First published May 2, 2023 and updated June 22, 2026.
I started this list of microbiology and science books for kids when my son was a baby. Now he’s a preschooler and loves books and learning about science and microbiology (he loves talking about “good germs” and “bad germs”). I hope this list of books gives you some gift ideas that could inspire the next generation of scientists. Check them out below!
(If you’re also looking for microbiology books for grown-ups, check out my microbiology reading list).
Note: As an Amazon Associate I may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from links in this post (affiliate disclosure).
Wonderful World of the Small: A First Book of Microbiology: This book takes you on a journey under the microscope to the world of microorganisms. Each page is dedicated to a different microbe and is full of basic facts about microbiology. The facts are integrated into the illustrations (think: infographic style, but better) and is definitely something I would have loved reading as a child.
Get a behind the scenes look at the book in this Q&A with the author Lindsey Millar.
Bacteria and Antibiotics: I love how cute the bacteria look in this book! The first part of the book gives an overview of bacteria and the microbiome and the last half goes into the basics about antibiotics.
Germ Theory for Babies: This book includes a simple explainer of what germs are and how they spread.
Fungus is Among Us!: The beginning starts off with the main character being terrified of all the fungus around. But the last part discusses the positives that fungi can have on our lives and on our ecosystem. The book ends with a Q&A with author and mycologist Joy Keller.
Goodnight Lab: A confession to make: I have never read Goodnight Moon. But, I love Goodnight Lab. This is Storm’s bedtime book and we love saying good night to all the things in the lab. My favorite part of this book is saying goodnight to the “grumpy old professor shouting publish.”
Evolution for Babies: Just look the evolution of a pacifier on the cover! The process of evolution is demonstrated in this book using a ball that can fall through a hole but eventually “mutates” into one that doesn’t fall through the whole.
Ocean Sunlight: Meet phytoplankton! The concepts in this book are probably better for older kids (I’m still reading it to my 3.5 year old and he loves the illustrations).
Life under the lens: A Scientific Colouring Book: This one isn’t necessarily kid’s book, but I got it for Christmas last year and it’s so fun! Each page features a specific microscopic image of organism (microbe or not) and on the other side is a description of that image.
For prospective gut microbiologists, Everyone Poops by Taro Gomi and The Gas We Pass (The story of farts) by Shinta Cho
Thank you! We will have to get these… talking about poop is very “on brand” for our household.
I was our music librarian in high school, and somehow Everyone Poops managed to sneak its way into the music library system. I truly don’t know who was responsible for that, but it was amazing.