This Is a Book for People Who Love the National Parks

by Matt Garczynski, Brainstorm (Illustrations)

Smart, short, and irresistibly illustrated, This Is a Book for People Who Love National Parks is a park-by-park celebration of the American outdoors.


For devoted park-goers and casual campers alike, this charming guide is nothing short of a celebration of America's natural wonders. An introduction to the storied history of the Parks Service is paired with engaging profiles of each of the sixty-one National Parks, from Acadia to Zion and everything in between. Quirky facts and key dates are woven throughout, while refreshingly modern illustrations capture the iconic features of each majestic setting. Deeply researched but not too serious, This Is a Book for People Who Love National Parks is an essential addition to every park lover's field library.

Genres: Travel, Nature, Nonfiction

144 pages, Hardcover

Published May 5, 2020

Reviews

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book meant manly for kids which lists the national parks and tells us a bit about each one. The illustrations are pleasant and engaging.

[Sharron · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve been to dozens of our national parks but fail to see the point of this book. Its coverage of them is so superficial that I can’t figure out who its intended audience is. Mel White’s Complete National Parks of the United States, published by National Geographic, is a far more useful and informative one volume guide.

[Britton Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple quick read I loved how informative this book was and the pictures were very cool as well. As a huge fan of national parks this book was a smash!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parks. National Parks I have visited include Acadia (at the confluence of land and sea, evergreen and deciduous, residential and wild), Badlands (named by the Lakota for its unforgiving weather and terrain), Death Valley (the hottest temperatures on earth have been recorded here), Denali (the highest peak in all of North America), Glacier (parks glaciers might be gone in 2030), Grand Canyon (the North and the South Rims lie a full 18 miles apart), Grand Teton (stretches over a mile above the neighboring valley), Great Smoky Mountains (the fog is a recurring feature caused by diverse plant life), Haleakala (daybreak is the time to come to this House of the Sun), Mount Rainier (happens to be one of the most dangerous active volcanos on earth), Redwood (ancient stands of the world's tallest living trees soaring upward of 300 feet), Rocky Mountain (four times have traveled this Trail Ridge Road in this iconic alpine park), Voyageurs (40 percent of park's area is water - might be able to spot aurora borealis here), Yellowstone (the first national park 1872 where geothermal wonders abound), and Zion (The Narrows a gorge running through this tapering slot canyon leaves only a thin band of sky visible to the hikers below). That is 15 parks of 61 parks equaling 25 percent. There are cute colorful little illustrations for every Park and a short summary about each.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw the title of this book, and thought, I'm the person he's talking about, I love national parks! I've been to 16 of them, and look forward to seeing others, and revisiting those. Unfortunately, though, there's less than 2 pages per park, and the descriptions are pretty minimalist. For instance, Sequoia: the trees are described as "several stories tall", which is impressive understatement. Perhaps several HUNDRED stories tall was intended? If this had actual photographs, instead of drawings; if it had more detailed descriptions of the points of interest; if it had more of the history of the parks' history, in terms of their being set aside and what has happened of interest there. Still, I read to the end, and I found parks that I hadn't known of previously, and there WERE some tidbits that were new to me. Still, I'm hard pressed to identify an audience for this. I would suggest it for parents to share with children, but a book like that would need more pictures. Overall, a nice idea, but not great execution.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the review for this in the Washington Post on a Sunday and 2 days later I received this book in the mail -- my sister knows what I like! This is a fast reading book with small vignettes about each national park. It also has a map in the front to keep you oriented. It makes me want to visit more of the parks just reading it (and go back to the ones I've been to!).

[Kev Willoughby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and interesting. This book could lead to increased travel, and will pique your curiosity in the national parks.

When I was younger, a lifetime goal I had was to visit every major league baseball stadium. I no longer have that desire, but I have a new hope to eventually see every one of the national parks profiled in this book.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a delightful little book. Even though the descriptions of each park were brief, Mr. Garczynski made each park sound intriguing. I now have new parks in mind for future trips.

Also, he didn't shy away from acknowledging some of the less rosy parts of our country's establishment of national parks, such as the displacement of native peoples.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short summary and hand drawn graphic for each National Park. Fun facts and easy to navigate.

[Rachel Nations · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting, but a bit superficial.

[Kelly K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting more out of this than just a short description on each park. The little illustrations for each were cute though.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice quick read with a couple of pages and some fun facts and stats on each park.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how there’s just a short bio on each national park. I read this in bits and pieces over the last year and really enjoyed it.

[Rebecca Dougherty · Rating 1 out of 5]

As another reviewer said, I don't see the point of this book. You can find more information on the national parks websites and Wikipedia. There aren't even photos 😔.