I loved that book! Was it that book or its sister that had an image of the pole and said "Spin the Earth the correct direction"? That and "How Things Work" kicked so much ass
That's it! They (rather dubiously) claimed it came from a recycled Russian coke can, if I recall.
I had that one too. I remember I used to crunch on the rice from the bag it came with (I was like 8).