Customer Reviews

National Geographic GD to the State Parks of the United States

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This should really have been called "Our Favorite State Parks," because it only covers a tiny fraction of the nation's state parks. For example, Arizona has 29 state parks, but you'll only find four listed here. Pennsylvania has 116 state parks; again, this book lists only four of them. The other 112 parks are simply omitted.

The book is attractively designed, well illustrated and printed on glossy paper, as you'd expect from the National Geographic Society. But if you were looking for a comprehensive guide to all the state parks, you're going to be sorely disappointed. What you get for your money is a small, slickly produced guide to the most popular 5% or so--the same parks everybody else is heading for. The other 95% are left out...you'll have to look elsewhere to discover them.

For the most part, our country's most spectacular natural sights are in our national parks. However, the discerning traveler can also find much to admire and photograph in our many fine state parks.. This book covers some of the best from each state. Some would even be in the national park system if not already protected by the states.

The usual excellent National Geographic photography attends a fine, readable text. Maps show you where to go and how to get there. I really believe that anyone planning a motor trip should consult this book before drawing up an itinerary. Otherwise, you run the risk of missing much that is great in our country.

A definite must for the traveler. I recommend it very highly.

Although there is plenty of material on our National Park System, there is little information on state parks. And there are some fascinating state parks out there. This book seeks to fill that gap by providing brief but adequate information on over 200 parks in all 50 states. If you do the math, you'll see that there can be only brief descriptions of 200 parks fitted into this 384 page book. But there is a surprising amount of information crammed into each of the articles, even including some nice, but small photos. The main service this guide performs is highlighting the best parks in the Park System of each state, and giving you enough information to get there and enjoy them. It is not (and realistically cannot be) an exhaustive guide to each listed park, or to all state parks. Well worth buying if the subject interests you. If you've read the review this far, I think you'll like the book!