“What are the best Children’s books about Explorers?” We looked at 151 of the top Kids Explorer books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!

The top 13 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Children’s Explorer” book lists, are ranked below by how many lists they appear on. The remaining 125+ titles, as well as the lists we used are in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page.

Happy Scrolling!

Top 13 Best Children’s Explorer Books

13 .) Around the World: Three Remarkable Journeys written by Matt Phelan

Lists It Appears On:

• Start With A Book
• What Do We Do All Day

A Scott O’Dell Award-winning graphic novelist follows three dauntless adventurers on a Jules Verne-inspired challenge: circling the world, solo! As the nineteenth century wound down, a public inspired by the novel Around the World in Eighty Days clamored for intrepid adventure. The challenge of circumnavigating the globe as no one ever had before–a feat assuring fame if no A Scott O’Dell Award-winning graphic novelist follows three dauntless adventurers on a Jules Verne-inspired challenge: circling the world, solo!

12 .) Atlas of Adventures written by Lucy Letherland

Lists It Appears On:

• Fatherly
• What Do We Do All Day

A 2016 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People (National Council for the Social Studies-Children’s Book Council ) Set your spirit of adventure free with this lavishly illustrated trip around the world. Whether you’re visiting the penguins of Antarctica, joining the Carnival in Brazil, or a canoe safari down the Zambezi River, this book brings together more than A 2016 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People (National Council for the Social Studies-Children’s Book Council ) Set your spirit of adventure free with this lavishly illustrated trip around the world. Whether you’re visiting the penguins of Antarctica, joining the Carnival in Brazil, or a canoe safari down the Zambezi River, this book brings together more than 100 activities and challenges to inspire armchair adventurers of any age.

11 .) Dare the Wind: The Record-breaking Voyage of Eleanor Prentiss and the Flying Cloud written by Tracey Fern

Lists It Appears On:

• Start With A Book
• What Do We Do All Day

Ellen Prentiss’s papa said she was born with saltwater in her veins, so he gave her sailing lessons and taught her how to navigate. As soon as she met a man who loved sailing like she did, she married him. When her husband was given command of a clipper ship custom-made to travel quickly, she knew that they would need every bit of its speed for their maiden voyage: out of Ellen Prentiss’s papa said she was born with saltwater in her veins, so he gave her sailing lessons and taught her how to navigate.

10 .) Follow the Dream written by Peter Sis

Lists It Appears On:

• My Learning Table
• The Best Childrens Books

The details on each page invite individual readers to pay Illus. in full color. The 15th century comes alive in this splendidly original picture book about Christopher Columbus. “The illustrations, executed in a variety of media, show scenes from the explorer’s life as well as some imaginary creatures that populated the Europeans’ picture of the outside world at that time. The details on each page invite individual readers to pay close attention, but the brief, clear text and framed illustrations lend themselves equally well to group sharing. Make room on your crowded Columbus shelf for this one.

9 .) How We Crossed The West: The Adventures Of Lewis And Clark written by Rosalyn Schanzer

Lists It Appears On:

• My Learning Table
• Start With A Book

Appealing art and descriptive text bring Lewis and Clark alive for young adventurers. Carefully chosen text from Lewis and Cark’s actual journals opens a fascinating window into this country’s exciting history.

8 .) Keep On! The Story of Matthew Henson written by Deborah Hopkinson

Lists It Appears On:

• Start With A Book
• What Do We Do All Day

This stunning picture book offers a riveting account of African-American explorer Matthew Henson’s 1909 journey to the North Pole with Admiral Peary. Matthew Henson was born just after the Civil War, a time when slavery had been abolished, but few opportunities were available for black people. As a child, Henson exhibited a yearning for adventure, embarking at age thirteen This stunning picture book offers a riveting account of African-American explorer Matthew Henson’s 1909 journey to the North Pole with Admiral Peary. Matthew Henson was born just after the Civil War, a time when slavery had been abolished, but few opportunities were available for black people. As a child, Henson exhibited a yearning for adventure, embarking at age thirteen on a five-year voyage sailing the seven seas.

7 .) Shackleton’s Journey written by William Grill

Lists It Appears On:

• Fatherly
• What Do We Do All Day

Grill’s beautiful use of colored pencils and vibrant hues effortlessly evokes the adventure and excitement that surrounded the expedition. His impeccably researched drawings, rich with detail, fastidiously reproduce the minutiae of the expedition. Children will love examining the diagrams of the peculiar provisions and the individual drawings of each sled dog and packhorse. This book takes the academic and historical information behind the expedition and reinterprets it for a young audience.

6 .) So You Want to Be an Explorer? written by Judith St. George

Lists It Appears On:

• My Learning Table
• Teaching Kids Books

So you want to be an explorer? What does it take, you ask? To find out, take a look at Judith St. George and David Small’s witty collection of some of the best explorers the world has ever known.You know Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus, but what about Mary Kingsley, who studied cannibals in Africa, or cowboy Jim White, who, by mistake, found Carlsbad Caverns? Full of So you want to be an explorer? What does it take, you ask? To find out, take a look at Judith St. George and David Small’s witty collection of some of the best explorers the world has ever known.You know Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus, but what about Mary Kingsley, who studied cannibals in Africa, or cowboy Jim White, who, by mistake, found Carlsbad Caverns? Full of boundless energy and illustrations you won’t forget, this historical jaunt will inspire the explorer in all of us, young and old.

5 .) The Great Voyages of Zheng He written by Hao Yu Zhang

Lists It Appears On:

• Fatherly
• What Do We Do All Day

4 .) The Top of the World: Climbing Mount Everest written by Steve Jenkins

Lists It Appears On:

• Start With A Book
• What Do We Do All Day

In this stunning picture book, Steve Jenkins takes us to Mount Everest – exploring its history, geography, climate, and culture. This unique book takes readers on the ultimate adventure of climbing the great mountain. Travel along and learn what to pack for such a trek and the hardships one may suffer on the way to the top. Avalanches, frostbite, frigid temperatures, wind, In this stunning picture book, Steve Jenkins takes us to Mount Everest – exploring its history, geography, climate, and culture. This unique book takes readers on the ultimate adventure of climbing the great mountain. Travel along and learn what to pack for such a trek and the hardships one may suffer on the way to the top. Avalanches, frostbite, frigid temperatures, wind, and limited oxygen are just a few of the dangers that make scaling this peak one of the most extreme physical challenges one can experience.

3 .) Who Was Ferdinand Magellan written by S. A. Kramer

Lists It Appears On:

• Fatherly
• The Best Childrens Books

When Portuguese sailor Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Spain in 1519, he believed he could get to the Spice Islands by sailing west through or around the New World. He was right, but what he didn’t know was that the treacherous voyage would take him three years and cost him his life. Black-and-white line drawings illustrate Magellan’s life and voyage, with sidebars and a When Portuguese sailor Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Spain in 1519, he believed he could get to the Spice Islands by sailing west through or around the New World. He was right, but what he didn’t know was that the treacherous voyage would take him three years and cost him his life. Black-and-white line drawings illustrate Magellan’s life and voyage, with sidebars and a time line that enhance readers’ understanding of the period.

2 .) Into the Unknown: How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air written by Stewart Ross

Lists It Appears On:

• My Learning Table
• Teaching Kids Books
• What Do We Do All Day

1 .) Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 written by Brian Floca

Lists It Appears On:

• Fatherly
• My Learning Table
• Start With A Book
• What Do We Do All Day

Simply told, grandly shown, here is the flight of Apollo 11. Here for a new generation of readers and explorers are the steady astronauts, clicking themselves into gloves and helmets, strapping themselves into sideways seats. Here are their great machines in all their detail and monumentality, the ROAR of rockets, and the silence of the Moon. Here is a story of adventure a Simply told, grandly shown, here is the flight of Apollo 11. Here for a new generation of readers and explorers are the steady astronauts, clicking themselves into gloves and helmets, strapping themselves into sideways seats. Here are their great machines in all their detail and monumentality, the ROAR of rockets, and the silence of the Moon.

The 125+ Additional Best Kids Books Featuring Explorers

7 Best Kids Books Featuring Explorers Sources/Lists