National Park Books

National Geographic Complete National Parks of the United States

This book, newly updated in 2022, is an amazingly complete guide to every unit of the National Park Service. Along with the 63 national parks, nearly 350 other national monuments, memorials, preserves, historic sites, battlefields, cemeteries, parkways, trails, and seashores are covered as well. At 560 pages, the coverage is obviously not extensive, but there’s no better book for getting an idea of every single NPS area.

Available at Amazon

Moon USA National Parks: The Complete Guide to All 63 Parks

This is the best and most up-to-date book on just the national parks. Released in October 2022, it covers every one of the 63 national parks, including the newest members. Moon produces great travel books in general, and this one is no different.

Available at Amazon

Atlas of the National Parks

This book, released by National Geographic in November of 2019, is what you’d expect from them. It’s big, it’s heavy, and it’s full of stunning photography. This is a coffee-table sized book meant to page through, not to plan a trip. Highly recommended.

Available at Amazon

National Geographic Guide to National Parks of the United States, 9th

This is National Geographic’s guide to the national parks only, unlike the first book on this page. As a result, more detailed coverage is possible. As with any National Geographic publication, there are some great photos, along with the usual information. We own several editions of this book and can recommend it. It’s brand new and updated as of 2021.

Available at Amazon

Your Guide to the National Parks

This is an exhaustive book of the national parks, loaded with practical information. It can be a bit overwhelming at times, but anything you might want to know is probably in this book – somewhere.

Available at Amazon

Treasured Lands: A Photographic Odyssey Through America’s National Parks

This is perhaps the finest photo book of the national parks produced to date. It features the photography of QT Luong. It is not cheap, but is worth every cent. A stunning portrayal of every national park.

Available at Amazon

The National Parks: Our American Landscape

This is another photo book of the national parks of the United States. Most of the photographs in this paperback book are simply stunning. It is another great choice for those looking for a photo book of the parks. It is available in both hardback and paperback versions.

Available at Amazon

Books on specific national parks