America’s national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nation’s most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone. In this evocative and lavishly illustrated narrative, Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan delve into the history of the park idea, from the first sighting by white men in 1851 of the valley that would become Yosemite and the creation of the world’s first national park at Yellowstone in 1872, through the most recent additions to a system that now encompasses nearly four hundred sites and 84 million acres.
The authors recount the adventures, mythmaking, and intense political battles behind the evolution of the park system, and the enduring ideals that fostered its growth. They capture the importance and splendors of the individual parks: from Haleakala in Hawaii to Acadia in Maine, from Denali in Alaska to the Everglades in Florida, from Glacier in Montana to Big Bend in Texas. And they introduce us to a diverse cast of compelling characters—both unsung heroes and famous figures such as John Muir, Theodore Roosevelt, and Ansel Adams—who have been transformed by these special places and committed themselves to saving them from destruction so that the rest of us could be transformed as well.
The National Parks is a glorious celebration of an essential expression of American democracy.
Duncan and Burns, who last teamed on Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip, rejoin in this visually stunning guide to the unforgettable landscapes and fascinating history of America's national parks. A companion to the documentary miniseries, this book provides not only an armchair tour of the parks but lessons in American history and biography, as Duncan and Burns attempt to answer the question, "Who are we?" through the foundation and legacy of American conservation. From Yellowstone, the first national park, to Acadia to the Everglades, readers will learn the origins of many of the parks, monuments, and historic areas across the U.S., illustrated with more than a century's worth of photographs. A recurring theme throughout history has been the value and purpose of conservation and beauty, versus utility and tourism, and the story of the parks brings it into brilliant focus; readers will meet characters like John Muir, Horace Albright, Stephen Mather, Adolph Murie, and others who helped create the existing park system (with no shortage of attention paid to Theodore Roosevelt). Likely to inspire adventure-seekers of all generations, this broad, deep, evocative survey is just the kind of volume readers have come to expect from filmmaker and cultural historian Burns.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Ken Burns, director and producer of The National Parks, founded his own documentary company, Florentine Films, in 1976. His films include The War, Jazz, Baseball, and The Civil War, which was the highest-rated series in the history of American public television. His work has won numerous prizes, including the Emmy and Peabody Awards, and has received two Academy Award nominations. He received a Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award in 2008. He lives in Walpole, New Hampshire.
Anonymous
Posted September 14, 2009
I also agree the book is printed on pretty cheap paper and the reproduction of images used to illustrate the book don't come close to showing the beauty of our National Parks. Very sad. This could have been a great book visually.
6 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 9, 2009
I Also Recommend:
If you pick up this book in hopes of great visuals, like those in both editions of Great Lodges of the National Parks (also broadcast on PBS as well as published in book form), be prepared for a severe disappointment.
The authors and publisher have chosen to print this book on flimsy, uncoated paper. As a consequence, none of the photography "pops" off the page they way you'd expect. This is a tragedy, given the inherently visual nature of the subject matter.
To get an idea of what this book could have been like, look at the dust jacket, which is printed on substantial, coated paper that makes the photography look wonderful.
Given the premium price we're asked to pay for this book, it is a shame it hasn't been printed on premium paper (which, by the way, is readily recyclable).
6 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 26, 2009
Although I agree that there was an opportunity to have the pictures pop for us readers - keep in mind that the authors are environmentalists... glossy pictures would not be environmental friendly...
If you want to see the wonderful parks - buy the DVD and support PBS when they have it for sale during fund raising events...
And if you truly want to see these parks - go visit them in person.
This was the intent of the book/DVD - to have people want to visit these parks in person, to motivate enviromental concerns to not lose these natural wonders.
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged."THE NATIONAL PARKS, America's Best Idea" is more about the people that started the America's national park system, rather than the natural history of the land in the parks. It has beautiful photography and information about whats in the parks. But, it about the political process of getting congress to set the lands aside for national parks.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 5, 2009
Truly a book that will keep you reading and will spark your interest in visting our country's Parks. It is an excellent companion to the DVD set. Informative, revealing, and educational. Great gift idea for anyone not just Park visitors.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Beautifully created. If you wonder how and when each National Park was enacted and the people who stood up for the the land. This book will give you a greater appreciation for OUR National Parks. It is the best idea!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 17, 2009
This book makes an ideal gift or coffee table presentation. The text is an EXACT duplication of the television narration, the quantity far better suited for a book than for television. Because of that, owning the DVD and this companion book is an overkill, a duplication. If considering a purchase of The National Parks, I'd recommend the DVD over this book.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 21, 2010
This book, like the documentaries that inspired it, is filled with images that are awe-inspiring and the many stories and history related to our national parks. I've given twice as a gift to the delight of those who received it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 13, 2010
This book was a gift and the recipient is very satisfied.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 9, 2010
The photography is beautiful--a breathtaking look at our national parks. Grateful for the wisdom and perseverance of those who fought to protect them for future generations...
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 6, 2010
This book is a lovely gift on its own, or a stunning accompaniment to the DVD series by Ken Burns. The pictures themselves tell the story of our national parks, a resource as Americans we are fortunate to have.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 30, 2010
I do not believe this book could be surpassed in excellence. The only way of enhancing this book would be to view the companion DVD's as you are reading the book.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 17, 2010
The National Parks, written by Dayton Duncan and co-written by Ken Burns
is based on the excellent PBS mini-series now on DVD (directed by Burns). It is not a tourist guide in that each national park is not in- dividually described and does not have its own chapter; rather, this book is a history of how the National Park System came into being and then describes each park in the context of the chapter being discussed. Also, there is a listing at the beginning of the book with the name of each park and the year of its establishment.
In the course of reading this large volume one finds out about every- one people responsible for the Park System and the individual parks, many of whom would be unfamiliar (at least to me). Of course John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt are omnipresent throughout and deservedly so for their well-known conservation efforts but they are part of a huge,va- ried canvas that makes for thrilling and enlightening reading. We are also presented with a rich background of our country at the time - its people and politics, some of which you may not agree with but it is all there for you to witness.
To top it all off, the pictures are absolutely magnificent and show the
dedication that was taken in this regard and to the project in general.
The pictures of Yosemite and Denali National Parks were especially br-
eathtaking, all the more so since I had visited both recently! I don't
see how the pictures or the text could be improved upon. This project
was at least ten years in the making and it shows.
In closing,this book is highly recommended - don't let the historical
narrative dissuade you from purchasing it. It is very illuminating and insightful and has information you wouldn't readily find in another volume of this type. Even if you have another book on the parks, the present volume will be a worhwhile complement. And I almost guarantee
that you will be hooked into buying the DVD's as well, which pretty much
follow the text in the book (with a few abridgements and modifications).
Enjoy!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.KyLady
Posted December 5, 2009
I found the National Parks by Dayton Duncan an excellent read for those who enjoy reading about and visiting our greatest treasure "our" national parks! It follows very closely (since they worked together) the PBS video series by Ken Burns. The excellent photography and art, both current and from the beginning of the parks development, accompanies individual stories and the real struggles that so many people (not all US citizens) sacrificed to found each park. I remain humbled by those sacrifices for people like me who they would never meet. I find myself thinking that perhaps a gift of money to keep the parks alive for centuries to come might be an appropriate thank you from each of us who reads this awesome book. I found myself with tear-stained eyes many times as I discovered that many other people love the national parks as much as me!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Picked up a copy of this book a few weeks ago when I saw it at my local book store. I had been looking forward to the TV series on PBS but did not know that there would also be a book. So far I have watched the first three episodes in the TV series and it appears that the book covers the same ground, but I enjoy being able to linger over the photos and I think reading the text makes a more lasting impression. This is an excellent coffee table book, most anyone will enjoy paging through it and looking at the fascinating photos. Both the book and the TV series examine and illustrate how the radical idea of persevering great tracts of America's most spectacular wild lands came to fruition. The United States was the first country in the world to have national parks. Through this book you meet the famous and not so famous folks who were committed to preserving wild places; people like John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt, and Stephen Mather. I also recommend the excellent Across The High Lonesome, much of which takes place in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National parks!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.WI_Photographer
Posted January 26, 2011
I'm surprised by the number of people who are downplaying the experience of this book just because of the pictures. I guess there are lots of people who don't want to take the time to actually read the text of this book instead of just looking at the pictures. Yes, the pictures are part of the experience, but if you would just read the text you'd find that the book has SO MUCH MORE to offer. There are many tidbits of interesting information that supplement the documentary which this book is a companion on. For example, a photograph was taken that is not shown in the video documentary of James M. Hutchings and his wife on a wagon in Yosemite N.P. that was captured minutes before his untimely death resulting from one of the startled horses bolting, throwing him and his wife from the wagon. Hutchings died from a head wound while his wife survived. Again, READ this book, and you will find lots of interesting information in here to make you appreciate your national parks that much more.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 30, 2010
If you have seen the PBS video you may not want this book. It is almost word for word the same as the video. The images are the same as in the video. It is a nice companion book to the video.
I was disappointed because the focus is on a few of our national parks and many are not discussed at all. I expected that there would have been a section on each national park. What is there is interesting, though.
Anonymous
Posted January 26, 2010
great gift for someone who doesn't ever want anything. I bought it for my dad for Christmas. Hope he is willing to share it in the future.
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Posted January 16, 2010
There are no words to express the beauty of the pictures in the book. Beautiful!!
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Posted January 9, 2010
The history of how our National Parks came to be is very enlightening. It is scary to think with out some very tencaious individuals we would not have preserved our greatest treasures. For those of us who love our National Parks this is very inspirational and reminds us to pay attention and protect our national heritage.
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Overview
America’s national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nation’s most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone. In this evocative and lavishly illustrated narrative, Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan delve into the history of the park idea, from the first sighting...