Kids Books Explore Unexplained Phenomena

Books Show Readers How to Levitate and Make UFO Footage

Aug 16, 2009

Hoaxbusters question hoaxes and scams - and show kids how to make fake ghost photos and other optical illusions - in these fun nonfiction books.

This is a question asked by many kids about the amazing and often unbelievable things they see or read about on TV or in books. And while it’s tempting to believe in all types of unexplained phenomena, it’s also important to develop a healthy skepticism for such things – to avoid becoming a victim of hoaxes and scams if nothing else.

Now, hoaxbusters and skeptics offer books that examine popular hoaxes and scams – and expose the truth behind specific cases. Readers even get to take an active role in questioning the truth behind unexplained phenomena by learning about magic tricks and optical illusions that can mimic everything from levitation to spoon bending.

Occasionally disappointing for believers in unexplained phenomena, but also fascinating, these books offer a fun way to help kids question hoaxes.

Do you believe in Bigfoot sightings? How about the Roswell aliens – or crop circles with extraterrestrial origins? Even if you’re a diehard believer in unexplained phenomenon, hoaxbuster Jude Isabella’s Hoaxed!: Fakes & Mistakes in the World of Science may make even the most ardent believer pause and consider the possibility that Bigfoot and UFO footage may have more mundane origins.

Exploring many famous cases, from the 1912 Piltdown Man to the fake 1999 Archaeraptor fossil, Isabella debunks many hoaxes and scams. Readers will be shocked (and possibly disappointed) to learn the story of Roger Patterson and his fake Bigfoot footage which duped people for forty years, or the tale of Shinichi Fujimura, who made his “discoveries” by planting artifacts at several Japanese archeological sites.

Other chapters also provide readers with instructions on how to make crop circles (drawing doubts about their extraterrestrial origins) – while another raises skepticism about the possibilities of creating a workable form of cold fusion.

While some believers in government conspiracies may be disappointed by Isabella’s skepticism, it’s worth noting she also acknowledges there have been discoveries thought to be fakes – such as the duckbilled platypus – that were later proven to be animals in the natural kingdom. Overall, the book offers a healthy skepticism toward hoaxes and scams and also functions as a devil’s advocate to believers in unexplained phenomena.

Readers who enjoyed Jude Isabella’s instructions on how to make crop circles in Hoaxed! will enjoy Gotcha! 18 Ways to Freak Out Your Friends, which shows readers how to levitate, bend spoons, and even teleport – or at least make creative optical illusions of such unexplained phenomena.

Using classic magic tricks and trick photography techniques, author David Acer (aka “Doubting Dave”) and his fellow Mystery Hunters show readers how to mimic types of paranormal phenomena. Camera buffs will enjoy learning simple ways to fake UFO footage or make fake photos of ghosts, while practical jokers will like Acer’s instructions for making fake Bigfoot prints and lake monster videos.

While some of the magic tricks Acer demonstrates don’t always match the unexplained phenomena he tries to mimic (his attempt to show psychic healing by restoring broken toothpicks is a particular stretch) plenty of kids will want to try the Balducci levitation he describes (a clever optical illusion for kids that lets them create the illusion of levitating an inch above the ground) or a fun card trick that gives the illusion of time travel.

A fast, fun read, Gotcha! is a good book for kids interested in amateur magician tricks and trick photography.

More Good Nonfiction Books for Kids

Nonfiction children’s books can help kids be more skeptical of hoaxes and scams – but they can also make them aware of amazing truths about the natural world. Find more such books at Weird and Scary Nonfiction Trivia Books for Kids.

Isabella, Jude. Hoaxed!: Fakes & Mistakes in the World of Science. Toronto: Kids Can Press. 2009. ISBN: 978-1-55453-206-3

Acer, David. Gotcha! 18 Amazing Ways to Freak Out Your Friends. Toronto: Kids Can Press. 2008. ISBN: 978-1-55453-194-3

The copyright of the article Kids Books Explore Unexplained Phenomena in Children's Non-Fiction is owned by Michael Jung. Permission to republish Kids Books Explore Unexplained Phenomena in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.