GOLD Booklist for Kids

Part of the Gold exhibition.

Elementary School

  • Gold (A True Book)

    By Salvatore Tocci
    For young readers (grades 1-3), this introduction to gold describes its value and historic and contemporary uses as well as interesting facts.
    Children's press/Scholastic, 2005. ISBN 0-516-25570-3

  • Gold (Rocks, Minerals and Resources series)

    by Ron Edwards and James Gladstone
    With its special emphasis on gold, this book describes the search for mineral resources and the techniques used to extract them. Ages 9-12. 
    Crabtree Publishing Company, 2004. ISBN: 0778714454
    Rocks and Minerals (True Books: Earth Science) (Paperback)

  • A Look at Minerals: From Galena to Gold (First Books)

    by Jo S. Kittinger
    Also for 9-12 year olds, this playfully-designed book contains 5 chapters: Magnificent Minerals, Matchless Metals, Power of Crystals, Earth's Treasure Chest, and Work it Out. Vocabulary words are called out. The appearance, composition, geologic formation and utilization of minerals are detailed.
    Franklin Watts, 1999. ISBN: 0531159256

  • Lost Treasure of the Inca

    by Peter Lourie
    Third to fifth graders can follow a contemporary treasure hunter as he searches for 750 tons of Incan gold thought hidden from Spanish conquistadors in the Lllanganati mountains of Ecuador.
    Boyds Mills Press, 1999. ISBN: 1-56397-983-7

  • Rocks and Minerals (DK/Google E.Guides)

    by Steve Parker, illustrated by Rod Ferring 
    Aimed at ages 9-12, this book contains colorful, useful illustrations about the geologic processes involved in the formation of rocks and minerals. It details the history of mineral exploration and the use of minerals in ancient civilizations through modern times.
    DK Children, 2005. ISBN: 0756611407

  • Rocks and Minerals (True Books: Earth Science)

    by Anne O. Squire
    This book for begins by exploring the rocks around us and then describes the formation of minerals. It includes material about geologic processes and the rock cycle. Grades 3-5.
    Children¹s Press, 2002. ISBN: 0516269852

Middle and High School

  • Crystals and Crystal Growing

    by Alan Holden and Phyllis Morrison
    This book is an excellent source for learning about crystals and their formation. It suggests crystal experiments using inexpensive and easy to obtain materials. 
    MIT Press, 1982. ISBN: 0262580500

  • Gold: From Greek Myth to Computer Chips

    by Ruth Kasinger
    This beautiful book introduces the use of gold objects in ancient civilizations from the Egyptians onward. It explores the mythology and magic of the quest for gold and described both gold formation and extraction. It has an excellent index for further exploration.
    21st Century, 2003. ISBN: 0761321101