# Recommend me some good science-themed books for a smart teenage girl. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 11, 2010, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363 "2010-11-11T22:17:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2010, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/21 "2010-11-12T15:30:51Z")
Yes, _The Hot Zone_ is excellent. And see _Outbreak_, with Dustin Hoffman and Rene Russo, if you want a very loosely-adapted but very entertaining/scary fictional version of it. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2010, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/22 "2010-11-12T16:07:49Z")
> [@Oy](#): > > Have you already given her Heinlein’s juveniles? In the sense that I’ve let her borrow my copies with no expectations that they’ll be returned yes. I expect they’re taking up space in her locker at school. I have _Lives of a Cell_ and its sequel whose title I just forgot; I seemto recall she was underwhelmed by it, but I could easily be wrong. Keep on with the book suggestions; I’m going shopping manana. ---
**Author:** ![Oy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bc8723/32.png) [@Oy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/23 "2010-11-12T16:35:27Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > In the sense that I’ve let her borrow my copies with no expectations that they’ll be returned yes. I expect they’re taking up space in her locker at school. Maybe try her on _Stranger_ or one of his later things. Since they have a fair amount of non-explicit sex, they might draw her in. Or _The Moon is a Harsh Mistress_ or _Starship Troopers_. They’re so fascinating politically that they might hook her. I read _Stranger_ as a freshman in high school, and was hooked on Heinlein for good. I’ve come to disagree with many of his ideas, but I’d be lying if I said he didn’t influence my political and sociological beliefs for years, and I don’t think that was a bad thing. ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2010, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/24 "2010-11-12T21:03:24Z")
I just finished reading a little known novel that includes a lot of science. The book is called [Wet Desert](http://www.amazon.com/Wet-Desert-Novel-Gary-Hansen/dp/097935210X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1289595441&sr=1-1) and I really enjoyed it! The basic premise: environmental terrorists blow up Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado river with the idea of returning the Grand Canyon to its natural state. It has enough discussions about ecology, dams, hydrology, etc. to satisfy the science urge, and as a bonus, it’s a real page turner. I just finished it a month ago, and I’ve already recommended it to several people. To my knowledge, this is the only book that this author has written. I’d definitely read his others if he had any. Enjoy, J. p.s., I have no relation to this author or book other than being a satisfied reader. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2010, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/25 "2010-11-12T21:15:14Z")
I wish someone had given me Godel, Escher, Bach when I was sixteen, though it’s not very biology-related. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/26 "2010-11-13T00:38:58Z")
**The Double Helix** by James Watson. A great book about the people and personalities behind the data and research. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/27 "2010-11-13T03:17:02Z")
I haven’t read this collection, but Asimov is always very good: [The Tyrannosaurus Prescription (and 100 other essays)](http://www.amazon.com/Tyrannosaurus-Prescription-100-Other-Essays/dp/0879755407/ref=sr_1_15?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1289617306&sr=1-15). I have read this Asimov collection and it is good: [The Roving Mind](http://www.amazon.com/Roving-Mind-Isaac-Asimov/dp/1573921815/ref=sr_1_33?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1289617394&sr=1-33). You can also get used copies of some other collections of his essays. The science is, inevitably, a bit out of date. But what is there is excellent. ---
**Author:** ![TheTerribleTako](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@TheTerribleTako](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheTerribleTako)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363/28 "2010-11-13T05:02:44Z")
_Stiff_ by Mary Roach deals with the science behind cadaver research and forensic anthropology. It’s informative and very entertaining. She also has three other books out, _Spook_, which deals with the science behind the paranormal, _Bonk_, which deals with the science behind sex, and the latest _Packing for Mars_, which strangely has more than one letter in its title, dealing with space travel, flight, etc. I found _Spook_ to be tedious since she seemed to have run out of material halfway through and just pads the book with details about 18th century psychics. _Bonk_ was very entertaining as well, but it might be kind of creepy to receive the book from an adult relative. I haven’t read _Packing for Mars_, but I heard it’s pretty good. Neil deGrasse Tyson’s books on astronomy are fun and very knowledgeable. He’s hosted some NOVA episodes and been on Colbert quite often. For more serious books on physics and astronomy, there’s always Stephen Hawking’s _A Brief History of Time_. If she likes to read about food, any of Michael Pollan or Marion Nestle’s works are great too, although they often deal with the policy surrounding food just as much as the science of food. Another great food book is Harold McGee’s _On Food and Cooking_ although that’s more of a reference book. _The World Without Us_ by Alan Weisman deals with the aftermath of the collapse of human civilization and he goes into great detail about how our buildings and infrastructure would hold up and how fast nature would recover. It’s a good mix of ecology, engineering, and biology. Very interesting chapter on the aftermath of Chernobyl. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-some-good-science-themed-books-for-a-smart-teenage-girl/560363.md?page=1)