Science Books
recommended by scientists and science writers
Last updated: December 02, 2024
The best science books, as recommended by some of the most eminent academics and public figures in the field. Reading lists on subjects including popular science, physics, applied mathematics, computer science, biology, chemistry and astronomy.
To get inspired by the great minds who brought us this far, don't miss our interviews on the history of science, science and Islam, and Albert Einstein.
We also spoke with Sean Carroll, Helene Guldberg, Paul Falkowski, and Carl Zimmer, to delve into the mysteries and wonders of natural sciences and life on Earth.
For children we have selected the best science books for kids.
If you're more interested in what goes on far beyond the limits of our planet, take a look at our selection of books on astronomy and its history, cosmology, the Sun, meteorites, and other wonders of our Universe.
Every year we discuss the best science books of that year.
The most recommended scientific books in our interviews include Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe, Richard Dawkins's The Blind Watchmaker, and of course Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species. Other popular recommended science writers include Steven Strogatz, Hannah Fry and Gaia Vince
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Everything is Predictable: How Bayes’ Remarkable Theorem Explains the World
by Tom Chivers -
2
Eve: How The Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution
by Cat Bohannon -
3
Your Face Belongs to Us: The Secretive Startup Dismantling Your Privacy
by Kashmir Hill -
4
The Last of Its Kind: The Search for the Great Auk and the Discovery of Extinction
by Gísli Pálsson -
5
Why We Die: The New Science of Aging and the Quest for Immortality
by Venki Ramakrishnan -
6
A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through?
by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith
The Best Popular Science Books of 2024, recommended by John Hutchinson
The Best Popular Science Books of 2024, recommended by John Hutchinson
Every year, the judges of the Royal Society Science Book Prize put together a shortlist of the smartest, sharpest, funniest science books of the previous twelve months. We asked the chair of the 2024 panel—the leading evolutionary biomechanics researcher Professor John Hutchinson—to talk us through their picks of the best new popular science books.
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1
An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us
by Ed Yong -
2
Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus
by David Quammen -
3
Jellyfish Age Backwards: Nature's Secrets to Longevity
by Nicklas Brendborg -
4
Nuts and Bolts: Seven Small Inventions That Changed the World in a Big Way
by Roma Agrawal -
5
Taking Flight: The Evolutionary Story of Life on the Wing
by Lev Parikian -
6
The Exceptions: Nancy Hopkins, MIT, and the Fight for Women in Science
by Kate Zernike
The Best Science Books of 2023: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Rebecca Henry
The Best Science Books of 2023: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Rebecca Henry
The Royal Society, set up in the 1660s, is a fellowship of some of the world’s most eminent scientists. It also has an annual book prize, celebrating the best popular science writing. Neuroscientist Rebecca Henry, one of this year’s judges, talks us through the fabulous books that made the 2023 shortlist—and explains how good science writing can change the way you see the world around you.
The best books on Evolution, recommended by Jerry Coyne
Evolutionary biologist Jerry Coyne tells us why Darwin is still essential reading and sifts the vast amount of more recent writing on evolution for books that are both inspiring to scientists and accessible to general readers. He picks the best books on evolution.
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1
Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey
by Florence Williams -
2
Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage
by Rachel E. Gross -
3
Sounds Wild and Broken
by David George Haskell -
4
An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us
by Ed Yong -
5
The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math
by Manil Suri
The Best Literary Science Writing: The 2023 PEN/E.O. Wilson Book Award, recommended by David Hu
The Best Literary Science Writing: The 2023 PEN/E.O. Wilson Book Award, recommended by David Hu
Every year, the judges of the PEN/E.O. Wilson Award highlight the best new literary science writing. The 2023 shortlist consists of five fascinating books on subjects including the science of heartbreak, the sensory worlds of animals, and the development of mathematics. David Hu, a professor of mechanical engineering and a member of this year’s judging panel, talks us through their choices.
Space Travel and Science Fiction Books, recommended by Christopher Mason
Space travel may be the stuff of science fiction but some of it is getting closer and closer to becoming reality. What’s more, we have a duty to pursue it, says Christopher Mason, Professor of Genomics, Physiology, and Biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine and author of The Next 500 Years, a blueprint of how to set about leaving our solar system. Here, he recommends his favourite science fiction about space travel, and an essential philosophy book.
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Wonders and the Order of Nature 1150-1750
by Lorraine Daston and Katharine Park -
2
Science and the Secrets of Nature: Books of Secrets in Medieval and Early Modern Culture
by William Eamon -
3
Leviathan and the Air-Pump
by Simon Schaffer & Steven Shapin -
4
Probability and Certainty in 17th Century England. A Study of the Relationships between Natural Science, Religion, History, Law and Literature
by Barbara Shapiro -
5
The Business of Alchemy: Science and Culture in the Holy Roman Empire
by Pamela Smith
The best books on The Scientific Revolution, recommended by Vera Keller
The best books on The Scientific Revolution, recommended by Vera Keller
The scientific revolution is often seen as having transformed the way we think and ushered in the modern world, but in highlighting the work of a few key individuals, it has distorted the reality of how science advances in society and how it interacts with truth. Here, Vera Keller, Professor of History at the University of Oregon, challenges popularly held assumptions about the scientific revolution and explains how its meaning, significance and importance have been disputed and misunderstood.
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The Greywacke: How a Priest, a Soldier and a School Teacher Uncovered 300 Million Years of History
by Nick Davidson -
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Different: What Apes Can Teach Us About Gender
by Frans de Waal -
3
Spike: The Virus vs. The People - the Inside Story
by Jeremy Farrar & with Anjana Ahuja -
4
A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth: 4.6 Billion Years in 12 Chapters
by Henry Gee -
5
Age Proof: The New Science of Living a Longer and Healthier Life
by Rose Anne Kenny -
6
Hot Air: The Inside Story of the Battle Against Climate Change Denial
by Peter Stott
The Best Popular Science Books of 2022: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Maria Fitzgerald
The Best Popular Science Books of 2022: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Maria Fitzgerald
The renowned UCL neuroscientist Professor Maria Fitzgerald, chair of the 2022 Royal Society Book Prize, talks us through the judges’ selection of the best popular science books of the year—including a whistle-stop tour of the history of the Earth, a self-help book offering evidence-based advice on how to live a longer life, and a primatologist’s study of gender among apes.
Best Books on the Neuroscience of Consciousness, recommended by Anil Seth
Nearly every human has a sense of self, a feeling that we are located in a body that’s looking out at the world and experiencing it over the course of a lifetime. Some people even think of it as a soul or other nonphysical reality that is yet somehow connected to the blood and bones that make up our bodies. How things seem, however, is quite often an unreliable guide to how things are, says neuroscientist Anil Seth. Here he recommends five key books that led him to his own understanding of consciousness, and explores why it is that what is likely an illusion can be so utterly convincing.
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The Double X Economy: The Epic Potential of Empowering Women
by Linda Scott -
2
The Great Pretender
by Susannah Cahalan -
3
Transcendence: How Humans Evolved Through Fire, Language, Beauty, and Time
by Gaia Vince -
4
The Body: A Guide for Occupants
by Bill Bryson -
5
The World According to Physics
by Jim Al-Khalili -
6
Explaining Humans: What Science Can Teach Us about Life, Love and Relationships
by Camilla Pang
The Best Science Books of 2020: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Anne Osbourn
The Best Science Books of 2020: The Royal Society Book Prize, recommended by Anne Osbourn
The Royal Society is the world’s oldest independent scientific academy, dedicated to promoting excellence in science—and that includes an annual prize for the best popular science book. Here Professor Anne Osbourn, Fellow of the Royal Society and chair of this year’s judging panel, talks us through the six books that made the 2020 shortlist—and what makes them intriguing, accessible and exciting.
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The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science
by Douglas Starr -
2
Murder and the Making of English CSI
by Ian Burney & Neil Pemberton -
3
The Red Parts: Autobiography of a Trial
by Maggie Nelson -
4
Killer in the Shadows: The Monstrous Crimes of Robert Napper
by Laurence Alison & Marie Eyre -
5
Suspect Identities: A History of Fingerprinting and Criminal Identification
by Simon A. Cole
The best books on Forensic Science, recommended by Jim Fraser
The best books on Forensic Science, recommended by Jim Fraser
Jim Fraser, veteran forensic investigator and author of Murder Under the Microscope, selects five of the best books about forensic science. Forget what you think you know about the subject from crime fiction and television dramas, and bring a healthy scepticism: this line of work can be as much a craft as a science.