The Awesome Physics in Your City - The Amazing Theatre of Physics - ★★★★

AUTHOR: The Amazing Theatre of Physics

GENRE: Juvenile Nonfiction, Science.

SERIES: Science All Around Us, #2

PUBLICATION DATE: June 24, 2025

RATING: 4 stars.

In a Nutshell: An illustrated book about the real-life examples of physics in a city. Practical and informative. A great option for STEM enthusiasts in the middle-grade and teen age groups.

This is the second book in the interesting STEM series titled ‘Science All Around Us’. It does an excellent job of enlightening children about the practical aspects of two of the most dreaded science subjects: physics and chemistry. I have already read two books from this series: Book One: The Awesome Physics in Your Home and Book Three: The Amazing Chemistry in Your Home. Book Two maintains the same level of quality, though set in a different environment.

As the title indicates, this book leaves the ‘home’ setting and focusses on applications of physics in the city at large. I appreciate how the places chosen are the ones that children actually interact with and/or know about. Seeing physics at work in disparate familiar locations such as a sports field, a doctor’s clinic, a street, a restaurant, a playground or an amusement park is much more relatable to kids than seeing locations that might be obscure to them such as an office or a hospital or a factory.

The book covers varied examples of applied physics, many of which are related to things we know exist but never wonder about. The basic rationale behind certain facts such as why tyres have grooves or why speed limits are lower in cities involves physics, but we never think of it in that sense. The content demonstrates how far-reaching the impact of physics is in everything around us.

The level of difficulty is the same as in the other two books. There are many technical terms, and not all of them are defined. A certain basic familiarity with physical concepts is presumed. As such, this isn't exactly a beginner’s book but one for children who already know fundamental physics but aren’t sure how it affects our day-to-day life. There is a small glossary at the end, but it doesn’t go into actual definitions.

The all-colour illustrations complement the text perfectly. In many cases, they help simplify the trickier elaborations.

Overall, this book would be a wonderful option for children aged 10+, though the younger lot might struggle with some of the technicalities. It would work better in a classroom or a school library, though science nerds would definitely love this as a gift as well.

My thanks to Albatros Media for providing the DRC of “The Awesome Physics in Your City” via Edelweiss+. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.