invincible Summer on Bookshop | Amazon

7. Poverty, By America , Matthew Desmond

In 2017, sociologist Matthew Desmond won a Pulitzer Prize for Evicted, which analyzed why so many American families were facing eviction in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. His latest book revisits similar themes, this time focusing on why poverty is so prevalent in the U.S . With an empathetic hand, he writes about the systems that keep Americans from living above the poverty line, and implores us all to fight for ways to bring prosperity to the masses.

Buy Now: Poverty, By America on Bookshop | Amazon

More: The 100 Must-Read Books of 2023

6. How to Say Babylon, Safiya Sinclair

As a child growing up in Jamaica, Safiya Sinclair had to adhere to her Rastafarian father’s strict rules, which governed everything from the clothes she wore to the people she was allowed to see. But the author managed to educate herself on other ways of living and decided to use her voice to break free. In her memoir, Sinclair captures her turbulent coming of age, and how she grappled with realizing that the traditions she was raised in were suffocating her. The result is a moving portrait of a woman’s self-empowerment.

Buy Now: How to Say Babylon on Bookshop | Amazon

5. You Could Make This Place Beautiful , Maggie Smith

After her marriage falls apart, Maggie Smith inspects the pieces of the life she once knew to pave a path forward. You Could Make This Place Beautiful finds Smith dissecting the very form in which she is writing as she constantly questions the purpose of memoir and the stories we tell ourselves. Mining her heartbreak and memories both with her husband and without him, Smith moves between rage, sorrow, and grief. And through it all, she illustrates her unwavering love for her son and daughter.

Buy Now: You Could Make This Place Beautiful on Bookshop | Amazon

4. A Day in the Life of Abed Salama , Nathan Thrall

In February 2012, 5-year-old Milad Salama boarded a bus with his fellow Palestinian classmates en route to a theme park. But he never made it there. The bus crashed outside Jerusalem, and the children aboard it were injured or killed. This devastating scene propels Nathan Thrall’s book , which follows Milad’s father Abed from his first romance to the day of the collision, all told against the backdrop of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict . Thrall tackles the subject with care and expertise, introducing the lives of several Israelis and Palestinians to illuminate their struggles and complex histories.

Buy Now: A Day in the Life of Abed Salama on Bookshop | Amazon

3. To Free the Captives , Tracy K. Smith

In her memoir, Pulitzer Prize winner and former U.S. poet laureate Tracy K. Smith crafts a searing narrative about being Black in America. She excavates her past to better understand the racial violence that persists today, wading through generations of her family’s history. But as she tries to learn more about her lineage, beginning with the Alabama town where her father grew up, Smith realizes that the research process itself is fraught and riddled with missing pieces.

Buy Now: To Free the Captives on Bookshop | Amazon

2. Doppelganger, Naomi Klein

What would you do if all of a sudden people started mixing you up with a person whose beliefs you can’t stand? Leftist activist and author Naomi Klein has been forced to answer this exact question: she is constantly confused with Naomi Wolf, who has spent the past few years spreading antivaccine rhetoric and fringe conspiracy theories. Klein investigates how “other Naomi” became the type of public figure she is today, taking a dizzying trip through the current cultural landscape to examine politics, misinformation, and the slippery path to radicalization.

Buy Now: Doppelganger on Bookshop | Amazon

1. Some People Need Killing , Patricia Evangelista

The title of Patricia Evangelista’s memoir is rooted in a conversation the journalist once had with a vigilante who made that unnerving declaration. Her home country, the Philippines, was full of people who shared the same belief as this man—like those working for the state, who carried out thousands of killings of citizens during President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs.” Evangelista tells the stories of those who were lost in the struggle, and interrogates the language we use to describe violence.

Buy Now: Some People Need Killing on Bookshop | Amazon

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• Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time

Write to Annabel Gutterman at [email protected]

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Books for Kids and Grown Ups

The Best 5th Grade Nonfiction Books

Recommending nonfiction books for 5th graders may not be a natural response for many teachers and parents who love to read fiction. But as an elementary school teacher and librarian, I’ve noticed that students who say, “Oh, I’m not a reader,” or, “I don’t really like reading,” might resist the siren songs of the latest fantasy series but, more often than not, will willingly dip in and out of the latest Guinness Book of World Records or Who Was… book. 

Fifth graders on the cusp of middle school are often fascinated by not just learning about the world around them but questioning what they see and hear while forming their own identities.  Nonfiction books provide intriguing windows to the complex layers of our physical and emotional world. 

This list of nonfiction books for 5th graders will either amaze, inspire, or simply gross them out!

Get a printable of this list  to take to your library. Just pop your email in the box below and it’ll come right to you!

20 Fantastic NonFiction Books for 5th Graders

For the emerging scientist.

Hand the picks in this section to the science-curious kids in your life:

Monstrous: The Lore, Gore, and Science Behind Your Favorite Monsters

Published Sept 3, 2019

Perfect for the spooky season (or all year round), this book explores the history behind monster lore while explaining the science of fear. Whether it is discussing different kinds of electricity behind Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein machine, or the biology of the best location of a vampire bite, this book will answer so many questions fifth graders will be dying to ask (pun intended)! With darkly funny illustrations and a humorous yet informative tone, this book strikes the perfect balance for fifth graders who want something just a little creepy but not too scary.

The Kitchen Pantry Scientist: Chemistry for Kids

Published May 5, 2020

This nonfiction book will appeal to historians, chemists, and crafters alike. Moving chronologically through history, from 1200 BCE to 1975, each chapter presents a brief biography of a lesser-known scientist and the scientific explorations and discoveries they made. Each brief yet informative chapter then moves into a lab/craft that kids can replicate on their own. Clear directions and bright photographs make this a maker book that is easy to follow – with adult supervision!

For Those Who Love Myths and Fables 

For the story-loving magic fans, this is the best gateway books into nonfiction!

Folktales for Fearless Girls: Stories We Were Never Told

Published February 25, 2020

First published in Spain in 2018 and then in the US in 2020, this collection of folktales from around the world, such as Armenia, Russia, China, India, and Spain, is perfectly designed for readers who love the Rebel Girls series. What all these stories have in common are the fearless female protagonists – shooting arrows, defending castles, and demonstrating honor. Even more impressive – these stories are traditional folktales from various world traditions, reminding us that sometimes we can dig hard enough into our collective history to retell our stories from different perspectives.

Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods

Published Feb 23, 2016

This anthology is so much fun because it is written from the perspective of the character Percy Jackson from Rick Riordan’s best-selling series! With Percy’s signature snarky tone, this retelling of the Greek gods provides all the right information but reads just like a tween diary, which will appeal to so many of our middle-grade readers.

For the Budding Historian

For the readers who always want to know: “Is this a real person? Did this really happen?”

Fred Korematsu Speaks Up

Published Jan 30, 2017

Told through poetry, illustrations, primary source photographs, and multiple nonfiction text features like timelines and sidebars, this book is part of a series called Fighting for Justice. This edition follows the life of Fred Korematsu, a Japanese American who fights against the US government’s orders to send all Japanese Americans to internment camps during World War 2. This powerful book will introduce fifth graders, especially those studying the three branches of American government in their curriculum, to lesser-known heroes of American history.

History Comics: The Roanoke Colony: America’s First Mystery

June 30, 2020,

Even the most fantasy-obsessed reader will be amazed by this true historical mystery! This nonfiction narrative, told in a graphic novel style, provides nuanced historical context and shares the many clues behind the mysterious vanishing of the Roanoke colony settlers in the 1600s. It’s always a popular read in my classroom, and kids will love to theorize about all the different possibilities of the settlers’ fates based on historical evidence.

History Smashers: The American Revolution

Published July 20, 2021

This book is an accessible, engaging history of the American Revolution. Told in a straightforward, linear style, with some entertaining sidebars, this is a history book that focuses on the key facts of this important era while also addressing some of the layers of complexity, such as why Paul Revere became famous (and not always for the reasons we think!). Whether it is enriching our understanding by adding layers to well-known figures or introducing us to lesser-known Revolutionary figures like Sybil Luddington and Lydia Darragh, this book provides the history while “smashing” some misconceptions.

A Quick History of Politics: From Pharaohs to Fair Votes

Published July 6, 2021

Hand this book to young readers who are becoming more and more curious about the way the world works and why. Told with entertaining subheadings, funny yet informative comics (think Dilbert-style), this gives a concise yet relevant history of how a seemingly simple idea of how people govern themselves has gone through so many variations.

For the Sports Fan

Athletes and other sports-loving readers will see themselves reflected in these pages.

Rebel Girls Champions: 25 Tales of Unstoppable Athletes

Published September 21, 2021

An easy-to-read, intriguing installment in the Rebel Girls series! This book features fascinating female athletes who are familiar household names now, such as World Cup champion and activist Rapinoe, snowboarder Chloe Kim, and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. It also introduces readers to lesser-known athletic champions who helped pave the way, such as the French rower Alice Miliat, who fought to get women into the Olympic games.

Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team

Published Jan 17, 2017

Steve Sheinkin, a three-time National Book Award finalist, writes a compelling history of one of the most impressive athletes in American history, as well as one of its most disturbing instances: the creation of Indian boarding schools in the late 1800s to early 1900s. This book highlights one athlete’s story, from his humble beginnings to his athletic triumphs over adversity on the football field to the larger contributions of Native Americans to the field of football. This is an intriguing and important must-read for many sports fans.

If They’re Biography Buffs

Hand these books to readers who tend to love realistic fiction or other character-driven stories. These characters have such compelling stories and readers will be excited to find out more after the last page has been turned.

Almost American Girl: A Memoir

Published January 28, 2020

Fifth-graders who loved Raina Telgemeier’s Smile will be immersed in Robin Ha’s memoir. She came to Kansas on what she thought was a vacation with her single mother. However, once she landed in the United States, a teenage Robin was astounded to learn that they were no longer returning to Seoul, Korea, but living in the Southern US with a Korean-American man whom her mother had just met and planned to marry. Empathetic tween readers will shudder with sympathy as they follow Robin’s years through an American education, not speaking the language or being able to read her beloved comics. Artistic readers will relish the solace she ends up finding in drawing. 

Infinite Hope: A Black Artist’s Journey from World War II to Peace

Published October 15, 2019

For future artists, war historians, and those looking for stories of perseverance and inspiration, this is a detailed biography of Ashley Bryan, an art school student who was attending college at Cooper Union in New York City when he got called up to serve in the army as one of the few Black GIs during World War II. With concise, methodical word choices, this book follows his journey through wartime and, piecing his story together, a collage of his artwork, letters, photographs, and diary entries. It is a visual feast as well as a compelling true narrative.

50 Trailblazers of the 50 States

Published November 5, 2019

This beautifully illustrated biography book is a treasure trove for those looking for important or intriguing figures from American history with a geographic bent. Unlike other biography compendiums often compiled around time periods, specific themes, or interests, this book spans the 50 states. This geographic diversity results in a diversity of interesting figures as well – from environmentalist Rachel Carson (Pennsylvania) to Colin Kaepernick (California). With bold graphic prints and a full-page spread for each trailblazer, this is the perfect book for readers to dip in and out and be inspired.

If They Love Encyclopedias

Hand these to the kids who love to dip in and out of a good compendium.

Listified! Britannica’s 300 Lists That Will Blow Your Mind

Published September 7, 2021

Is the Encyclopedia Britannica too stuffy for you? This book, also from Britannica, has all the useful facts but packaged in fun and quirky lists that explain cool concepts from a unique perspective (for example — planet sizes, if they were vegetables), accompanied by hilarious illustrations that will keep all kids engaged and excited to share with others.

Guinness Book of World Records 2024

Published September 12, 2023

It’s hard to go wrong with the tried and true Guinness Book of World Records. If you can assess a book’s popularity by how well-worn a cover is, the GWR always wins hands down in any library. The latest edition, published September 2023, features a few new sections, updated for new audiences. There’s a Gaming section for the biggest buildings in Minecraft, a Young Achievers section recognizing record-holders under 16, and also an Environmental section.

An Atlas of Countries that Don’t Exist: A Compendium of Fifty Unrecognized and Largely Unnoticed States

Published October 29, 2015

This is a serious-looking tome that will appeal to advanced fifth-grade readers who love obscure political facts. This is not a fantasy atlas – so no Lilliputs or Narnias here. Instead, these are actual countries that aren’t internationally recognized for some reason. It’s sure to leave readers wondering about what makes a nation. Published in 2017, it might not include some more recently recognized states, but that very absence might make it intriguing for the reader to guess whether a more recent country in the news would have moved off (or onto) this list.

If Animals Are Their Thing

These are the perfect nonfiction books for fifth graders who love animals.

History Comics: The American Mustang: Wild Horses of the American West

Published February 23, 2021

Equine fans (of which there are MANY in the tween years) will rejoice! This is a rollicking history of the most famous breed of wild horses in the US. This comic-book history has a strong narrative voice, incredibly detailed and rich drawings on par with the most sophisticated graphic novels, and is packed with facts. Whether it is exploring the origins of wild mustangs with the Spanish arrival in the New World, the relationship between Native Americans and horses, or how present-day mustang aficionados can help preserve the species, this book has it all.

Pink is for Blobfish: Discovering the World’s Perfectly Pink Animals

Published February 2, 2016

Just when you thought pink was just for Barbie… fifth graders love this book in the series, The World of Weird Animals. Written by Jess Keating, a scientist-turned-author, this book features gloriously disgusting pictures and an unabashed love for these strange animals. No domesticated dogs or cats here! Fifth graders who love animals and who love novelty will love this book and never think of pink as being a placid color ever again.

For the Foodie

These books are a delight to any true foodie.

Chinese Menu: The History, Myths and Legends Behind Your Favorite Foods

Author Grace Lin has put together a comprehensive, delicious, and delightful feast for the eyes, mind, and soul. From the questions you’ve always asked when reading an American Chinese restaurant menu (Who exactly is General Tso? Why did Buddha jump over the wall?) to the questions you might not have thought to ask (what are chopstick taboos?), this beautiful, bestselling book will provide foodie readers with all the answers. Just note: one side effect of reading this book is that it will make you VERY hungry!

Would you Rather? Food Edition

Game books are not the gorgeous coffee table books you see on Bookstagram, but the well-thumbed copies that might live in the backseat of the car on long car rides. This one is no exception and will provide the glue for any family gathering to kick-start conversation when needed. Even better when these books are about food! Keep it light-hearted, fun, and oh-so-scrumptious with these would you rather questions. Because some days, these are the toughest decisions we want to make – whether we would rather take a big bite out of a raw onion OR eat a whole orange, skin, pith, and all.

Nonfiction books–from the highly engaging narrative “real” stories about “real people” to the intriguing lists for those who love their trivia–can often be overlooked but are ideal for reluctant readers who want to read shorter snippets of highly engaging text or for eager readers looking to expand their book horizons. 

I’ve shared some of my favorite nonfiction books for 5th graders. Which of these have you read and loved? What did I miss?

More Non-Fiction & 5th Grade Books

• The best middle grade non-fiction books
• Historical fiction for 5th graders
• The best books for 5th graders

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About Evelyn Schwartz

Evelyn is a school librarian/fifth grade teacher who loves board games, bird watching and most of all, being buried in a good book! Preferably while sipping hot cocoa on a slouchy couch with her family.

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30 Memoirs and Nonfiction Books for Your Reading Bucket List

If you’re working on building a list of books you want to read in your lifetime, here is a list of 30 memoirs and nonfiction books to add to your reading bucket list.

This post may include affiliate links. That means if you click and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Please see Disclosures for more information.

I’m back with more reading bucket list recommendations! This week’s recommendations for your bucket list are must-read memoirs and great nonfiction books .

Last week, I kicked off this series with 30 contemporary fiction novels to add to your reading bucket list . For more lists in this series, check out the full list of links at the end of this post.

What’s a Reading Bucket List?

In short, a reading bucket list is a manageable list of books you want to read in your life. Mine has only 50 books on it . 

Creating this list helps guide you to meet your reading goals, without overwhelming you or leaving you feeling deprived from newer or more “fun” books you might want to read.

Here is more guidance on how to create a reading bucket list that you’ll actually finish .

Reading More Nonfiction

Nonfiction books are not typically the first reads that I reach for, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to read them. There have been some amazing, riveting memoirs and nonfiction books released in the last few years.

Nonfiction November is a great time to get in more nonfiction reads, but I’ve also been trying to squeeze in a few others throughout the year.

If you’re also looking to add more memoirs or nonfiction to your reading, some of these might be good additions to your own lifetime reading list.

The list includes a variety of types of books, from personal memoirs to historical explorations, so if you don’t read much nonfiction now, these ideas might get you started.

Don’t be afraid to stop reading books that aren’t working for you. Reading time is precious, and you should use it to read books you love–not books you think you *should* finish.

As with the previous list, when I haven’t yet read a book or if I don’t have a good summary/review of my own, I’ve included the publisher’s summary in italics.

Print the Lists

Want to print this and other book lists? Subscribe to my email newsletter and you’ll get to access my library of downloadable book lists, as well as a template for creating your own reading bucket list.

You’ll also receive regular updates on what’s new on the blog.

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

This tale of Louis Zamperini’s trials during World War II is so harrowing, you’ll have to remind yourself that it’s not fiction—because you won’t believe that one person could survive all that he did: a plane crash, months at sea on a raft, shark encounters…and that’s just the start. This book was hard to read, but also hard to put down. It stuck with me long after I finished it and provided perspective when day-to-day concerns threatened to overwhelm. It’s worth the reread for that reason alone.

More info →

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity

Pulitzer Prize winner Katherine Boo immersed herself in a slum of Mumbai to tell the stories of the people who live there. Annawadi sits ironically in the shadow of a billboard reading “The Beautiful Forevers” and is pressed on all sides by the growth of the city that is leaving it behind. Boo herself is not part of the story, and she doesn’t need to be. The lives, hopes, and hurts of the families are richly painted and bring home the individual struggles and systemic obstacles that stand in the way of people rising above the inequality into which they are born. For those of us in the U.S., the stories of struggling families in this faraway country feel closer to home than ever in today’s political climate and stratified economy.

What Is the What

The story of Achak Deng, one of the “Lost Boys of Sudan,” who as a child was separated from his family during the Second Sudanese Civil War. He encounters danger, violence, disappointment, and surprising moments of humor and humanity as he flees to unknown places in search of safety and a life. This book couldn’t truly be called non-fiction—Dave Eggers himself describes it as “fictionalized autobiography” because of lapses in Deng’s memory and imagined conversations. Eggers writes in Deng’s voice to tell of the horrors faced by these children in Sudan and the difficulties they face as immigrants in the United States.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

In the 1950s, Henrietta Lacks was a poor black woman in her thirties who died of cancer. Doctors at Johns Hopkins University, where she was treated, took some of her unique cells without permission and used them for research. Those cells then became the basis for important medical advances, and they are still sold today for medical research—yet Lacks’s family has never received any compensation. Heavy on science, but interesting to all readers because of the human element, Rebecca Skloot follows the path of the cells, the research, and Lacks’s family, while discussing important questions of ethics and morality in science and medicine.

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

I have never read any Stephen King before because I’m a big fat wimp and I know I’d have nightmares and be afraid to go in my basement (anyone else still give those wide-open storm sewers the side-eye after that clown appeared in It? And I only watched about five minutes of that movie.). But this book is pretty much required reading for anyone who wants to write. King is a prolific writer who knows how to tell a story, and he has great lessons to share with other storytellers.

The Glass Castle

I’ve seen this memoir recommended by readers for years, but it was actually the movie trailer that prompted me to pick it up. My impression was that the book was dark and heartbreaking, while the trailer gave the impression that it was about a carefree, inspiring family. I hadn’t yet seen the movie when I read this, but I did find the book heartbreaking. Walls seems to cling to the uplifting moments of her childhood, when her father in particular infused their family with a reckless sense of freedom and privilege in their free-spirited rootlessness. While there are appealing elements of his spirit, ultimately the parents’ selfishness and neglect is breathtaking, but the resourcefulness of the children is inspiring. (And thankfully, the movie trailer was somewhat misleading. It did stay pretty true to the spirit of the book.)

The Gratitude Diaries: How a Year Looking on the Bright Side Can Transform Your Life

Janice Kaplan spent a year focusing on gratitude in her own life and talking to experts about the ways that gratitude affects our lives. In all areas of life–family, career, health, and even grief –gratitude has a measurable effect on our well-being, our relationships, and our overall happiness. Daily conscious efforts to be grateful can actually change the neural connections in our brains and retrain the ways that we automatically respond to negative situations. This book made me more conscious of my own responses and the ways that I can build gratitude into my own thoughts and actions; read my full review and thoughts on moving through life with more gratitude.

Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body

Roxane Gay’s life was changed forever at 12. The victim of a gang rape, Gay began building a fortress around herself, attempting to both keep herself safe and regain control. Instead, she found herself in what she calls an “unruly body,” one that, in its obesity, provides some measure of safety while also shrinking her world in various ways. At the same time, she asserts herself as fully human in a world that is determined to dehumanize her: highly intelligent, fully able to love and be loved, and in no way ignorant of the health and nutrition facts people throw at her. Gay is brutally honest and raw in this memoir about her struggles to understand and care for herself–weight, past, and all.

Tiny Beautiful Things

A book of “advice on love and life” is not the kind of thing I would normally read, but the raves piqued my curiosity. Strayed, known as “Sugar,” the anonymous advice columnist for The Rumpus, gives the kind of advice we all hope to get from our best friends , or our therapists. She doesn’t always have the answers, but she does have perspective, and she is searingly honest in her analysis of some of life’s biggest questions. At the heart of all of her columns is one life essential: love.

Seabiscuit: An American Legend

I was blown away by Hillenbrand’s Unbroken –the storytelling, the research, the detail–and after resisting Seabiscuit despite all the raves, I finally gave in and read it, hoping for a similar experience. I’m sorry to say that I didn’t love it. I’m still impressed with Hillenbrand, but I wasn’t able to overcome my overall disinterest in horse racing.

However, many other readers adore this book and list it among their favorites. While it wasn’t my favorite, it’s still worth a try if you’re looking for great nonfiction storytelling.

Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption

Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship—and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.

Educated: A Memoir

As a young child, Tara Westover’s upbringing seemed almost charming and old fashioned. Living on a mountain in Idaho, the family strived for self-sufficiency based in faith and closeness to one another. As Tara grew up, however, she realized that their lives were driven by paranoid survivalism, religious extremism, abuse, and possibly mental illness.

Tara’s memoir traces the path from her cloistered upbringing–during which she never set foot in school–to her eventual education at BYU, Cambridge, and Harvard.

But more important than her formal educational path is her move toward awareness and a sense of self that wasn’t allowed in her mountaintop life. Educated explores her attempts to reconcile this new sense of self and the boundaries she learns to set with the love and longing she feels for her family.

An incredible read both for the excellent writing and the author’s thoughtful, unblinking, nuanced look at herself and her own life.

Daring to Drive: A Saudi Woman’s Awakening

A ferociously intimate memoir by a devout woman from a modest family in Saudi Arabia who became the unexpected leader of a courageous movement to support women’s right to drive. Writing on the cusp of history, Manal offers a rare glimpse into the lives of women in Saudi Arabia today. Her memoir is a remarkable celebration of resilience in the face of tyranny, the extraordinary power of education and female solidarity, and the difficulties, absurdities, and joys of making your voice heard.

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood

Trevor Noah’s unlikely path from apartheid South Africa to the desk of The Daily Show began with a criminal act: his birth. Trevor was born to a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother at a time when such a union was punishable by five years in prison. Born a Crime is the story of a mischievous young boy who grows into a restless young man as he struggles to find himself in a world where he was never supposed to exist. It is also the story of that young man’s relationship with his fearless, rebellious, and fervently religious mother—his teammate, a woman determined to save her son from the cycle of poverty, violence, and abuse that would ultimately threaten her own life.

Night is Elie Wiesel’s masterpiece, a candid, horrific, and deeply poignant autobiographical account of his survival as a teenager in the Nazi death camps. Night offers much more than a litany of the daily terrors, everyday perversions, and rampant sadism at Auschwitz and Buchenwald; it also eloquently addresses many of the philosophical as well as personal questions implicit in any serious consideration of what the Holocaust was, what it meant, and what its legacy is and will be.

In Cold Blood

On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues.

As Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, he generates both mesmerizing suspense and astonishing empathy. In Cold Blood is a work that transcends its moment, yielding poignant insights into the nature of American violence.

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek is the story of a dramatic year in Virginia’s Roanoke Valley. Annie Dillard sets out to see what she can see. What she sees are astonishing incidents of “beauty tangled in a rapture with violence.”

Her personal narrative highlights one year’s exploration on foot in the Virginia region through which Tinker Creek runs. In the summer, Dillard stalks muskrats in the creek and contemplates wave mechanics; in the fall, she watches a monarch butterfly migration and dreams of Arctic caribou. She tries to con a coot; she collects pond water and examines it under a microscope. She unties a snake skin, witnesses a flood, and plays King of the Meadow with a field of grasshoppers. The result is an exhilarating tale of nature and its seasons.

The Boys of My Youth

Jo Ann Beard beautifully evokes her childhood in the early ’60s, a time in which mothers continued to smoke right up to labor, one’s own scabs were deeply interesting, and Barbie dolls seemed to get naked of their own volition, knowing that Ken would be the one to get in trouble if they were caught. Beard’s memories of the next 30 years are no less sharp and wry, powered by antic melancholy, perfect juxtapositions, and “the push of love.” When she was little, “the words of grown-ups rarely made sense,” and even now, with the exception of her best friend and a few colleagues, not much seems to have changed.

Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder

I was a huge fan of everything Little House when I was a kid. I read the books over and over, and I watched the television series. This past year, I’ve been diving back into that world. I’ve been reading the books aloud with my daughter, but I’ve also been taking a more nuanced look at the world presented by Laura Ingalls Wilder. First, I read (and loved) Caroline: Little House, Revisited (Ma’s fictional perspective on the Little House on the Prairie story), and then I dove into the true story with this detailed biography.

There are parts of Prairie Fires that read like a history textbook; the book is long, and it can get quite dry. It presents the broader historical context in which the Ingalls and Wilder families lived, and that included things like farm loans, railroads, crop pricing, and politics.

At the same time, when the book circles back to the families, it makes clear how these things affected their lives and decisions. As a reader of the books, it was gratifying to learn that many of the events actually happened–but also interesting as an adult to learn of the omissions, both of events and of character flaws. Most illuminating was the incessant devastation that occurred through their lives: fires, grasshoppers, storms, illness–and ongoing poverty that resulted. While these things were present in the books, the reality of them is a contrast to the idyllic lives we remember.

The later years of Wilder’s life were also fascinating–especially her relationship with her volatile daughter, Rose. Their partnership brought the books we love to life, but they would have been quite different without both Laura’s measured approach and Rose’s editing talent and flair for the dramatic (inserted sparingly, thanks to her mother’s reserve). Rose herself is an interesting character, and there were moments when the author seemed to question her sanity. Laura’s husband, Almanzo, unfortunately, is not a strong presence. The author drew heavily from the letters and writing of the women, and he was not a writer.

While I enjoyed this biography, because of the length and level of detail, I would only recommend this to other avid fans of the Little House books.

When Breath Becomes Air

At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a naïve medical student “possessed,” as he wrote, “by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life” into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality.

I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. When she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls’ education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.

Truth & Beauty: A Friendship

Truth & Beauty: A Friendship is the story of the two-decade friendship between author Ann Patchett and the late poet and author Lucy Grealy. The two women met in college and cemented their friendship in graduate school and the years that followed, as both pursued writing careers. Grealy, who in childhood battled cancer that left her without part of her lower jaw, endured ongoing health difficulties and reconstructive surgeries.

Grealy was a needy, all-consuming friend–talented, tortured, and plagued by both addiction and her need for love, even as love surrounded her. Patchett, for her part, longed to be a part of Grealy’s inner circle long before she ever was, and she basked in Lucy’s need for her, as well as their shared goals and talent. The two moved toward success together, and the journey must have felt magical and pre-destined, if not always healthy. As always, I love Patchett’s writing, and listening to her narrate was a pleasure.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Sent by their mother to live with their devout, self-sufficient grandmother in a small Southern town, Maya and her brother, Bailey, endure the ache of abandonment and the prejudice of the local “powhitetrash.” At eight years old and back at her mother’s side in St. Louis, Maya is attacked by a man many times her age—and has to live with the consequences for a lifetime. Years later, in San Francisco, Maya learns that love for herself, the kindness of others, her own strong spirit, and the ideas of great authors (“I met and fell in love with William Shakespeare”) will allow her to be free instead of imprisoned.

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

Ishmael Beah was a regular 12-year-old boy in Sierra Leone when the war came. He went to school, hung out with friends, and loved to dance and rap in local talent shows. All of that was lost in an instant as the rebels rampaged through villages, killing everyone they found. He found himself on the run. After surviving for months, at times with a small group of boys, at times completely alone, starvation and desperation brought him to a village that seemed safe. Instead, he was pressed into service by the government army, drugged, and trained as a killer. Beah tells his story in a way that is both matter-of-fact and fully cognizant of the innocence that was stolen from him and so many other children. A word of warning: this was so hard to read–at times I struggled to continue, knowing that things were only going to get worse. That it’s a true story, for Beah and for thousands of other children, made it feel important to finish.

Between the World and Me

In this letter to his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates discusses how the United States was built on and by the bodies of black people, and how those bodies continue to be endangered, used, and abused to maintain a system that thrives on their subjugation. Coates recalls recent incidents of police brutality as well as the long history of race and its importance to those in power–“the people who believe themselves to be white.” Powerful, emotional, and filled with brutal, uncomfortable truths that demand to be known and acknowledged.

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

In this “artful, informative, and delightful” (William H. McNeill, New York Review of Books) book, Jared Diamond convincingly argues that geographical and environmental factors shaped the modern world. Societies that had a head start in food production advanced beyond the hunter-gatherer stage, and then developed writing, technology, government, and organized religion—as well as nasty germs and potent weapons of war—and adventured on sea and land to conquer and decimate preliterate cultures. A major advance in our understanding of human societies, Guns, Germs, and Steel chronicles the way that the modern world came to be and stunningly dismantles racially based theories of human history.

As Hurricane Katrina headed toward New Orleans, Abdulrahman Zeitoun never considered leaving. He was used to riding out the storm and keeping watch over his painting business and the properties he and his wife, Kathy, owned. Kathy and the four kids would leave, eventually making their way to Arizona to stay with friends, but Zeitoun stayed. As everyone knows, New Orleans soon turned into a disaster area. Zeitoun was largely isolated from it, staying on the second floor and roof of his home at night and paddling through the nearby neighborhoods by day, feeding dogs and helping people who needed it.

He and a friend are in a home he owns, visiting a tenant, when heavily armed authorities burst in and arrest them all. Thus begins an imprisonment filled with indignities, no standard rights, and accusations of terrorism. It’s an insightful look into one of the only parts of the machine that seemed to run like clockwork during Katrina: arrests and imprisonment.

This book is especially interesting not just for its content, which paints Zeitoun as quirky but noble, but also for its aftermath. Since Katrina and the writing of this book, Zeitoun and Kathy divorced, and he was accused of trying to beat her with a tire iron and then with soliciting a hitman in prison to kill her. He was acquitted of both but later convicted of stalking her. He was recently freed from prison after a deportation order couldn’t be carried out because of the war in Syria.

It’s always interesting to look at the larger story outside of a book, to find out if there are other perspectives or if new events have occurred since the writing–particularly when a person in a nonfiction book is portrayed in a certain way. I believe that most of the story in Zeitoun is probably true, but I also believe that people can be nice to dogs, help out a few neighbors, and still do other horrible things.

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century

“One mark of a great book is that it makes you see things in a new way, and Mr. Friedman certainly succeeds in that goal,” the Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz wrote in The New York Times reviewing The World Is Flat in 2005. In this new edition (3.0), Thomas L. Friedman includes fresh stories and insights to help us understand the flattening of the world. Weaving new information into his overall thesis, and answering the questions he has been most frequently asked by parents across the country, this third edition also includes two new chapters–on how to be a political activist and social entrepreneur in a flat world; and on the more troubling question of how to manage our reputations and privacy in a world where we are all becoming publishers and public figures.

A Circle of Quiet

This journal shares fruitful reflections on life and career prompted by the author’s visit to her personal place of retreat near her country home.

Hidden Figures

Set amid the civil rights movement, the never-before-told true story of NASA’s African-American female mathematicians who played a crucial role in America’s space program.

Before Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of professionals worked as ‘Human Computers’, calculating the flight paths that would enable these historic achievements. Among these were a coterie of bright, talented African-American women. Segregated from their white counterparts, these ‘colored computers’ used pencil and paper to write the equations that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space.

Great nonfiction books aren’t my specialty, so I’m hoping you’ll add your own recommendations in the comments! What are your must-read memoirs and nonfiction books?

Other posts in this series:

• 30 Middle Grade Books for Your Reading Bucket List
• 30 20th Century Classics Written by Women for your Reading Bucket List
• 30 Contemporary Fiction Novels for Your Reading Bucket List
• 30 Historical Fiction Novels for Your Reading Bucket List
• How to Create a Reading Bucket List that You’ll Actually Finish
• 50 Books on My Reading Bucket List

Allison is a dedicated book lover, writer, and lifelong learner with an undeniable passion for books and reading. As the founder of Mind Joggle, she helps busy, overwhelmed women reclaim their mental space and make books a transformative part of their lives. She holds an Ed.M in Technology in Education from Harvard University and a BS in Scientific and Technical Communication from the University of Minnesota.

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42 Creative Book Report Ideas for Students

Inspire your students to share their love of books.

Responding to what you read is an important literacy skill. Reading about other people’s experiences and perspectives helps kids learn about the world. And although students don’t need to dive deeply into every single book they read, occasionally digging into characters, settings, and themes can help them learn to look beyond the prose. Here are 42 creative book report ideas designed to make reading more meaningful.

1. Concrete Found Poem

This clever activity is basically a shape poem made up of words, phrases, and whole sentences found in the books students read. The words come together to create an image that represents something from the story.

2. Graphic Novel

Have students rewrite the book they are reading, or a chapter of their book, as a graphic novel. Set parameters for the assignment such as including six scenes from the story, three characters, details about the setting, etc. And, of course, include detailed illustrations to accompany the story.

3. Book Snaps

Book Snaps are a way for students to visually show how they are reacting to, processing, and/or connecting with a text. First, students snap a picture of a page in the book they are reading. Then, they add comments, images, highlights, and more.

4. Diary Entry

Have your students place themselves in the shoes of one of the characters from their book and write a first-person diary entry of a critical moment from the story. Ask them to choose a moment in the story where the character has plenty of interaction and emotion to share in a diary entry.

5. Character To-Do List

This fun activity is an off-the-beaten-path way to dive deep into character analysis. Get inside the head of the main character in a book and write a to-do list that they might write. Use actual information from the text, but also make inferences into what that character may wish to accomplish.

6. Mint Tin Book Report

There are so many super-creative, open-ended projects you can use mint tins for. This teacher blogger describes the process of creating book reports using them. There’s even a free template for cards that fit inside.

7. Fictional Yearbook Entries

Ask your students to create a yearbook based on the characters and setting in the book. What do they look like? Cut out magazine pictures to give a good visual image for their school picture. What kind of superlative might they get? Best looking? Class clown? What clubs would they be in or lead? Did they win any awards? It should be obvious from their small yearbooks whether your students dug deep into the characters in their books. They may also learn that who we are as individuals is reflected in what we choose to do with our lives.

8. Book Report Cake

This project would be perfect for a book tasting in your classroom! Each student presents their book report in the shape of food. See the sandwich and pizza options above and check out this blog for more delicious ideas.

9. Current Events Comparison

Have students locate three to five current events articles a character in their book might be interested in. After they’ve found the articles, have them explain why the character would find them interesting and how they relate to the book. Learning about how current events affect time, place, and people is critical to helping develop opinions about what we read and experience in life.

10. Sandwich Book Report

Yum! You’ll notice a lot of our creative book report ideas revolve around food. In this oldie but goodie, each layer of this book report sandwich covers a different element of the book—characters, setting, conflict, etc. A fun adaptation of this project is the book report cheeseburger.

11. Book Alphabet

Choose 15 to 20 alphabet books to help give your students examples of how they work around themes. Then ask your students to create their own Book Alphabet based on the book they read. What artifacts, vocabulary words, and names reflect the important parts of the book? After they find a word to represent each letter, have them write one sentence that explains where the word fits in.

12. Peekaboo Book Report

Using cardboard lap books (or small science report boards), students include details about their book’s main characters, plot, setting, conflict, resolution, etc. Then they draw a head and arms on card stock and attach them to the board from behind to make it look like the main character is peeking over the report.

13. T-Shirt Book Report

Another fun and creative idea: Create a wearable book report with a plain white tee. Come up with your own using Sharpie pens and acrylic paint. Get step-by-step directions .

14. Book Jacket

Have students create a new book jacket for their story. Include an attractive illustrated cover, a summary, a short biography of the author, and a few reviews from readers.

15. Watercolor Rainbow Book Report

This is great for biography research projects. Students cut out a photocopied image of their subject and glue it in the middle. Then, they draw lines from the image to the edges of the paper, like rays of sunshine, and fill in each section with information about the person. As a book report template, the center image could be a copy of the book cover, and each section expands on key information such as character names, theme(s), conflict, resolution, etc.

16. Act the Part

Have students dress up as their favorite character from the book and present an oral book report. If their favorite character is not the main character, retell the story from their point of view.

17. Pizza Box Book Report

If you’re looking for creative book report ideas that use upcycled materials, try this one using a pizza box. It works well for both nonfiction and fiction book reports. The top lid provides a picture of the book cover. Each wedge of the pizza pie tells part of the story.

18. Bookmark

Have students create a custom illustrated bookmark that includes drawings and words from either their favorite chapter or the entire book.

19. Book Reports in a Bag

Looking for book report ideas that really encourage creative thinking? With book reports in a bag, students read a book and write a summary. Then, they decorate a paper grocery bag with a scene from the book, place five items that represent something from the book inside the bag, and present the bag to the class.

20. Reading Lists for Characters

Ask your students to think about a character in their book. What kinds of books might that character like to read? Take them to the library to choose five books the character might have on their to-be-read list. Have them list the books and explain what each book might mean to the character. Post the to-be-read lists for others to see and choose from—there’s nothing like trying out a book character’s style when developing your own identity.

21. File Folder Book Report

Also called a lap book, this easy-to-make book report hits on all the major elements of a book study and gives students a chance to show what they know in a colorful way.

22. Collage

Create a collage using pictures and words that represent different parts of the book. Use old magazines or print pictures from the Internet.

23. Book Report Triorama

Who doesn’t love a multidimensional book report? This image shows a 3D model, but Elisha Ann provides a lesson to show students how to glue four triangles together to make a 4D model.

24. Timeline

Have students create a timeline of the main events from their book. Be sure to include character names and details for each event. Use 8 x 11 sheets of paper taped together or a long portion of bulletin board paper.

25. Clothes Hanger Book Report Mobile

This creative project doesn’t require a fancy or expensive supply list. Students just need an ordinary clothes hanger, strings, and paper. The body of the hanger is used to identify the book, and the cards on the strings dangling below are filled with key elements of the book, like characters, setting, and a summary.

26. Public Service Announcement

If a student has read a book about a cause that affects people, animals, or the environment, teach them about public service announcements . Once they understand what a PSA is, have them research the issue or cause that stood out in the book. Then give them a template for a storyboard so they can create their own PSA. Some students might want to take it a step further and create a video based on their storyboard. Consider sharing their storyboard or video with an organization that supports the cause or issue.

27. Dodecahedron Book Report

Creative book report ideas think outside the box. In this case, it’s a ball! SO much information can be covered on the 12 panels , and it allows students to take a deep dive in a creative way.

28. Character Cards

Make trading cards (like baseball cards) for a few characters from the book. On the front side, draw the character. On the back side, make a list of their character traits and include a quote or two.

29. Book Report Booklets

This clever book report is made from ordinary paper bags. Stack the paper bags on top of each other, fold them in half, and staple the closed-off ends of the bags together. Students can write, draw, and decorate on the paper bag pages. They can also record information on writing or drawing paper and glue the paper onto the pages. The open ends of the bags can be used as pockets to insert photos, cut-outs, postcards, or other flat items that help them tell their story.

30. Letter to the Author

Write a letter to the author of the book. Tell them three things you really liked about the story. Ask three questions about the plot, characters, or anything else you’re curious about.

31. Book Report Charm Bracelet

What a “charming” way to write a book report! Each illustrated bracelet charm captures a character, an event in the plot, setting, or other detail.

32. Fact Sheet

Have students create a list of 10 facts that they learned from reading the book. Have them write the facts in complete sentences, and be sure that each fact is something that they didn’t know before they read the book.

33. Cereal Box TV Book Report

This book report project is a low-tech version of a television made from a cereal box and two paper towel rolls. Students create the viewing screen cut-out at the top, then insert a scroll of paper with writing and illustrations inside the box. When the cardboard roll is rotated, the story unfolds.

34. Be a Character Therapist

Therapists work to uncover their clients’ fears based on their words and actions. When we read books, we must learn to use a character’s actions and dialogue to infer their fears. Many plots revolve around a character’s fear and the work it takes to overcome that fear. Ask students to identify a character’s fear and find 8 to 10 scenes that prove this fear exists. Then have them write about ways the character overcame the fear (or didn’t) in the story. What might the character have done differently?

35. Mind Maps

Mind maps can be a great way to synthesize what students have learned from reading a book. Plus, there are so many ways to approach them. Begin by writing a central idea in the middle of the page. For example, general information, characters, plot, etc. Then branch out from the center with ideas, thoughts, and connections to material from the book.

36. Foldables

From Rainbows Within Reach , this clever idea would be a great introduction to writing book reports. Adapt the flap categories for students at different levels. Adjust the number of categories (or flaps) per the needs of your students.

37. Board games

This is a great project if you want your students to develop a little more insight into what they’re reading. Have them think about the elements of their favorite board games and how they can be adapted to fit this assignment. For more, here are step-by-step directions .

38. Comic strips

If you’re looking for creative book report ideas for students who like graphic novels, try comic strips. Include an illustrated cover with the title and author. The pages of the book should retell the story using dialogue and descriptions of the setting and characters. Of course, no comic book would be complete without copious illustrations and thought bubbles.

39. Timeline

Create a timeline using a long roll of butcher paper, a poster board, or index cards taped together. For each event on the timeline, write a brief description of what happens. Add pictures, clip art, word art, and symbols to make the timeline more lively and colorful.

40. Cereal Box

Recycle a cereal box and create a book report Wheaties-style. Decorate all sides of the box with information about the book’s characters, setting, plot, summary, etc.

41. Wanted Poster

Make a “wanted” poster for one of the book’s main characters. Indicate whether they are wanted dead or alive. Include a picture of the character and a description of what the character is “wanted” for, three examples of the character showing this trait, and a detailed account of where the character was last seen.

42. Movie Version

If the book your students have read has been made into a movie, have them write a report about how the versions are alike and different. If the book has not been made into a movie, have them write a report telling how they would make it into a movie, using specific details from the book.

What creative book report ideas did we miss? Come share in our We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.

Plus, check out the most popular kids’ books in every grade..

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Excellent Nonfiction Books for 4th Graders

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Use this list of good  nonfiction books  for 4th graders (9-year-olds in fourth grade) as a resource for finding the best nonfiction books that your kids will enjoy reading.

It’s important for children to practice reading both fiction and nonfiction. It’s also a great motivator if kids are reading something they are interested in.

See the nonfiction book lists for ALL AGES here.

Go  here for FICTION 4th grade books for 9-year-olds .

Nonfiction Books for 4th Graders

The Hidden Life of a Toad  by Doug Wechsler There is so much to love about this nonfiction picture book! The text is really basic —  not to hard for  early elementary  grades. The book sequentially shows in text and photos the development of a toad — which is fascinating! It’s longer than I would prefer but I think kids will stay engaged since the changes in the toad are quite profound.

The Biggest Stuff in the Universe  by Mr. DeMaio, illustrated by Saxton Moore Get ready to learn cool facts about BIG things — with photographs, cartoons, and illustrations!  From the largest tree to the largest exoplanet to the biggest thing in the known universe (the Hercules Corona Borealis Great Wall), Mr. DeMaio makes learning about science on earth and in space FUN!

The Story of Movie Star Anna May Wong  written by Paula Yoo, illustrated by Lin Wang I really love how The Story of series introduces us to people that haven’t typically been the subjects of biographies and are unfamiliar. I developed so much respect for Anna May Wong because she found her passion in life, acting, and pursued it. Despite the blatant stereotyping and poor pay, Anna supported herself as an actress, moving to Europe for a time and then China. When she returned, she refused parts that showed Chinese in an unsympathetic light. Talk about perseverance!

From an Idea to Disney How Imagination Built a World of Magic  written by Lowey Bundy Sichol, illustrated by C.S. Jennings I’ve read many other biographies about Walt Disney, but this one stands out for its writing, pertinent information, and appeal. It shares about the business that continued on even after Walt’s death and his brother’s death including the merger with Pixar and the successful but controversial CEO, Michael Eisner. Fascinating!

From an Idea to Nike: How Marketing Made Nike a Global Success   written by Lowey Bundy Sichol, illustrated by C. S. Jennings Kids will see that it’s not enough to have a good idea and great product but you also must figure out how to sell your product — and Nike did this by sponsoring elite athletes like Michael Jordan to wear their shoes. The company’s journey shows kids that businesses go through ups and downs. However, continued  innovative thinking  combined with hard work and determination leads to success.

One of Our Giant Robots Is Missing: A Solve-the-Story Puzzle Adventure  written by Russel Ginns and Jonathan Maier, illustrated by Andy Norman At Roboland, Alicia gets separated from her classmates. She wanders into the employee’s only area and overhears them talking about dismantling her favorite robot, MegaTom. She knows it’s up to her to save him. Help her save MegaTom by solving the puzzles and mazes before the employees find out and catch up to them.  You’ll love this exciting, interactive puzzle adventure from Puzzlooies!

Search for a Giant Squid: Pick Your Path  by Amy Seto Forrester & Andy Chou Musser This is an informational fiction  choose your own adventure  book where readers join an expedition on a dive to the deepest ocean depths to search for a giant squid. Choose which pilot to be, the submersible you’ll use, and the dive site, and then start your adventure. What will you discover? What will you do with mechanical problems or bad weather?

GUM How it Happened The Cool Stories and Facts Behind Every Chew  written by Page Towler, illustrated by Dan Sipple Did you know that gum has been around since the Neolithic era? Learn about the history of gum, the types of gum from different cultures, more recent gum iterations, and modern gum. The authors will hook readers with the writing and design, but readers will stay for the information. It’s fascinating!

Everything Awesome About Sharks and Other Underwater Creatures!   by Mike Lowery The Everything Awesome  book series  continues with SHARKS! Handwriting and kid-like fonts plus lots of comic illustrations and colors make this a visual feast for the eyes. (Or distracting, it can go either way.) But, it’s filled with a wealth of facts about the ocean, underwater creatures, and of course, sharks. From information about ocean zones to prehistoric sharks and kelp forests, this book covers ocean information in a fun, often hilarious, way.

Where’s the Llama?  written by Paul Moran, illustrated by Gergely Forizs A group of ten llamas in the Andes in Peru decide to see the world. Can you spot them in each of the world locations like Miami Beach, New York City’s modern art gallery, a fairground in Canada, a Cambodian jungle, an ice park in China, and more? Answers are in the back plus more things to spot. We really like the artwork in this book!

Bei Bei Goes Home A Panda Story  by Cheryl Bardoe This is an excellent book for children to learn about pandas, starting with the birth of baby Bei Bei and following her as she grows up.  Full-color photographs, sequential writing, factual information, and more — this will make a great addition to school libraries.

Anglerfish The Seadevil of the Deep  written by Elaine M. Alexander, illustrated by Fiona Fogg Follow the anglerfish’s birth to growth and life deep down in the dark ocean depths.  Find out more about this weird-looking toothy fish with bioluminescence.

What Breathes Through Its Butt? Mind-Blowing Science Questions Answered  by Dr. Emily Grossman If you’re looking for an informative  nonfiction book  with voice (HUMOR) and pizazz, this book hits all the right spots.  You can’t help but love the appeal of the book which is a mixture of goofy cartoons, information in a handwritten typeface with bolded and bigger words, and funny quizzes. (What can you do to make a pineapple taste riper? a. stand it upside down b. place it in the fridge c. cut it open d. sit on it) The quizzes introduce the topic, engaging a reader’s natural curiosity. You’ll learn about eggs, muscles, escaping a crocodile’s jaw, and other much weirder topics.

Courageous Creatures and the Humans Who Help Them I Survived True Stories  by Lauren Tarshis Superb!  Four compelling stories of animals and humans will keep readers engaged.  From carrier pigeon hero of WW I to cheetah cubs adopted by a human, these will share  true stories  for any animal lover. Filled with lots of black and white photographs and factual information that supports each story. For example, read about echolocation related to the dolphin story and general information about marine animals. Highly recommended.

Sleuth and Solve: 20+ Mind-Twisting Mysteries  by Victor Escandell As a teacher, I used these kinds of mind-bending puzzles in my classroom frequently. Why? Because the solutions take  out-of-the-box thinking.  Which is SO GOOD FOR KIDS! I love the design and format of this book… Pen and ink illustrations accompany a short mystery puzzle. Kids will love the challenge of trying to figure out the solutions– then getting to check to see if they got it right by lifting the flap.

Strange Nature: The Insect Port r aits of Levon Biss  written by Gregory Mone, photographs by Levon Biss Stunning photographs labeled with information about cool  insects  like the tiger beetle, mantis-fly, and the Orchid Cuckoo Bee accompany kid-friendly informational writing with the perfect amount of text to keep readers learning and engaged. Read where each insect lives, its size, and the most important information about the insect. You’ll love this beautiful  bug book  because both the photos and the writing are AMAZING.

What If You Could Sniff Like a Shark?  written by Sandra Markle, illustrated by Howard McWilliam Despite the busy layout, this is an engaging, informative, and relatable  book of facts about ocean animals  filled with photos, illustrations, and graphic designs. On the Australian Box Jellyfish page, it explains where they live and how they use their tentacles to sting, and other fascinating facts. Then it suggests that if you could sting, too, you’d be a crime-fighting superhero.

A Brief History of Underpants   written by Christine Van Zandt, illustrated by Harry Briggs Even people in ancient times wore  underwear ! Whether it was an Inuit in caribou skin underwear or Egyptian loincloths or quilted, padded underpants of European knights, kids will read all about the history of  underwear , inventions like the sewing machine that changed the world of underwear, and plenty of fun facts about underpants!  Well-written with punny humor, facts, and comic illustrations, this little nonfiction book for young readers is a delight!  

Kwame Alexander’s Free Write: A Poetry Notebook (Ghostwriter)   by Kwame Alexander This fun-to-read workbook for ages 8 to 12 introduces writers to poetry, literary devices like metaphors, as well as other poetic techniques.  Written in Alexander’s signature voice and style,  kids will get hooked as they dive into poetry . Alexander provides example poems with fill-in-the-blanks and lots of spaces for free writes.

The Story of Tennis Champion Arthur Ashe  written by Crystal Hubbard, illustrated by Kevin Belford In this book, you’ll learn about Arthur Ashe, a famous tennis player who eventually died from AIDS-related complications after a blood transfusion. Not only did this quiet, kind man work hard in tennis but you’ll learn that he also worked hard for equal rights and research funding for HIV/AIDS.

Killer Underwear Invasion! How to Spot Fake News, Disinformation, and Conspiracy Theories  by Elise Gravel This is a clearly organized informational book that will  teach kids about fake news — and how to find reliable sources of information . (In a nutshell.) Comic panels filled with humor and facts will make the information digestible and easy to understand.

Little Guides to Great Lives Nelson Mandela   written by Isabel Thomas, illustrated by Hannah Warren This is another new biography series that I highly recommend for elementary-age readers. Written like a narrative story, these little books are fast-paced and informative. This particular title is about one of the world’s most admired activists and leaders, Nelson Mandela.  Little Guides to Great Lives series  contain perfect text to picture ratio, captivating illustrations, informative content, and just-right pacing. Plus, they’re very well-written.

Copycat Science  by Mike Barfield Part biographies and part experiments, this nonfiction book narrated in cartoon format makes science fun!  Learn about each scientist in their short biography, then apply and learn more about their area of study by doing the related experiment. Read about James Audubon then make a bird feeder. Then read about Rosalind Franklin and do an experiment about strawberry’s DNA. Topics include living things, human biology, materials, air, electricity and magnetism, forces and physics, astronomy, math, and more.

Beavers: The Superpower Field Guides  written by Rachel Poliquin, illustrated by Nicholas John Frith In this fact-filled, funny, and illustrated book, you’ll meet Elmer who, like other beavers, has superpowers like Chainsaw Teeth and an Ever-Toiling Tail. Wow, right!? After you zip through this engaging nonfiction book, I predict Elmer will be your new favorite kind of animal — and you’ll be a beaver expert, too. Excellent, engaging writing!

Wild Outside Around the World with Survivorman  writing by Les Stroud with illustrations by Andres P. Barr Les Stroud recounts exciting personal adventure stories of exploration and survival in all sorts of places around the world.  Fascinating stories are accompanied by photos, illustrations, maps, and informational insets.  I couldn’t put this book down and HIGHLY recommend it.

So You Want to Be a Ninja?  written by Bruno Vincent, illustrated by Takayo Akiyama Engaging and entertaining, full of facts, trivia, quizzes, and fun , this is the essential illustrated guide for ninjas-in-training. Three friends travel back in time to 1789 Japan where they’re taught by famous ninjas.

Do You Know Where the Animals Live?  by Peter Wohlleben This book is organized around questions about animals .  For every question, find the answers in a two-page spread of photographs and text. Lovely layouts with full-color photographs, quizzes, at-home applications, and interesting and informative information make this is a unique but worthy animal tome that will appeal to most readers. Questions include: Can animals survive on plants alone? Do animals dream? Why do elephants stomp their feet?

Animal BFFs   by Sophie Corrigan I’ve poured over this book because the writing is engaging and  the information about unusual animals who live together is interesting.  I particularly love the funny dialogue bubbles of conversation between animal duos that you haven’t ever heard about — like warthogs and banded mongooses or ruby-throated hummingbirds and spiders– and why they’re paired up.

How to Go Anywhere (And Not Get Lost): A Guide to Navigation for Young Adventurers  written by Hans Aschim, illustrated by Andres Lozano Engaging informational writing guides readers through the history of navigation to the development of more precision, new technology, and better maps . Illustrated activities throughout the book will help readers apply their new knowledge. for example, “Make Your Own Stick Chart” helps you make an ancient system of mapping the ocean and “Visualizing Declination” shows you the difference magnetic declination can make. Use this all year long in your homeschool or science classroom.

Rocket to the Moon: Big Ideas That Changed the World  by Don Brown Instead of reading a narrative nonfiction book, get your fact-filled history about the first moon landing in an exciting, well-written, black-and-white   graphic novel.  Reading this book will help you understand our country’s competitiveness with Russia, the many attempts to launch rockets, and the eventual success of sending astronauts into space. I’m happy to see this new “Big Ideas”  graphic novel series  with a home-run first book.

What Makes a Monster? Discovering the World’s Scariest Creatures   written by Jess Keating, illustrations by David DeGrand Monsters  — real animal monsters — is a topic that kids love reading about. Keating writes in a way that gives kids lots of information in a readable, engaging way. I love the design, too –it’s a mix of photographs, illustrations, cool fonts, and bright colors.  What Makes a Monster  is a must-read filled with unexpected information about fascinating, dangerous animals.

Pencils, Pens   and   Brushes: A Great Girls’ Guide to Disney Animation  written by Mindy Johnson, illustrated by Lorelay Bovi Learn about some of the incredible women who worked at Disney’s animation from writers to artists to animators to researchers.  My daughter read this and thinks that artsy girls especially (like my daughter) will love these biographies. Each one skillfully captures the woman’s story, where she started, her passions, her education, and how she came to work for Disney as well as what she worked on while at Disney. As you might expect, the illustrations and design of this book are both eye-catching and exquisite.

When Green Becomes Tomatoes Poems for All Seasons  written by Julie Fogliano, illustrated by Julie Morstad Beautifully written and illustrated, these poems capture the beauty of each season in relatable verses that seem like magic just like the poem below describes the first snow.

december 29 and i woke to a morning that was quiet and white the first snow (just like magic) came on tip toes overnight

Glow: Animals with Their Own Night-Lights  by W.H. Beck Brightly colored (glowing) plants and animals with bioluminescence pop out of the pages on black backgrounds. Each two-page spread page has both large and medium-sized text with the perfect amount of text — not too much! Read to find out why these creatures glow. You’ll learn how they use this adaptation for a purpose such as hunting, hiding, and tricking. Impressive.

Weird but True 8 Do your kids love the Weird But True! books as much as mine do? This new edition contains 300 all-new wild and wacky facts and pictures. Want to hear a few?

• The 1904 World’s Fair featured a life-sized elephant made of almonds.
• moonbow = a nighttime rainbow
• Scientists found sharks living in an underwater volcano.
• Octopuses have blue blood and nine brains.

Worlds Strangest Creepy-Crawlies Top 40 Weird and Wonderful Hair-Raising Bugs Big, bold text and huge color photographs catch your attention immediately, starting with #40, the elephant beetle and ending with #1, the exploding ant. Huh!? Yes, this ant from Malaysia explodes and dies — yikes! Each bug featured gets a 1- or 2-page spread including important facts, a habitat map, photographs, and ratings on the “strangeometer” for creepiness, superpowers, bug beauty, and fight factor. Irresistible!

Rosie Revere’s Big Project Book for Bold Engineers 40+ Things to Invent, Draw, and Make  by Andrea Beaty, illustrated by David Roberts ages (ages 5 – 10) This is an excellent, engaging activity book based on the fantastic STEM  Rosie Revere, Engineer  picture book. Colorful illustrations and a cool layout will entice readers to try, fail, and learn. Discover more about simple machines, build a marble run, solve engineering challenges, design a  stuffed animal  carrier for your bike, learn about inventors who failed a lot, and so much more.

How to Draw a Unicorn and Other Cute Animals (With Simple Shapes in 5 Steps)   by Lulu Mayo ages 6 – 16 My oldest daughter, AJ, really likes the step-by-step directions in this book. You’ll find directions for 30 animals including a llama, sloth, beaver, panda, tiger, and much more. AJ likes that she can easily draw these on her new iPad with the  Pencil . (One of the best investments I’ve made last summer when JJ was so sick. If the  kids are on screen time , I feel like drawing and being creative are good choices.)

Tear Up This Book!  by Keri Smith A very popular  American Girl book for  fun, creativity, and crafts.

The Disney Book: A Celebration of the World of Disney  (DK) My oldest daughter loves anything Disney and proclaimed that this is the best book ever written . 🙂 While I’m not sure about that, it is a dense fact-filled tome from the early years to the present day.

Genius! The Most Astonishing Inventions of All Time  by Deborah Kespert A visually appealing graphic layout makes it easy to access the invention information — in fact, it’s downright enticing! Who knows I’d care about the Archimedes Screw and want to read all about it. Or the Elephant Clock — yes, that was a real thing which was super cool. You’ll learn about these early inventions and more modern inventions such as the space rocket. This is a well-done, readable nonfiction book.

Sports Illustrated Kids Football Then to Wow! This amazing nonfiction book makes ME, a non-sports fan, interested in football. The layout and design, plus the photographs, make me want to devour all the football facts and info. I highly recommend this for any football fan – it’s packed full of information about football back in the day (1930s) and nowadays. Excellent!

The Navajo Code Talkers  by J. Patrick Lewis, illustrated by Gary Kelley This picture book shares the difficult history of the Navajo people and focuses on how the Navajo men used their unique language to help win WWI. The information is factual in its presentation (it could have been more emotionally charged but isn’t) which lets the readers draw their own conclusions. The illustrations perfectly depict the tone of this historical story. Very well done!

The Dog Encyclopedia for Kids  by Tammy Gagne (ages 9+) This book rocks! It’s one that any dog-lover would want on their bookshelf. The layout is appealing and the information organized and written with kids in mind, meaning it’s not too wordy while being factual and interesting with each breed gets 1 or 2 pages devoted to it and accompanying colorful photos. Great for  4th graders !

Strange But True! Our Weird, Wild, Wonderful World  DK This is a favorite book on the list today — I literally couldn’t help but read so many of the pages out loud to my kids, they were just so interesting. First, the photographs grab your attention — then the headlines — and then the text. This is a GREAT  book for your reluctant readers  because it’s practically irresistible to read through it. Love it for a  gift idea !

LEGO Awesome Ideas What Will You Build? Awesome barely begins to describe this LEGO book — it’s jam-packed with so many ideas from different themes like Outer Space, Modern Metropolis, the Wild West, Fantasy Land, and The Real World. I just love browsing through the ideas. Be warned: Your kids will want you to order A LOT more Legos for these new projects.

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Melissa Taylor, MA, is the creator of Imagination Soup. She's a mother, former teacher & literacy trainer, and freelance education writer. She writes Imagination Soup and freelances for publications online and in print, including Penguin Random House's Brightly website, USA Today Health, Adobe Education, Colorado Parent, and Parenting. She is passionate about matching kids with books that they'll love.

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15 of the Best Nonfiction Books for Middle School Readers

Chelsea Hensley

After receiving her BA in English from the University of Missouri, Chelsea Hensley realized she had no idea what she was doing with her life. So she decided to call herself a writer and is just rolling with it. She's read Pride and Prejudice , and watched the Keira Knightley adaptation, so many times that she often gets them confused. In addition to reading and writing, she enjoys taking selfies, watching Netflix, and everything Beyonce does. Blog: The Chelsea Review Twitter: ChelseaBigBang

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With schools switching to home learning, and in some states, the school year ending altogether, maybe you’re looking for some books to keep your kids engaged . Since everything’s hard enough right now, why not let a book do some of the work for you? The ones here are some of the best nonfiction books for middle school kids and cover a range of topics from history to biography to science, and are sure to introduce your young reader to new ideas, new people, and new places. Find even more nonfiction books for middle school readers here .

The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs by America’s Test Kitchen Kids

For young cooks, America’s Test Kitchen has a new book for bakers! Including pastries for breakfast, desserts, and pies, this is a fun starter book for kids who want to learn how to make brownies, cookies, and other sweet treats for themselves. And if you’re stuck at home with nothing to do, this can be a fun project for the whole family to participate in together.

The Complete Story of Sadako Sasaki: And the Thousand Paper Cranes by Sue DiCicco and Masahiro Sasaki

Sadako Sasaki was 12 years old when she developed leukemia, the result of an atom bomb dropped on her home city of Hiroshima, Japan during World War II. While in the hospital, Sadako learned to fold paper cranes, believing they might grant a wish. After her death, her classmates built a memorial, to remember Sadako and all the other children killed during the war. This biography is written by Sadako’s brother and the founder of the Peace Crane Project.

The Eagle Huntress: The Story of the Girl Who Soared Beyond Expectations by Aisholpan Nurgaiv (May 12)

You may have seen the award-winning documentary about Aisholpan Nurgaiv, the first girl to compete in Mongolia’s prestigious eagle hunting competition in generations. Though it’s traditionally only men who have participated, Aisholpan’s father trained her to compete—hunting with a golden eagle on horseback. This is an inspiring story of a young girl (Aisholpan was 13 at the time of the competition) challenging tradition.

Escape this Book: Tombs of Egypt by Bill Doyle

This book is part history, part activity book, part choose-your-path adventure. Readers choose a path (pharaoh, pyramid worker, or archaeologist) and all must find a way to escape the tombs by doodling, drawing, and writing inside the book, putting themselves into the history.

Free Lunch by Rex Ogle

When Rex Ogle was in 6th grade, he and his brother were on his school’s free lunch program. Wearing secondhand clothes and short on school supplies, it was only made harder by having everyone know exactly how poor he and his brother were every day at lunch. This can be a tough read, as Ogle writes frankly about the shame that accompanied poverty and the abuse he suffered at home, but it’s also a story that is unfortunately not unfamiliar to many kids.

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Immigrant Women Who Changed the World (October 13, 2020)

The newest book in the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls series focuses exclusively on immigrant women. There are one hundred women written and illustrated in this book including singer and entrepreneur Rihanna and young climate activist Xiya Bastida-Patrick.

Lifting as we Climb by Evette Dionne (April 21)

This empowering story is about the fight for suffrage for black women, who were often excluded from the struggle from white suffragists. While children are more often introduced to the activism of white suffragists like Susan B. Anthony, they’re less aware of the racism that led them to exclude black women and other women of color from the rights movements.This book, from Bitch editor-in-chief Evette Dionne, explores the work of black woman-led groups and organizations who did the work to ensure black women the right to vote.

Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Vashti Harrison

From the author of Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History and Little Dreamers: Visionary Women From Around the World , is this one all about black men in history. As well as including some familiar faces like Prince, there are also lesser known subjects like comic book author Dwayne McDuffie and Doctor Harold Moody.

Major Impossible by Nathan Hale

The newest addition to the Hazardous Tales of Nathan Hale series is Major Impossible , about geologist John Wesley Powell. During the Civil War, Powell fought for the Union, and after losing his arm, Powell continued to fight, becoming one of America’s greatest explorers. True to form, this is action-packed and funny, making for a riveting look at American history that middle school readers, especially fans of graphic novels, will enjoy.

Never Caught: The Story of Ona Judge by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

This is the young reader edition of Erica Armstrong Dunbar’s Never Caught about Ona Judge, the Washingtons’ favored slave who escaped rather than be given as a wedding gift to their granddaughter. A fugitive who fled America’s most powerful family, this book follows Ona’s childhood in slavery to her eventual escape to New Hampshire.

On the Horizon by Lois Lowry and Kenard Pak

From the author of The Giver comes this account, written in verse, of World War II and the tragic events of Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor. Drawing on her own time in Hawaii and Japan as well as extensive research, Lowry retells the horrors of war and their effects on soldiers and civilians. Artist Kenard Pak adds illustrations of real life people, places, and events.

The Sea Ringed World: Sacred Stories of the Americas by María Garcia Esperón, Amanda Mijangos, and David Bowles (September 8)

Originally published in Mexico, this beautiful illustrated collection gathers stories from Argentina up to Alaska, retelling the stories from indigenous and Native cultures. You can read an excerpt here. 

The Thrifty Guide to Medieval Times by Jonathan W. Stokes and Xavier Bonet

Written like a travel guide for kids who are fans of history, this parody of real travel guides is filled with facts about medieval times. Readers will learn about must-see attractions, must-meet people, healthcare in the time of Black Plague, and more.

Tooth and Claw: The Dinosaur Wars by Deborah Noyes

Though today we know dinosaurs once walked the earth, that wasn’t always the case. This book retells the war of information between two scientists, Edward Drinker Cope and Othinel Charles Marsh, to find more fossils in the Wild West. Their rivalry went on for 30 years, spanning landscapes, tabloids, and Congress, and having intense effects on their personal and professional lives.

The True West: Real Stories About Black Cowboys, Women Sharpshooters, Native American Rodeo Stars, Pioneering Vaqueros, Celebrity Showmen, and Unsung Heroes in the Wild West by Mifflin Lowe and William Luong (June 2)

Though lots of kids know about cowboys, they may not know that a lot of them were actually black, Latinx, or Native American, and many of them were also women. This book tells stories of unsung heroes and resets notions of the Wild West.

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14 Riveting Narrative Nonfiction Books

History is alive in these compelling accounts.

If you love to get swept away by a nonfiction book but crave the storytelling style of a propulsive novel, narrative nonfiction is for you. The genre infuses true-to-life accounts with dramatic pacing and novelistic flair, bringing history to life in vivid detail. We gathered 14 of our favorite narrative nonfiction books to get you started.

You Have to Be Prepared to Die Before You Can Begin to Live

By paul kix.

In this striking new work of narrative nonfiction, journalist Paul Kix delves into Project C, the 10-week Civil Rights campaign in 1963 that changed the course of history. Kix takes us behind the scenes of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s effort to end segregation in Birmingham, Alabama — then considered the most racist city in America. Through extensive research, Kix offers a peek into the inner lives of the campaign’s four extraordinary leaders: Martin Luther King, Jr., Wyatt Walker, Fred Shuttlesworth, and James Bevel. A powerful report that reads like a thrilling novel, You Have to Be Prepared to Die Before You Can Begin to Live is an “eloquent contribution to the literature of civil rights and the ceaseless struggle to attain them” ( Kirkus Reviews, starred review).

By Elon Green

In his Edgar Award–winning Last Call, journalist Elon Green tells the true story of the Last Call Killer, a serial murderer who targeted members of New York City’s gay community in the 1980s and ’90s. The murders occurred amid staggering crime rates and the unfolding AIDS epidemic, and because the killer targeted gay men, his crimes received next to no media coverage. With insight and compassion, Green tells the full story of this lesser-known case, prioritizing the victims and championing the resiliency of the gay community. Bestselling author Robert Kolker says, “ Last Call feels like the most timeless literary true-crime classics, even as it forges a path through uncharted territory in the genre.” The acclaimed narrative also makes for an excellent true crime book club selection.

By Paul Pringle

Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Paul Pringle delivers a “master class in investigative journalism” ( The New York Times ) in Bad City . The riveting nonfiction narrative follows Pringle as he and his colleagues at the L.A. Times root out abuse and corruption across Los Angeles. What begins as a single tip about a drug overdose soon reveals a web of criminality that winds through L.A.’s most influential institutions and creeps its way toward Pringle’s home turf. Masterfully crafted and delivered at a thrilling pace, Bad City reads like an explosive L.A. noir novel come to life.  

The Warmth of Other Suns

By isabel wilkerson.

In her epic New York Times bestseller , acclaimed author Isabel Wilkerson movingly traces the migration of Black Americans from the South to city centers in the North and West. Told through the lives of three individuals, who all left their home for new beginnings in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s, The Warmth of Other Suns chronicles their personal experiences while detailing the seismic cultural shifts brought about by the journey. Together, the accounts create an unforgettable portrait of a country in flux and an exceptional piece of narrative nonfiction.

The Emperor of All Maladies

By siddhartha mukherjee.

Physician and author Siddhartha Mukherjee unfurls the history of cancer in this Pulitzer Prize–winning work that merges in-depth science writing with vivid storytelling. Mukherjee draws on more than five centuries’ worth of data to chronicle cancer’s presence, documenting the death tolls, medical breakthroughs, and declarations of war on the malady. In the end, The Emperor of All Maladies is the story not just of a deadly disease but of human hubris, failure, and hope .

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

By rebecca skloot.

A New York Times bestseller, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot tells the remarkable story of a woman who’s been dead for decades but whose cells live on in vital scientific studies. Known as HeLa to scientists, Henrietta Lacks’s cells were taken without her consent and immortalized in a lab, grown in cultures to be used in a range of experiments. These studies led to sweeping medical breakthroughs, from the polio vaccine and IVF to gene mapping and cloning. But as Lacks’s cells saved lives and spawned a multimillion-dollar industry, Lacks herself remained buried in an unmarked grave. Skloot delivers a “masterful work of nonfiction ” ( Slate ) that addresses the unending life of HeLa as well as the shameful history of experimentation on African Americans and the twisted legal battles over who controls your body.

Devil in the White City

By erik larson.

It’s 1893, and the upcoming World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago is the fixation of people far and wide. Among them is Daniel Hudson Burnham, a visionary architect and the fair’s director of works, and Henry H. Holmes, a Chicagoland con artist hotelier who may have been one of the most prolific serial killers in American history. In Devil in the White City, bestselling author Erik Larson transforms this sensational moment in time into an unforgettable work of creative nonfiction, contrasting the wonder and promise of the Chicago World’s Fair with the horror of Holmes’s deeds.

Hidden Figures

By margot lee shetterly.

Margot Lee Shetterly’s bestselling Hidden Figures follows the story of the Black women whose mathematical calculations powered some of NASA’s most significant accomplishments. Known as “human computers,” Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden solved equations with only slide rules, adding machines, and pencils on paper. Facing discrimination at every turn, these brilliant women were essential to America’s successes during WWII and the Space Race. Shetterly chronicles the lives of the four women, addressing themes of race, discrimination, science, and achievement, in an essential contribution to American history.

By Laura Hillenbrand

From juvenile delinquency to competing in the Berlin Olympics, Louis Zamperini’s life had already seen some surprising turns. But in 1943, while serving as an American bombardier in WWII, Zamperini’s plane went down over the Pacific, propelling the young soldier into his most harrowing challenge yet. In Unbroken, bestselling author Laura Hillenbrand chronicles Zamperini’s journey, vividly capturing his fight to survive the open ocean and the terror of the POW camps. The result is a powerful story of perseverance, both of body and of mind.

Nothing to Envy

By barbara demick.

Barbara Demick narrates the lives of six citizens of North Korea over 15 years in her award-winning nonfiction book Nothing to Envy . Demick goes deep into the experiences of those living under a totalitarian regime and records their mounting frustrations with a government that fails to support its people while demanding unwavering fealty and crushing dissent. The Wall Street Journal hails Nothing to Envy as a “deeply moving” account that’s written with “novelistic detail.”

And the Band Played On

By randy shilts.

Randy Shilts details the AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s in his internationally bestselling And the Band Played On. In this classic work of narrative nonfiction, Shilts describes how, despite the evident danger of AIDS, information about the disease and funding for the fight against it was exceedingly hard to come by. A stirring historical document and a gripping story, And the Band Plays On is essential reading.

Killers of the Flower Moon

By david grann.

A sweeping true crime book that reads like a murder mystery , Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann chronicles the heinous murders that plagued the Osage Nation in the 1920s. With their land sitting upon invaluable oil resources, the men and women of the Osage Nation were at the time the wealthiest people per capita in the world. Yet there were others who sought to separate the Osage from their black gold fortune — by any means necessary. When Osage members began turning up dead, the FBI, with the help of a former Texas Ranger, took on the case and unearthed a shocking conspiracy. Intense, propulsive, and impeccably researched, Killers of the Flower Moon is a must-read for anyone who enjoys historical true crime narratives. Its highly anticipated book-to-screen adaptation is set for release later in 2023, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone.

Into Thin Air

By jon krakauer.

When journalist Jon Krakauer set out to climb Mt. Everest, he didn’t expect his expedition would turn disastrous. Into Thin Air is his first-hand account of the climb that claimed five lives and left countless more forever changed. Haunted by the experience and consumed by guilt over the deaths, Krakauer reports in heartbreaking detail the tireless efforts of the Sherpas, the mistakes that proved fatal, and the calamitous storm that descended upon the group. His visceral account combined with additional interviews and research results in what The Wall Street Journal calls one of “the best adventure books of all time.”

By Matthew Desmond

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Evicted by Matthew Desmond follows the lives of eight families living in Milwaukee as they fight back against the threat of homelessness. Desmond offers a rare perspective on the poverty epidemic in America, providing a window into the experiences of these families as the pendulum swings between despair and possibility. Unflinching in its honesty and beautifully written, Evicted is a sterling example of the power of narrative nonfiction.

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21 Best Nonfiction Books for 3rd Graders (8 Year-Olds)

With a third-grader at home, I am always on the hunt for a good variety of nonfiction books for her. The nonfiction choice for 8 year-olds is plenty – animals, science, history, biographies, and more. The text is simple with bright illustrations. Perfect for a read-aloud or independent reading time.

21 Best Nonfiction Books for 3rd Graders (8 Years-Old)

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Here are the 21 Best Nonfiction books to keep your 3rd graders glued to reading.

You can find them in your local library or nearby bookstores. If they are unavailable locally, you can click on the links or images below to purchase from Amazon.

Table of contents

Nonfiction Books – Animals

Fake Out!: Animals That Play Tricks

Your child would learn about bizarre animal behaviors from this picture book. Read about the mimic octopus that can change its shape, skin color, and texture to match its surroundings. Or how about a type of goat that faints whenever it feels threatened! The book is in short chapter-book format for early readers.

Animal Architects

How do spiders weave such intricate webs? Why do beavers build dams? Read about all the fascinating engineers and architects of the animal world in a nonfiction narrative. Birds, insects, mammals – every category of creatures are covered. The information is accompanied by bright real pictures.

Wild Animals of the North

From the polar bears of the north to pandas, this book takes the children along in the discovery of animals in the northern hemisphere covering each of three sections – Asia, Europe, North America. A good informational book for children in 3rd grade and above. The illustrations are big and beautiful, making this 141-page book a visual delight.

Prehistoric Mammals

This informational nonfiction book has popular and lesser-known prehistoric mammals that once occupied the earth. Starting with dinosaurs, to woolly mammoths, saber-toothed cats – this book has all covered. The writing is engaging, accompanied by brilliant illustrations.

Animals: A Visual Encyclopedia

Want to know how animals are related to humans? This fun nonfiction book has a page for this! It has all types of animals and insets covered. Including what they eat, their habitat, how ferocious or friendly they are. With bright sharp pictures and snippets of helpful information about each animal, this book is a good nonfiction read.

Nonfiction Books – Biographies & History

I am Walt Disney

The person in this biography needs no introduction. Walt Disney changed the world for kids. This short nonfiction chapter book is a peek into what went behind the great mind and the innovation.

Young Gifted and Black

This book is the celebration of 52 black icons from the past and present. The stories are empowering and inspiring. A book for parents and children to have a conversation about many historic facts and issues. With great pictures and interesting stories, pretty soon your child will have a favorite role model.

The Story of Leonardo da Vinci

This literary nonfiction is about the life of Leonardo da Vinci – the famous painter and thinker. He was not only a great artist but ideated about modern inventions like contact lenses among other things. A bright and creative mind, Leonardo’s childhood and life story is a glorious read.

Egypt Collection

Take a trip to ancient Egypt and read about the great pyramids, Cleopatra’s life, mummies, and more. The text is in bold, accompanied by interesting bright pictures. This historical nonfiction book with short chapters is perfect for any reluctant third grader.

Nonfiction Books – Nature & Earth Science

This is a gorgeous book has information about different leaves and activities rolled into one. Bright pictures, along with uneven cuts and pages, transform this visual book to a higher level. It reads like a beautiful story. Third graders are sure to enjoy the activities and independent reading.

Geography: A Visual Encyclopedia

Your child will read about the geological processes that have shaped our planet for millions of years. Starting with ice ages to global warming, earthquakes, tsunamis – all periods are included in this book. Visually stunning pictures of the snowy peak of Mount Everest, dark waters of the Mariana Trench, and more – are enough to keep your child interested.

Earth and Space Science

If your child is interested in earth science, this set of five books is a good choice. Read about the various climate and their effects, extreme weather, how the moon affects the earth, and more. The reading level is suitable for 8-years-old.

101 Things For Kids To Do Outside

Children of all ages should spend more and more time outside- playing, making friends, learning life lessons, and picking a few skills along the way. It is the most important developmental activity missing for kids in this digital age. This book has plenty of outdoor activity ideas for all seasons. You do not need any fancy stuff to do these activities. With inspiring pictures and fun group game ideas, it is highly recommended by parents and educators.

Where Were the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World?

Let your child take the journey along with the ancient travelers, as they narrate stories of ancient wonders of the world. Kids would love to read about the hanging garden made for the Babylonian queen. The Great Pyramids in Egypt is the only one present to date, out of these seven ancient wonders. Also, check out the other books from the  Where is  series.

Nonfiction Books – Science, Engineering, Activities

The Big Book of Airplanes

Learn about airplanes of all kinds – from commercial to military to the ones farmers use for crops and even space shuttles. With complete details on each type of plane – starting with the engineering behind, operations, and task – this book is a complete guide on airplanes. With multiple pictures of each type of airplanes, this book is a visual delight.

Space: Planets, Moons, Stars, and More!

Learn about the solar system – planets, moon, stars, asteroids, Milky Way galaxy, etc in this book. The information is presented in fun fact format. The images are real NASA pictures and large. The author broke down the tough to pronounce words for ease of reading. If you are planning to get one space nonfiction book for your child, covering all concepts, this book is the ideal choice.

Big Science Workbook

Let your child make a rainbow on a sunny day. This science workbook is filled with many such interesting activities. There are a total of 306 activity pages and 14 answer key sheets. Topics include – plants, seeds, insects, weather, mammals, ocean life, birds, and more. Children can read and complete the activities independently. The perforated pages make it easier to tear.

Nonfiction Reading Comprehension: Science

This narrative nonfiction book covers interesting science concepts. If you are looking for a book to practice reading, along with learning – this one is a good choice. Children can also practice their test-taking skills.

Brain Quest Workbook

This engaging workbook has many things included. Fun hands-on activities and games cover various topics of spelling, vocabulary, reading comprehension, simple math concepts, and much more. Bright illustrations throughout make it interesting. This book is highly recommended by parents.

The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs

This book is for children who love to cook or bake. Step-by-step photos and pro tips make even the complex recipes easy to follow. Let your young ones bake with confidence.

Reading & Math Jumbo Workbook

Let your child practice vocabulary, reading comprehension, writing, multiplication, fractions with this fun workbook. The pictures are colorful, and activities are in the format of interesting learning games. Also included are free stickers!

More 3rd Grader Books & Topics

How to select books for 3rd graders.

3rd graders are confident readers. They can read relatively longer sentences independently. Nonfiction books selected for 8-year-olds need to cater to their inquisitive minds while also be challenging enough to improve their reading skills. The books should be appealing with few illustrations, and the language should be simple.

Video Of 3rd Grade Nonfiction Books

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Nonfiction books list for kids.

• Historical Fiction
• Activity Books
• Science Fiction
• Family & Friends
• Realistic Fiction
• STEM & Nature
• Personal Growth
• Fantasy Books

• Privacy Policy

20 Good Nonfiction Books for 7th Graders to Read

by Nikki | Jul 15, 2018 | Reading Lists | 0 comments

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Looking for some really good nonfiction books for 7th graders? These top 20 books introduce your tweens to a myriad of fascinating subjects and help them learn more about the world around them! From ancient art to modern technology, there’s something here for every interest!

While I’ve always been a fiction kind of girl myself, my son is the opposite. Sure, he has his favorite fiction series (he’s especially into manga right now), but the bulk of his library consists of books filled with fun facts about his favorite subjects or how-to guides for his favorite games.

He’s learned more through reading nonfiction books that he picked out himself than he has in 7 years of elementary and middle school. Don’t get me wrong, school is important, but our kids are much more likely to retain information when they have some choice in how they receive it.

Since Jake just finished 7th grade, I thought now would be a great time to share some of the good nonfiction books that taught him so much throughout the year! Check them out!

Good Nonfiction Books for 7th Graders to Read

*The book links are affiliate links, which means that I earn a tiny commission (at no extra charge to you) when you make a purchase through them. I broke this list down into the most popular nonfiction book categories to make it easier to browse. I’ve also embedded a preview whenever available. Some of these books are only available in print, though, because they are graphic-heavy and don’t translate well to an ebook.

1. Everything You Need to Ace Science in One Big Fat Notebook

2. Girls Think of Everything:  Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women

3. Rocket Science for the Rest of Us

4.  Maker Lab: 28 Super Cool Projects: Build * Invent * Create * Discover

5.  Super Earth Encyclopedia 

Computers & Technology

6.  the way things work now.

7.  Get Coding!

8.  The LEGO Power Functions Idea Book

9.  Coding Games in Scratch

10. Minecraft Guide Collection

11.  Harry Potter – A Journey Through A History of Magic

12.  Four Perfect Pebbles: A True Story of the Holocaust

13.  The Boy Who Became Buffalo Bill: Growing Up Billy Cody in Bleeding Kansas

14.  Amazing Leonardo da Vinci Inventions: You Can Build Yourself 

Leonardo da Vinci is the grandfather of pretty much every amazing discovery and invention. In this book by Maxine Anderson , tweens first learn about the times in which da Vinci lived and what inspired him to create such revolutionary (at least back then) inventions. Then, they can try their hand at making some of his simpler creations themselves using common household supplies!

15.  1001 Inventions and Awesome Facts from Muslim Civilization

16.  The Creativity Project: An Awesometastic Story Collection

17.  The Future Architect’s Handbook

18.  Legends, Icons & Rebels: Music That Changed the World

19.  National Geographic Kids Guide to Photography

20.  National Geographic The Photo Ark

It was hard to narrow down the vast sea of good nonfiction books for 7th graders, but these are my top picks for each category. While many of them are written for kids from 9-12, I picked books that weren’t too “little kiddie” so that they would appeal to preteens.

Do you know of any other good nonfiction books for 7th graders to read? Share with me below so I can check it out!

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Book Report Nonfiction Template

Make it easier to dissect the different sections of the story by editing and customizing this book report nonfiction template from venngage..

• Design style modern
• Colors light
• Size Letter (8.5 x 11 in)
• File type PNG, PDF, PowerPoint

One of the most important parts of reading is understanding the meaning and essence of the book. Dissecting the story into sections and identifying the focal points of each part is crucial to memory retention and reading comprehension. If you want to make reading more fun and enjoyable, a book report outline can help you achieve this goal. A book report nonfiction template can help readers, especially kids, understand and recall the parts of the book better. Non-fiction is a kind of writing based on facts, not fantasy. Non-fiction books talk about events, people, biographies, or historical events that occurred in real life. When reading non-fiction literature, you must always be objective about your approach. Unlike fantasy and make-believe, non-fiction literature relies on facts that trace back to real-life events. Thus, you must always be objective when discussing non-fiction literature. This is where this book report nonfiction template from Venngage becomes handy. Members of academic institutions such as teachers, educators, and librarians can use this book report nonfiction template to create professional-looking, high-quality book reports. Instead of making kids and students write

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