**Yes, a book that feels persistently too difficult can be discouraging—but I wouldn’t assume that one challenging birthday gift will put her off science.** How she gets to explore it matters.

There are two separate difficulties: reading the words and understanding the ideas. A book she cannot yet read independently may still be enjoyable with an adult reading and explaining it. [Reading Rockets explicitly recommends sharing challenging books this way.](https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/childrens-books/articles/finding-right-book-your-child)

For the picture-and-fact format you describe, my suggestion would be to make it an invitation to browse:

- Let her choose a picture or page that catches her eye.
- Read short bits together and follow her questions.
- Let her skip anything confusing or uninteresting.
- Avoid expecting her to finish it, remember facts, or answer quizzes correctly.

You could introduce it with: “I thought these pictures and experiments looked fun. We can explore whichever bits you like.” If she enjoys one page about senses and leaves the genetics for another year, that is still a successful gift.

Your elephant analogy captures a reasonable concern about repeated frustration, but it doesn’t establish that encountering something difficult once will create lasting avoidance. The practical safeguard is to let her get help, change pages, or stop. That fits [Institute of Education Sciences guidance](https://ies.ed.gov/use-work/resource-library/resource/other-resource/supporting-your-childs-reading-home) to keep reading activities positive and set aside those that cause frustration.

**I’d be comfortable giving it if she already shows curiosity about bodies or how things work, especially alongside some time exploring it together.** If almost every page needs a lengthy explanation before anything becomes interesting, I’d choose something simpler for now.