38 of the Best Kids’ Non-Fiction Books of 2025

38 of the Best Non-Fiction Books of 2025 Book List
The Children’s Book Review

2025 delivers an extraordinary collection of non-fiction that educates, inspires, and celebrates our world’s remarkable diversity.

From groundbreaking biographies to fascinating explorations of science and nature, acclaimed authors and illustrators bring their talents to subjects ranging from marine biology and civil rights to the tiny ecosystems in bison poop and the vast history of Black music in America. These true stories captivate young readers while building knowledge and critical thinking skills, celebrating curiosity, courage, and our shared responsibility to protect the natural world.

Here are thirty-eight of the best kids’ non-fiction books of 2025:

Big mammals get a lot of press, but what about the little guys? From pint-sized flying squirrels to itty-bitty chipmunks and teeny-tiny mouse lemurs, learn all about the mini-est mammals from around the world, depicted at their real-life size in this engaging picture book with actual-size illustrations.

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Learn how the industrial revolution, overfishing, and pollution drove whales away from New York Harbor by the early 20th Century—but the story doesn’t end there. Passionate citizens cleaned up the harbor through activism and legislation, and the first whales were spotted in the Hudson after over 100 years in 2019 in this uplifting environmental success story.

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In 1981, I.M. Pei was asked to redesign the Louvre Museum in Paris. At the time, the Louvre had many problems and no pyramid. Pei faced many obstacles, including discrimination because he was Chinese American, but worked patiently and persistently to plant and grow a glass pyramid in this story of a visionary architect.

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Imogen Cunningham loved to observe the world and tried to capture its beauty with pencils, but something was missing. When she read about a woman in Paris who earned a living as a photographer, she knew she was meant to do the same. The life of iconic photographer Imogen Cunningham is brought to vivid life by her granddaughter, with stunning illustrations.

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High up in the Andes mountains of Peru, agricultural scientist Alberto Salas is on a quest for potatoes. Up and down the mountains he goes, playing an epic game of paka paka con la papa—potato hide and seek. These potatoes have the power to feed the world, and Alberto must find each one before they go extinct in this spirited biography about “the godfather of potatoes.”

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Before James Baldwin was a celebrated novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and activist, he was a boy who fell in love with stories. Words opened up new worlds for young Jimmy, who read and wrote at every opportunity, ultimately realizing his dreams and giving voice to his community in this poetic introduction to an American icon.

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What if you moved into a new house and found a secret guidebook? A young cartographer leaves a one-of-a-kind gift for the kid moving into his old house—annotated maps of all the neighborhood places of interest. This book honors the homes we leave behind and the ones we haven’t met yet.

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In a time when the LGBTQ+ community was forced to hide in the shadows, a woman named Dorothy helped her people find each other in the dark. But who was Dorothy? Dorothy wasn’t real—yet she helped a community find connection and care amidst adversity in this picture book about how people found community when they had to keep their true selves secret.

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When Marjorie Rice read that a subscriber had discovered a previously unseen pentagon, she thought, if a reader could do it, couldn’t she? She’d go on to discover more pentagonal tilings and whole new classes of tessellations. This visually wondrous tribute celebrates the intersection of art and science through the extraordinary life of an amateur mathematician.

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An ancient catfish becomes a fossil, and as the lake dries up, the fossil turns to dust—but this isn’t ordinary dust. This dust begins in Chad, West Africa, but winds carry it across the continent, over the Atlantic Ocean, to nourish the Amazon rain forest and beyond, revealing just how interconnected our planet is.

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How far to the stars? This is what a little girl named Mae Jemison wonders as she peers through her telescope, dreaming of space. Someday she will make it there—and become the first Black woman in space! This mesmerizing, poetic ode focuses on what first inspired a young Mae Jemison to reach for the stars.

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Fossil records show that the first humans were born in Africa, meaning every person on Earth can trace their ancestry back to that continent. Through magnificent paintings, this book celebrates our shared ancestors’ ingenuity and achievements, creating a tale about our shared beginnings that centers Black people in humankind’s origin story.

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Following the Great Depression, the Packhorse Library project of the 1930s and 1940s called upon Kentucky women to deliver books on horseback. For years, these brave, steadfast, resilient librarians endured rough terrain and harsh conditions, ushering in a new era for Kentuckians with each book delivered and reading lesson taught.

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From imaginative child to visionary storyteller, Toni Morrison was a fiercely inspiring writer who helped change the world. This poetic picture book is part love letter and part biography, praising the power of this Nobel Prize winner with a tender refrain that reminds readers that Morrison’s stories—and their own—mean everything to the world.

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Ursula Marvin was a rock star in geology at a time when it was nearly impossible for women to pursue careers in science. Despite being told to learn to cook instead, she studied geology anyway, eventually traveling to Antarctica to test her theory that meteorites could be composed of pieces of planets or the moon.

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It’s a beautiful day on Hatteras Island, North Carolina, but a hurricane is barreling across the Atlantic. Caldecott and Sibert Medalist Jason Chin charts the thrilling saga of an island community’s brush with a category-three hurricane and the cutting-edge science that helps them prepare, with striking maps that chart the hurricane’s progress.

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Listen to the sound of survival, courage, and democracy—the soundtrack of America. From Miles Davis to Kendrick Lamar, this stunningly illustrated celebration features 80+ references to artists like Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, James Brown, Ella Fitzgerald, and Beyoncé. Dance to Kwame Alexander’s melodious narrative of the history of Black music in America, accompanied by vibrant illustrations.

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Did you know that entire tiny habitats can form on a pile of poo? In the prairies of North America, bison poo becomes an important building block for diverse prairie ecosystems. It fertilizes the soil, spreads seeds, and houses hundreds of tiny grassland species in this snappy, funny book about a tiny ecosystem that’s truly abuzz with life.

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When a freediver encounters a pod of sperm whales, he sees blood in the water. What he finds instead is a moments-old calf, and the mother nudges her child toward the diver, inviting him to share in the family moment. Told from the vantage point of Belgian freediver Fred Buyle, this is proof of humanity’s bond with the wild world.

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This newly revised edition pairs timeless classics with fresh, contemporary must-reads, from Where the Wild Things Are and Charlotte’s Web to New Kid and Watercress. With engaging summaries, fun facts, and journaling prompts, this treasure map helps kids discover stories that shape imaginations, build empathy, and spark a lifelong love of reading.

Read our full review of 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition).

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Crows are fascinating and resilient birds. What is the secret to their abundance and survival throughout fall and winter? This riveting informational picture book unpacks these mysteries, exploring how and why crows roost together by the thousands and their reliance on cooperation and community.

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Ella Jenkins is dubbed “The First Lady of Children’s Music.” Born in St. Louis and raised in Chicago, Ella grew up loving music of all kinds. She listened to music from around the world and knew it would offer children a kinetic learning experience. In these beautifully illustrated pages, Ella’s journey is rhythmically, joyfully, brilliantly illuminated.

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Acclaimed author Andrea Wang illuminates the extraordinary life of Joseph Pierce, a Chinese immigrant who rose from namelessness to serve with distinction in the Union Army during the Civil War. Against the backdrop of rampant anti-Chinese prejudice, Pierce forged a life of bravery, loyalty, and resilience in this powerful, poetic portrait.

Read our full review of Worthy: The Brave and Capable Life of Joseph Pierce.

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The true and powerful story of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, who, against his government’s commands, helped refugees flee France to escape the Nazis by granting visas. In one of the greatest individual acts of rescue in World War II, Mendes saved many thousands of people in this magnificently illustrated picture book biography.

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James Marshall let kids in on the joke—he knew little kids were smart and didn’t talk down to them. Decades after his death, the characters he illustrated are still beloved. Created in an irreverent style inspired by Marshall’s own art, this delightful biography celebrates what made Jim so talented, funny, and special.

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Growing up in Puerto Rico, Wanda Díaz Merced wanted to learn everything about the stars, but in college, she began to lose her sight. She learned to hear the stars using sonification, which converts data into sounds. Today, Wanda is a leading advocate for inclusive science, inspiring children to follow their curiosity no matter the challenges.

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From the first human settlements to today’s modern metropolises, we have always relied on the sun for light, energy, and sustenance. This resplendent account traces the history of solar power from ancient south-facing villages to modern innovators—a timely call to action asking young readers to imagine a brighter, cleaner future.

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Meet Grimpy! He’s a dumbo octopus taking us on a tour of the whole cephalopod class—underwater creatures such as cuttlefish, nautiluses, octopuses, and squids. Grimpy knows all about what makes these many-armed marvels special, and when he gets stuck on what a dumbo octopus can’t do, the other cephalopods show him why it’s great to be a dumbo.

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Discover how desert ants count their steps, how dung beetles navigate by the Milky Way, and how bar-tailed godwits fly nonstop for thousands of miles across the Pacific Ocean. This young readers’ adaptation of an award-winning title explores the extraordinary navigational abilities of animals from microscopic bacteria to majestic whales.

Read our full review of Super Navigators: How Animals Find Their Way.

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Did you know that some turtles can track the Earth’s magnetic fields? That some fish use electricity to talk? Or that giant squids evolved their enormous eyeballs to look out for whales? This young readers adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize winner’s mega-bestseller explores the amazing ways animals perceive the world, filled with stunning full-color illustrations.

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Written by a psychotherapist with personal and professional experience, this book offers practical advice for young readers about what to expect during divorce and how to cope. From handling conversations with parents to understanding that divorce is not your fault, this book provides validation and reassurance for children navigating family changes.

Read our full review of We Need to Talk About Divorce.

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The final work from celebrated Caldecott Award–winning illustrator Uri Shulevitz follows a young Polish exile fighting to survive in war-torn Europe. Yehiel’s journey takes him beyond Polish borders with no money and no ID papers, often sleeping under the stars—until he finds himself fighting for freedom, his friends, and his very life.

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From Emmy Award–winning documentary filmmaker James Robinson comes a breathtaking illustrated memoir inspired by the viral, Emmy-nominated short film. Told through an experimental mix of intimate anecdotes and interactive visuals, this book immerses readers in James’s experiences growing up with strabismus, equipping them with tools to confront discomfort with disability and turn confused stares into powerful connections.

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National Book Award winner Dr. Ibram X. Kendi brings a global icon to life in the first major biography of Malcolm X for young people in more than thirty years. Drawing on Malcolm’s oratory style and never-before-published letters and photos, this thoughtful biography shows Malcolm’s antiracist legacy and the promise of every human being.

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Start with a basic mochi blob and watch it transform into everything from laughing bears to capybaras with just a few strategic lines. With over 500 illustrations and true beginner accessibility, this delightfully accessible art instruction book transforms drawing into pure joy through the magic of kawaii art.

Read our full review of How to Draw Cute Mochi Animals.

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The Pulitzer Prize–winning bestseller is now adapted for young adults in this new standard biography of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Featuring never-before-seen research, including recently declassified FBI documents, this nuanced portrait highlights the radical demands for racial and economic justice that remain urgent today.

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Using riveting first-person accounts, award-winning author Candace Fleming reveals the makings of a monster: from Jim Jones’s humble origins to his founding of Peoples Temple to his relocation to Guyana to his transformation into a nefarious experiment in mind control. A sweeping story that traces how one man slowly indoctrinated, then murdered, 900 innocent people.

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