A Chilling Story: How Things Cool Down
by Eve and Albert Stwertka; illustrated by Mena Dolobowsky
Julian Messner/Simon and Schuster, New York. 1991
Grades: 4–8
How refrigeration and air conditioning work are simply explained, with sections on heat transfer, evaporation, and expansion. Humorous black and white drawings show a family and its cat testing out the principles in their home. The book provides nice examples of the practical applications of changing matter.

Everything Happens to Stuey
by Lilian Moore; illustrated by Mary Stevens
Random House, New York. 1960
Grades: 4–7
After smelling up the refrigerator with his secret formula, turning his sister’s doll green with a magic cleaner, and having his invisible ink homework go awry, budding chemist Stuey is in trouble. In the end, he uses his knowledge to rescue his sister by fabricating a homemade flashlight. The illustrations, depiction of family life, and sex roles are dated, but the spirit of adventure is timeless.

June 29, 2020
by David Wiesner
Clarion Books, Houghton Mifflin, New York. 1992
Grades: 3–6
The science project of Holly Evans takes an extraordinary turn—or does it? This highly imaginative and humorous book has a central experimental component, and conveys the sense of unexpected results. Holly’s planning, preparation, and analysis of her experiment provide a useful lesson.

The Lady Who Put Salt in Her Coffee
by Lucretia Hale
Harcourt, Brace Jovanovich, San Diego. 1989
Grades: K–6
When Mrs. Peterkin accidentally puts salt in her coffee, the entire family embarks on an elaborate quest to find someone to make it drinkable again. Visits to a chemist, an herbalist, and a wise woman result in a solution, but not without having tried some wild experiments first.

The Monster Garden
by Vivien Alcock
Delacorte Press, New York. 1988
Grades: 5–8
Frankie Stein, whose father is a genetic engineer, creates her own special monster, Monnie, from a "bit of goo" her brother steals from the lab. Scientific information is sprinkled throughout the book and Chapter 11 includes Frankie’s experiment log. The book is a combination of fantasy, science fiction, and young adult novel with a strong female main character, an arrogant older brother, and a "friend" who spills the secret.

Susannah and the Poison Green Halloween
by Patricia Elmore; illustrated by Joel Schick
E.P. Dutton, New York. 1982
Grades: 5–7
Susannah and her friends try to figure out who put the poison in their Halloween candy when they trick-or-treated at the Eucalyptus Arms apartments. Tricky clues, changing main suspects, and some medical chemistry make this an exciting book, with lots of inference and mystery. The process Susannah and her friends go through to solve the mystery is very much like the scientific process.

Water’s Way
by Lisa W. Peters; illustrated by Ted Rand
Arcade Publishing/Little Brown and Co., New York. 1991
Grades: K–3
"Water has a way of changing" inside and outside Tony’s house, from clouds to steam to fog and other forms. Innovative illustrations show the changes in the weather outside while highlighting water changes inside the house. Although written for a younger audience, this book is useful for its clear description of the phase changes of water.

The Wise Woman and Her Secret
by Eve Merriam; illustrated by Linda Graves
Simon & Schuster, New York. 1991
Grades: K–4
A wise woman is sought out by many people for her wisdom. They look for the secret of her wisdom in the barn and in her house, but only little Jenny who lags and lingers and loiters and wanders finds it. The wise woman tells her, "…the secret of wisdom is to be curious—to take the time to look closely, to use all your senses to see and touch and taste and smell and hear. To keep on wandering and wondering." Though this book is intended for a younger reader, it is listed here because it emphasizes and values the role of curiosity, asking questions, and using all the senses when gathering data, and, as such, serves as a fine accompaniment to Dry Ice Investigations.