You Wouldn’t Want To … series – Science & Inventions
Do you think life would be better without insects, bacteria, or extreme weather? Could you get by without gravity, vaccinations, or clean water? Would you want to live without writing or books? Think again!
These 32-page nonfiction books use humor to explain scientific concepts, discoveries, and inventions. As the reader, you get to see first-hand the dangers and inconveniences of living without forces of nature, scientific advances, and other facets of life we take for granted.
The books may look outrageous, but everything in them is true. Colorful illustrations, captions, and factual sidebars make them great choices for school reports.
Find them in the Bridge Books collection.
Shop the whole list.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Clean Water! by Roger Canavan
How would you cope in a world without clean water? Learn how water keeps us healthy, how it’s used around the world, and why we need to make sure it’s not polluted or wasted.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Writing! by Roger Canavan
How did people communicate before writing and reading were invented? How could you live today without being able to write your homework, text your friends, or read books?
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Books! by Alex Woolf
Books have actually been around for thousands of years, even before there were paper and ink! This book describes the history of books from clay tablets to e-books, and why they’re important to our culture and civilization.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Toilets! by Fiona Macdonald
Toilets are marks of cleanliness and civilization, and have saved millions of lives. How did people live without them? Could you?
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Vaccinations! by Anne Rooney
Sticking sharp needles into people doesn’t sound like a nice thing to do, but vaccinations have saved millions of people from deadly diseases since the 18th century. Thank science for these life-saving medications!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Gravity! by Anne Rooney
You don’t get a choice about gravity. But gravity does lots of useful things – such as keeping us on the Earth and holding the entire universe together!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Extreme Weather! by Roger Canavan
It’s a nuisance when it rains on a picnic. It’s a tragedy when a tornado destroys a neighborhood. But our planet would be a very different place if it did not have extremes of weather. Find out how weather has shaped the world we live in and why it’s important.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Dirt! by Ian Graham
What if we didn’t have any dirt or soil? What would the ground look like? What would happen to plants, trees and animals?
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Poop! by Alex Woolf
Everyone poops, buy why? What would happen to us if we didn’t? And is there any use for the stuff?
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Dentists! by Fiona Macdonald
No one really looks forward to going to see the dentist, but have you considered the alternative? People in the past had to cope with a lot of pain when they had a bad tooth. Thank goodness for modern dentistry!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Fire! by Alex Woolf
Fire is a powerful force of nature, and an accidental fire can do a lot of damage. But without it, we couldn’t cook food, keep warm, make metal or power engines.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Bacteria! by Roger Canavan
Most of them are too small to see, but bacteria are everywhere. They appeared on Earth more than 3 billion years before the first dinosaurs. Some bacteria cause deadly diseases, but as you will read, many of them are helpful to us.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Pain! by Fiona Macdonald
A pain-free world may sound wonderful, but if pain did not exist, our lives would be very dangerous. We probably wouldn’t survive for long and – believe it or not – we would actually be less healthy.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Insects! Anne Rooney
You may think of bugs as nasty stinging creatures that destroy crops and spread disease. But without insects to pollinate flowers, we wouldn’t have fruit. Without bees, we wouldn’t have honey. Even maggots are useful. Read this book and find out why!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Soap! by Alex Woolf
Soaps and detergents are among the great benefits of modern life. They help to keep us comfortable, save us from smelling unpleasant, and help to protect us from the germs that cause infectious diseases. Life would be much harder without them!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Clocks and Calendars! by Fiona Macdonald
What if there were no clocks and calendars? We would forget birthdays, be late for appointments, and miss out on important things in life. Learn about the history of time-keeping, from early astronomical observations to recent technological developments.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Sleep! by Jim Pipe
No one knows why people sleep, but scientists know that sleeping is essential for health and happiness. Learn about the strange sleep cycles throughout the animal kingdom, and the theories behind why people get tired or have terrifying nightmares.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Electricity! by Ian Graham
Could you get by if the lights went out, your computer and phone stopped working, and trains, buses, and cars didn’t run? Without electricity, our lives would certainly be colder, darker, and much more difficult!