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THE ATLAS OBSCURA EXPLORER'S GUIDE TO INVENTING THE WORLD

Ruby Fresson Dylan Thuras Jennifer Swanson

50 Inventions & Discoveries, 94 Locations, a Globe-Spanning Adventure

The team behind the bestselling Atlas Obscura presents a kids' illustrated STEM-oriented exploration of the world's most interesting technologies, inventions, and scientific discoveries.
Following up on the New York Times bestselling Atlas Obscura Explorer's Guide for the World's Most Adventurous Kid, with more than 200,000 copies in print, here is a globe-spanning history of invention like no other. This illustrated and STEM-oriented exploration of the planet's 94 most interesting inventions and scientific discoveries sends middle-grade readers on an unforgettable trip around the planet and across time.

Each spread focuses on a world-changing technology and how it led to or influenced the tech or discovery on the next page. Starting with the very first invention, fire, readers will spelunk the Wonderwerk Cave in South Africa for evidence of humankind's earliest control of flames, then learn how fire is necessary to create another essential tech: glass, including the modern-day glass bridge in Zhangjiajie, China, that offers a crystal-clear (and terrifying!) view of the chasm 1,300 feet below.

As you gaze at comets through telescopes, create unbreakable codes, zap space garbage with lasers, and break supersonic records in the world's fastest car, gorgeously illustrated scenes will transport readers across continents and centuries into a world of wonder and discovery.

Dylan Thuras is the cofounder and creative director of Atlas Obscura. He lives in Rosendale, NY.

Jennifer Swanson is an award-winning children's author of more than forty-five nonfiction and fiction books, including National Geographic Kids Brain Games and Outdoor School: Rocks, Fossils, and Shells (a Kirkus Reviews Best Book), as well as the co-author of The Atlas Obscura Explorer's Guide for Inventing the World. She is also the creator and co-host of the award-winning podcast Solve It for Kids. When not writing, Jennifer loves to walk along the ocean watching for dolphins and sea turtles near her home in Florida. Visit her online at jenniferswansonbooks.com and @jenswanbooks.
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Published 2025-08-12 by Workman Kids