Texas Topaz Nonfiction List for Grades K-12

Here are just some of the 57 recommended titles for grades K-12 from the 2024 Texas Topaz Nonfiction Reading List! The purpose of the Texas Topaz Reading List is to provide children, teens, and adults with recommended nonfiction titles that stimulate reading for pleasure and personal learning. It is intended for recreational reading and is not designed to support any particular curriculum. Visit txla.org/topaz for the full list and lists from previous years.

Updated February 9, 2024
Lewisville Public Library
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Battle of the butts : the science behind animal behinds
Rish, Jocelyn
Paper Book
Did you know manatees swim using farts? Or that herrings communicate by passing gas? Butts are used for breathing, eating, swimming, talking, and even killing in the animal kingdom. Focusing on ten different animals and their derrières, and offering fun facts...
Mexikid : a graphic memoir
Martin, Pedro
Paper Book
NEWBERY HONOR AWARD WINNER * An unforgettable graphic memoir about a Mexican American boy's family and their adventure-filled road trip to bring their abuelito back from Mexico "One of those books that kids will pass to their friends as soon as they have finished it."-...
Caves
Beckerman, Nell Cross
Paper Book
A masterful exploration of one of nature's most curious ecosystems, Caves is a magical journey into subterranean wonders perfect for fans of Jason Chin. In the shade of the woods is a hill with a hole. Beaconing black. Goosebump chills. Excitement and fear battle. What will win?...
How do you spell unfair?
Weatherford, Carole Boston
Ebook
A Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book "This moving picture book portrays a girl who met injustice with dignity and excelled."-Booklist (starred review) MacNolia Cox was no ordinary kid. Her idea of fun was reading the dictionary....
How to promenade with a python (and not get eaten)
Poliquin, Rachel
Paper Book
Celeste is a cockroach, and everyone knows that cockroaches are survivors, so who better to give advice on surviving an encounter with a polite predator? Everyone also knows that taking a moonlit promenade with a deadly reticulated python (named Frank) is a very bad idea. Using her superior...
Hardcourt : stories from 75 years of the National Basketball Association
Bowen, Fred
Paper Book
Celebrate seventy-five years of the NBA in this exciting and beautifully illustrated middle grade account of the legendary athletes, coaches, and teams that changed basketball forever and created a national phenomenon enjoyed by millions today. The National Basketball Association...
A first time for everything : a true story
Santat, Dan
Paper Book
*Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature* A middle grade graphic memoir based on bestselling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat's awkward middle school years and the trip to Europe that changed his life. Dan's always been a...
The Mona Lisa vanishes : a legendary painter, a shocking heist, and the birth of a global celebrity
Day, Nick
Paper Book
A "witty thriller" (The New York Times) for middle-grade readers about how the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre, how the robbery made the portrait the most famous artwork in the world--and how the painting by Leonardo da Vinci should never have existed at all. ...
Money out loud : all the financial stuff no one taught us
Anat, Berna
Paper Book
So no one taught you about money, either Let's figure this me$$ out together.  In this illustrated, deeply unserious guide to money, Berna Anat--aka the Financial Hype Woman--freaks out her immigrant parents by doing the unthinkable: Talking about money. Loudly....
Family style : memories of an American from Vietnam
Pham, Thien
Paper Book
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist Eisner Award Winner for Best Graphic MemoirAn NPR Best Books of 2023 A moving young adult graphic memoir about a Vietnamese immigrant boy's search for belonging in America, perfect for fans of American...
You: the story : a writer's guide to craft through memory
Sepetys, Ruta
Paper Book
The nonfiction debut by #1 New York Times bestselling and Carnegie Medal-winning author Ruta Sepetys. Perfect for fans of Burn After Writing and Bird by Bird. Life is story in motion. Each day, you add to your story, revise it, and view it from a different...
Braiding sweetgrass for young adults : indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge,
Kimmerer, Robin Wall.
Paper Book
Drawing from her experiences as an Indigenous scientist, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer demonstrated how all living things--from strawberries and witch hazel to water lilies and lichen--provide us with gifts and lessons every day in her best-selling book Braiding Sweetgrass. Adapted for young adults...

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