Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!
by Richard Feynman
Nonfiction · 1100L (~9th–10th grade) · 350 pages · 1997
Why we'd hand it over
Genuinely funny and intellectually alive—a memoir that models how curiosity and play drive real science; too adult-voiced and tangential for most under 13, but a transformative read for a bright kid ready for it.