Synopsis: With energetic rhyme and action-packed artwork to match, If I Built a Car sure to fuel any young inventor with big plans and grand imaginations. "If I built a car, it'd be totally new! Here are a few of the things that I'd do. . . ." Jack has designed the ultimate fantasy car. Inspired by zeppelins and trains, Cadillacs and old planes, with brilliant colors and lots of shiny chrome, this far-out vision is ready to cruise! there's a fireplace, a…

Synopsis: Candace Fleming and illustrator Boris Kulikov pair up to tell a fun story about a real submarine inventor in Papa's Mechanical FishClink! Clankety-bang! Thump-whirr! That's the sound of Papa at work. Although he is an inventor, he has never made anything that works perfectly, and that's because he hasn't yet found a truly fantastic idea. But when he takes his family fishing on Lake Michigan, his daughter Virena asks, "Have you ever wondered what…

Synopsis: The natural world comes alive for young readers with Rookie Read-About Science!Rookie Read-About Physical Science series introduces the youngest readers (Ages 6-7) to physical science concepts. Each book features critical-thinking questions throughout the text; a simple, hands-on experiment; a glossary and more.

Synopsis: Born on a small farm in rural Michigan, Henry Ford’s humble beginnings were no match for his ambition. Ford quickly created a manufacturing dynasty, bringing affordable cars to the masses and forever changing America and the American workplace. Who Was Henry Ford? details his meteoric rise, and explains how the genius behind the assembly line and the Model T shaped modern American industry.

Synopsis: From a Peace Corps doctor to an astronaut on the space shuttle Endeavor, Mae Jemison has led a rich and exciting life. Blast off with the first African-American woman to travel into space, and learn what it takes to make your dreams come true!

Synopsis: IT'S 1876 AND THE whole country is celebrating the 100th birthday of the United States. The biggest party is in Philadelphia at the World's Fair, where the latest and greatest inventions are on display for all to see. Alexander Graham Bell is headed to the fair to demonstrate his invention - a talking machine he calls the telephone. But will anyone come to see him at the world's most important science fair? And more importantly, will his machine…

Synopsis: Everybody agrees that mold is just disgusting, until the class goes on a field trip inside a rotting log. They discover that all the dead-looking stuff is actually alive...and it's pretty neat after all. Join the class on their "rotten" adventure, and learn about how nature recycles through decomposition.

Synopsis: The greatest discoveries are made outside the classroom! Learn all about mistakes that changed the world with this collection of the strange stories behind everyday inventions! It's no accident that you'll love this book!   SANDWICHES came about when an English earl was too busy gambling to eat his meal and needed to keep one hand free. POTATO CHIPS were first cooked by a chef who was furious when a customer complained that his fried potatoes…

Synopsis: An inspiring true story of a boy genius.Plowing a potato field in 1920, a 14-year-old farm boy from Idaho saw in the parallel rows of overturned earth a way to “make pictures fly through the air.” This boy was not a magician; he was a scientific genius and just eight years later he made his brainstorm in the potato field a reality by transmitting the world’s first television image. This fascinating picture-book biography of Philo Farnsworth…

Synopsis: Discover the extraordinary stories behind everyday things! Did you know that the ice cream sundae was invented because of a law forbidding the sale of ice cream on Sundays? Or that the first motorcycle was really just a tricycle with a motor? Would you believe that Mickey Mouse started out as a rabbit? Arranged in alphabetical order with anecdotal, fun-to-read text, this fascinating book is packed with the stories behind these and over 100 more…

Synopsis: Pairs of fiction and nonfiction books share high-interest topics and encourage children to compare and contrast, distinguish between fact and fiction, and make the transition between fiction and nonfiction reading strategies.

Synopsis: With more than 30 million books sold, the My Weird School series really gets kids reading!In this tenth book in the bestselling My Weird School series, A.J. and his friends at Ella Mentry School are getting a new science teacher! His name is Mr. Docker, and he’s clearly a mad scientist. He does nutty experiments and has a demented, cackling laugh. Plus, he invented a car that runs on potatoes! Something weird is going on. Is Mr. Docker trying to…

Synopsis: Where is it partly cloudy and 860°F? Venus. Read about the eight planets in our solar system and Earth's special place in it. This book also includes instructions for making your own solar system mobile, and on the new "Find Out More" page learn how to track the moon and visit the best plant web sites.