Scientific American Summer Reading Challenge

Fill your bingo card with fascinating science stories, discoveries and ideas all summer long for a chance to win prizes

By Brianne Kane edited by Andrea Gawrylewski

Scientific American Summer Reading Challenge illustration of a sun wearing glasses reading a book. — *Scientific American*

Do you notice the science in everything you read? Do you question the scientific feasibility of warp speed or find yourself arguing over the exact differences between androids and cyborgs? If you always have room for a dense nonfiction on the history of engineering in your luggage or enjoy relaxing on the beach with an alien-infested science-fiction thriller, let’s make it official: this summer Scientific American challenges you to bring a scientific lens to your bookshelf.

The first-ever Scientific American Summer Reading Challenge begins on June 1 and ends on August 31. We challenge you to read along with the staff and check off boxes on the bingo card below. We’ll be offering exclusive prizes to select winners. Check out the terms and conditions and download the bingo card here.

All summer long, we’ll be bringing library books to the beach, reading nonfiction epics and heart-stopping thrillers, and finding the science in all of our favorite fiction to keep ourselves sharp and science-minded.

How to participate

Challenge yourself to read the books and participate in the activities on the bingo card below; mark off each box you complete and share it with us on your preferred social media platform.
Check out our Today in Science newsletter for weekly recommended books to help inspire you further. (Sign up here if you haven’t already.)
Don’t miss special Science Quickly episodes later this summer for more bookish inspiration—and the opportunity to buddy-read with SciAm staff!

How to win

On Instagram, TikTok, Bluesky or LinkedIn, simply tag us and use the hashtags #SciAmBookBingo and #SciAmSummerReading to be entered into the raffle to win exclusive prizes. Your account must be public for us to view your post.

- Instagram: Tag @scientific_american
- TikTok: Tag @scientificamerican
- Bluesky: Tag @sciam.bsky.social
- LinkedIn: Tag Scientific American

You may also enter by e-mailing your submission to contests@sciam.com.
Winners will receive exclusive Scientific American merchandise, specialty reading challenge merchandise and at least one hard copy of a book hand-selected by Scientific American staff.

Front of the Scientific American Summer Reading Challenge bingo card. — **Click the image to download the two-sided bingo card.**
*Scientific American*

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Jeanna Bryner, Editor in Chief, Scientific American