Books About BIPOC Scientists

BIPOC (pronounced BY-POCK) is an acronym that stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour. It is used when referring to lived experiences of racialized individuals.

Updated April 27, 2026
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Hidden figures : the American dream and the untold story of the Black women mathematicians who helped win the space race
Shetterly, Margot Lee
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times bestseller -WINNER OF ANISFIELD-WOLF AWARD FOR NONFICTION -WINNER BLACK CAUCUS OF AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION BEST NONFICTION BOOK -WINNER NAACP IMAGE AWARD BEST NONFICTION BOOK -WINNER NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING...
Starstruck : a memoir of astrophysics and finding light in the dark
Nance, Sarafina
Paper Book
As a child, Sarafina Nance spent nearly every evening with her father, gazing up at the flickering stars and pondering what secrets the night sky held. She dreamt of becoming an astronomer from this early age, but it wasn't long before she was told, both explicitly and implicitly, that girls just...
I contain multitudes : the microbes within us and a grander view of life
Yong, Ed
Paper Book
New York Times Bestseller New York Times Notable Book of 2016 * NPR Great Read of 2016 * Named a Best Book of 2016 by The Economist, Smithsonian, NPR's Science Friday, MPR, Minnesota Star Tribune, Kirkus Reviews,...
The song of the cell : an exploration of medicine and the new human
Mukherjee, Siddhartha
Paper Book
Winner of the 2023 PROSE Award for Excellence in Biological and Life Sciences and the 2023 Chautauqua Prize! Named a New York Times Notable Book and a Best Book of the Year by The Economist, Oprah Daily, BookPage, Book Riot, the New York Public...
A brief history of everyone who ever lived : the human story retold through our genes
Rutherford, Adam
Paper Book
In our unique genomes, every one of us carries the story of our species--births, deaths, disease, war, famine, migration, and a lot of sex. But those stories have always been locked away--until now. Who are our ancestors? Where did they come from? Geneticists have suddenly become historians, and the...
Silk : a world history
Prasad, Aarathi
Paper Book
A Smithsonian Magazine Best History Book of 2024 A Library Journal Selection for Best Nonfiction of 2024 A Next Big Idea Book Club Must-Read for April "Aarathi Prasad's Silk: A World History is a love song to this protean material. . . . Beautiful [and] fascinating." --Wall...
Chemistry for breakfast : the amazing science of everyday life
Nguyen-Kim, Mai Thi
Paper Book
FINALIST for the Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books "This book shows that chemistry is not just relevant to life; it's really, really interesting."--Foreword Reviews, STARRED review A perfect book for readers of The Physics of Everyday...
Braiding sweetgrass
Kimmerer, Robin Wall
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller A Washington Post Bestseller Named a "Best Essay Collection of the Decade" by Literary Hub As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member...
Fear of a black universe : an outsider's guide to the future of physics
Alexander, Stephon
Paper Book
In this guide to science and society, a cosmologist argues that physics must embrace the excluded, listen to the unheard, and be unafraid of being wrong.   Years ago, cosmologist Stephon Alexander received life-changing advice: to discover real physics, he...
The alchemy of us : how humans and matter transformed one another
Ramirez, Ainissa
Paper Book
A "timely, informative, and fascinating" study of 8 inventions-and how they shaped our world-with "totally compelling" insights on little-known inventors throughout history (Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth Extinction) In The...
Is math real? : how simple questions lead us to mathematics' deepest truths
Cheng, Eugenia
Paper Book
One of the world's most creative mathematicians offers a new way to look at math--focusing on questions, not answers          Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize  A...
The joy of abstraction : an exploration of math, category theory, and life
Cheng, Eugenia
Paper Book
Mathematician and popular science author Eugenia Cheng is on a mission to show you that mathematics can be flexible, creative, and visual. This joyful journey through the world of abstract mathematics into category theory will demystify mathematical thought processes and help you develop your own...

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