A Thinking Person's Guide To America's National Parks

by Robert E. Manning Ph.D (Editor), Rolf Diamant (Editor), Nora J. Mitchell Ph.D. (Editor), David Harmon (Editor)

Overview

On the centennial of the National Park Service, this richly illustrated book offers invaluable advice on exploring America’s national park system.  

The book delves into issues affecting an array of parks: the iconic western national parks like Yellowstone; the urban parks such as Golden Gate National Recreation Area; historic sites including the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Gettysburg National Military Park; and cultural areas like Mesa Verde National Park that are among America’s over 400 national parks.              

Twenty-three essays from contributing authors with deep personal and professional connections to the national parks serve as expert guides to places in the park system where:  

• much of the nation’s biological and cultural diversity is represented;
• ideas such as freedom, civil rights, and conservation were conceived;
• vast wilderness offers solitude and reflection;
• storied landscapes preserve a sense of place;
• the balance between recreation and preservation is tested;
• research and learning engage the next generation;
• the dynamics of nature are being shaped by a changing climate; and  
• innovations in technology, sustainability, and stewardship provide a sense of purpose and hope.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807600191
Publisher:	Braziller, George Inc.
Publication date:	04/04/2016
Pages:	300
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 9.90(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Robert E. Manning, Ph.D., is Steven Rubenstein Professor of Environment and Natural Resources at University of Vermont

Rolf Diamant is a former national park superintendent and is now adjunct associate professor at the University of Vermont

Nora J. Mitchell, Ph.D. is former Director, National Park Service Stewardship Institute and is now adjunct associate professor at the University of Vermont

David Harmon is executive director of the George Wright Society.

Editorial Reviews

02/15/2016
The National Parks Service (NPS), celebrating its centennial in 2016, ranges far beyond the well-known Yellowstone and Yosemite to more than 400 national parks from Acadia to Zion, including Women’s Rights, Manzanar, and Big Thicket. Likewise, this provocative, seductively illustrated anthology of 23 essays ranges beyond the radical concept of setting aside land for public use. Denis Galvin, who’s worked for NPS for 38 years, writes that “its job is to illuminate this landscape.” Beyond that, however, the NPS mission, which began with stunning scenery, now includes revealing controversial history and encouraging both physical and spiritual recreation. The essayists consider the nation’s history and that of the NPS itself, including the negative sides of both. John Maounis writes of the “Treasures of the Nation”; Dwight Pitcaithley and Rolf Diamant address the difficulties of interpreting the Civil War and the civil rights movement; and Melia Lane-Kamahele speaks about incorporating indigenous voices and seeking out collaboration within local and national communities, specifically her native Hawaiian community. Some essays clunk with clichés and lists, but the final entries—covering communities and partnerships, new park resources, and the next 100 years—soar with thought-provoking content. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"... an excellent armchair roadmap to the Park Service’s more than 400 sites and its many priorities and pursuits..."

High Country News - Brad Tyer

"[A Thinking Person's Guide to America's National Parks] is a welcome, insightful, and richly varied contribution to the literature on the national parks."

Environmental History Review

"This volume, and the issues raised by the some two dozen contributors,provide an important jumping-off point fora number of significant inquiries into the nature,meaning, and future of national parks. The book has an overall celebratory tone, but is very clear in its message that the national park system still has a ways to go before it can live up to its potential as “our great public commons”.... This is a book designed for repeated use and exploration, for readers who want to understand particular issues and questions about the system as a whole more deeply."

Open Rivers

"This centenary year of the National Park Service is the perfect moment for A Thinking Person’s Guide to America’s National Parks.... the essays and often breathtaking photographs in this volume expertly examine the more than 400 sites of natural beauty and historic importance that make up the national park system."

The Wall Street Journal - The Best Books of 2016 for People of a Certain Age

"... this book brings together ecologists, historians, naturalists, landscape architects, and other specialists who have worked for or studied the National Park Service and the national park system to offer an engaging mix of history and personal reflection."

Forest History Today

★ 01/01/2016
Offering "new perspectives on appreciating and sustaining" national parks, this in-depth title also provides considerable historical detail and a look at the parks as treasures of the American spirit. The photos on every page illustrate essays that cover the landscapes as places to play and learn, as well as resources that must be conserved carefully. The chapter "Indigenous Voices" makes this title stand out from others on the topic, as does an examination of what the parks system learned from similar areas abroad. VERDICT A worthwhile title for prospective visitors who want more than a straightforward travel guide.

Library Journal