WINNER - 2026 Purple Dragonfly Book Award (1st Place), STEM
RECIPIENT of the Mom's Choice Award(R) Gold - Honoring Excellence
FINALIST - 2026 Literary Global Children's Book Awards (Educational and Nonfiction Categories)
From the So You Want To Be A... Series - 2026 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards, Grand Prize Winner
What if the career you were born for hasn't been fully invented yet?
Robotics engineering is one of the fastest-growing STEM fields in the world, and the people shaping it are equal parts scientist, coder, inventor, and creative problem solver. This book shows kids exactly what that work looks like: no sugar coating, no science fiction, just the real thing.
So You Want To Be A Robot Builder brings readers ages 10 to 14 inside the daily life of robotics engineers. The mechanical systems they design. The code they write. The artificial intelligence they build into machines so robots can sense, learn, and adapt. It's a career where computer science meets hands-on engineering, where you might spend your morning debugging software and your afternoon testing a prototype that finally walks across a room without falling over.
Kids will discover how robots actually get built, from the earliest design sketches to field testing in unpredictable environments. They'll learn why robotics demands teamwork across mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, software development, and AI, and how each specialist contributes something essential. They'll meet the visionary builders whose machines changed what we thought technology could do.
This is also a book about what it takes: the patience to start over when a prototype fails, the analytical thinking to diagnose problems nobody has seen before, and the tenacity to keep building something that has never existed.
For kids who love science and coding, who get excited by engineering challenges, or who spend their free time figuring out how things work, this is a career guide that doesn't talk down. Inside, young readers will find activities that encourage them to think like real engineers: observe, question, experiment, build, and iterate.
The robots that will change the world are still waiting to be built. All they need is someone with the curiosity and vision to create them.
Ages 10-14. Illustrated nonfiction. Science, engineering, and careers for kids who want to build the future.
Linda Soules is the author and creator of the So You Want To Be A... series, a growing collection of career-exploration books for readers ages 8-14. The series covers everything from astronauts and marine biologists to magicians, stunt performers, and roller coaster designers. Her philosophy is straightforward: never talk down to kids. Young readers are smarter, more curious, and more capable than the publishing world often gives them credit for, and they deserve books that respect their intelligence while genuinely sparking their enthusiasm. Each title is written to pull back the curtain on a real career - its joys, its challenges, the path to get there - and to leave readers with the sense that the world is wider, more interesting, and more reachable than they imagined. Before turning to children's publishing, Linda spent twenty-five years in law and finance, advising hedge funds and sophisticated financial institutions on complex regulatory matters - a career that taught her precision, discipline, and how to translate intricate subjects into language anyone can use. She brings that same clarity and care to every book she writes, paired with a deep belief that curiosity is the engine of a meaningful life. Linda lives in Seattle with her husband and two children, where the steady rhythm of family life, the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest, and the questions her own kids ask every day continue to fuel her work. Additional information can be found on her website at http: //lindasoules.com.
