Our thanks to those who were able to join us for our SLAV online Book Club on Thursday June 20th, 2024, to discuss the topic: STEM. We often view STEM and reading as separate disciplines, but how, where and why do they cross over?
We asked our members to share their favorite Fiction and Non-Fiction titles that relate to STEM topics. As always, you had so many wonderful contributions to share with us and we had a great deal of fun! We anticipated a bit of a struggle for people to find interesting STEM-related books, but fortunately we were completely mistaken and we ended up with a very long list! We also had quite a few recommendations that involved quite complex language or explored difficult concepts, so we have split the Young Adult section into two: VCE and above, and 12+, for more clarity around suiting titles to the appropriate students!
Many thanks to Deb at The Younger Sun who is an invaluable resource, providing many recommendations. The staff at The Younger Sun are incredibly knowledgeable, and would be happy to help you with any book-buying needs!
Disclaimer: The lists generated as a result of Book Club discussions are not, by any means, an exhaustive list of all titles or authors for each genre/category discussed. Nor will all titles be suitable for all libraries. We advise staff discretion when referencing these lists, to properly confirm individual title suitability for individual libraries, school and student’s needs. These are suggested titles only, shared by our members and inclusion on, or exclusion from, a list does not suggest SLAV endorsement or rejection of a title.
New Titles shared by Deb from the Younger Sun
VCE and above
White Holes – Carlo Rovelli
The Housekeeper and the Professor – Yoko Ogawa
Parable of the Sower – Octavia Butler
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow – Gabrielle Zevin
Sea of Tranquility – Emily St. John Mandel
Galileo’s Daughter; Longitude – Dava Sobel
Radium Girls – Kate Moore
Before the Coffee Gets Cold – Toshikazu Kawaguchi
12+
The Wild Robot – Peter Brown
Inside out and Outside In – Maria Snyder
Lifel1k3 – Jay Kristoff
Footprints on the Moon – Lorraine Marwood
Lance Balchin – Botanica and Aquatica
Catch a Falling Star – Meg McKinlay
Two Can Play That Game – Leanne Yong
The Lab – Jack Heath
Moondust – Gemma Fowler
Money run – Jack Heath
Middle Grade
George’s Secret Key to the Universe – Lucy and Steven Hawking
Mysterious Benedict Society – Trenton Lee Stewart
Dragon Pearl – Yoon Ha Lee
Wednesday Weeks – Cristy Burne
Axel and Beast – Adrian Bott
Mortal Engines – Philip Reeve
The Achemist War – John Seven
The Balloon girls – Darrell Pitt
Counting by Sevens – Holly Goldberg Stone
How to Bee – Bren MacDibble
Hi From Outer Space – Fiona Katauskas
The Raven’s Song – Bren McDibble and Zana Fraillon
Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World – Rachel Ignotofsky
Junior
The Rosie Revere series
The Wonder of Winsome – Kat Murdoch
Life On Us – Emma & Tim Flannery
Professor Branestawm – Norman Hunter
Picture Books
How to Measure the Ocean – Inda Ahmad Zahri
Tree – Claire Saxby
The Beehive – Megan Daley
Seed to Sky: Life in the Daintree – Pamela Freeman