Crystals, Rocks, and Gemstones: Exploring Earth's Treasures

by Kelsey Oseid

A beautifully illustrated, entertaining, and educational guide to the world’s crystals, rocks, gemstones, and other geological phenomena from the acclaimed author of What We See in the Stars.

Rocks and minerals have captivated the human imagination for centuries. Crystals, Rocks, and Gemstones explores the most interesting and illuminating facts about these precious treasures, from how rocks form and why gems come in different colors, to what makes a diamond valuable and why people feel a spiritual connection with crystals. Did you know that fossils made entirely out of iridescent opal have been found? Or that the ancient Egyptians believed that adorning mummies with emeralds ensured safe passage to the afterlife? 

With gorgeous illustrations on every page, this covetable guide delves into the natural history, uses, and cultural significance of over 80 stones, their place in our history, and our fascination with these gifts of the earth. Perfect for lovers of nature, rock collectors, and crystal afficionados, Crystals, Rocks, and Gemstones will delight and inspire readers of all ages.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science

128 pages, Hardcover

Published April 15, 2025

About the author

Kelsey Oseid is an illustrator, painter, artist, and amateur naturalist. She has illustrated a variety of children's books and runs an online shop where she sells prints and original pieces of her nature-themed work. Her work has been featured on Design*Sponge, Oh So Beautiful Paper, Everglow Handmade, and in magazines like Organic Life, Anthology, and Good Housekeeping. She is the author of What We See in the Stars and Whales- An Illustrated Celebration.

Reviews

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent book for beginners and those who have interest in rock hounding. This is a short book full of colorful pictures as well as the history of rocks, crystals, and gemstones. You will not find the woo woo in this book. So if you are looking for what stone to carry with you to dispel negativity, keep searching. Instead what you will find here is a quick overview filled with facts. You will learn the difference between rocks, crystals, and gems, and where they come from, and far more.

Thank you NetGalley and Ten Speed Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Jenn Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like the art style for the stone illustrations. It is a scientific approach focusing on what the stones are not the New Age aspect of the stones. I really enjoyed that. It was grouped by type and that made it easy to see what the stones had in common. My favorite section was the Unusual section. It had so many neat stones and some I had never heard about. There were both science and history facts. I can't wait to get a copy of this book.

5 stars

[Jasper Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC copy of this.

This is a great book about minerals and gemstones for the slightly older kid reader. Not quite middle school, but above your basic readers. Even as an adult, I enjoyed the information and the reading level kept everything simple and easy to understand without being patronizing.

The images in the book were great. Really captured the beauty of the rocks and stones featured throughout the book.

My only complaint is that some rocks weren’t obviously different variants of the same stone until you read into the description. The font size between say, “BERYL” and “BERYL: Emerald” (as in emerald is a type of beryl) wasn’t obvious to me, so it also wasn’t super obvious to me when we switched from types of beryl to SODALITE.

This could just be me because on my second to third flip through (one solid read through then a few other flips and spot reading), it seems more obvious but that’s partially cause I’m looking for it and I know it exists.

Overall, a great book on rocks, gemstones, etc for those wanting an overview but not quite an encyclopedia. I’d say 3rd-7th grade ish would be a good average area, but I honestly liked it as an adult.

[atlas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

The illustrations are great, probably the best thing about the book but the rest is nice too.
It's a nice overview over different crystals and rocks and how they are made. Not very in depth about, well, anything but great for some fun facts.

At the beginning there was a little sentence about how certain minerals are used in our daily lives and I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't a section on those.

[Reading Adventures · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect guide .. We are big collectors of all kinds of rocks, gemstones & crystals.
Every family adventure includes collecting them. This guide is just what I needed. It tells us how they are formed and even why people feel connections to them. The book shows us over 80 examples. Wonderful illustrations show us what we are looking for and where they have been found. Absolutely packed with information and details. I highly recommend this to anyone who is looking to start their own collection or adding to one they have already started. They perfect gift for the collector in your life.

[Andrea Wenger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This beautifully illustrated guide examines the formation, properties, cultural significance, and captivating history of stones and minerals. Featuring over 80 entries, the book explores their uses and our enduring fascination with them. It’s full of practical information and fun facts to delight both children and adults.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent highly illustrated introductory book on gems, crystals and minerals. This book covers anything basic you might want to know, from the different types to the shapes they form into, the different cuts used, a little history and includes an illustrated abbreviated dictionary of the more common crystals and minerals. I would highly recommend this book for getting an overview on the subject, and for those already knowledgeable about, it is a beautiful book worth shelf space.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crystals, Rocks and Gemstones is a great introduction into the world of minerals. This book would appeal to middle grade kids and adults alike and covers all the basic geology of rocks and minerals. There is some wonderful history and lore surrounding rocks and gems and it's easy to digest and follow. I loved the illustrations and I would recommend this book for anyone just getting into geology or mineral collecting.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I did really enjoy this book. It’s a good primer on different rocks, minerals, and gems. I picked it up on a whim when I saw it at the library. Didn’t realize until I got home that the images were painted illustrations rather than photos. While the art is very well done and I enjoyed looking at it….I did want to see photos 😭

Still cool! Love rocks.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and simple book for all ages, I love all the illustrations and facts about some of the most beautiful gems in the world. Each gem has a bit of facts and history in its illustration. Also, it's a quick read!
Thank you to the publisher and author for this arc.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations for this book were stunning. I could hardly tell some of them were drawings rather than photos.

The Advanced Review Copy (ARC) was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Araya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arc Review:
Overall Rating: 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A good book for all ages, loved the illustrations included in the book, I like how you got some facts and history with each one, also a super quick read.

Thank you NetGalley