In 'Rocks and Minerals', young readers will learn how to read the 'story' of a rock by examining its mineral makeup and how to identify minerals by their colour, shape, shine, special powers, and even taste. Students can then use their knowledge of rocks and minerals to understand how the Earth works.

Fledgling paleontologists will learn how professionals collect and display fossils as well as how fossils are used to tell geological time and reveal Earth's 4.6 billion-year history. The book concludes by surveying the variety of once-missing fossil links in the development of our own species.

In 'Layers of the Earth', youngsters will learn how scientists use modern tools like seismology, geodesy, computer modelling, and global positioning systems to study the workings of the inner Earth.

'Mountains and Valleys' explains how a volcano is born under the sea, why Mount Everest is still growing, and what might happen when Africa's greatest valley cracks apart.

In Rivers, Lakes, and Oceans, follow the nonstop journey of water as it rushes along in rivers and streams, travels beneath the ground, rests in lakes, crashes against coastlines, and flows into the ocean.

The Earth is a dynamic entity. Though it supports life, the Earth is a restless planet capable of powerful destruction. This work introduces geology topics - such as plate tectonics, erosion, and deposition - to readers and details the forces that are both powerful and potentially destructive on the third planet from the sun.