Top 15 Books About National Parks Updated 04 /2024

As long as I have a good book nearby, I'm always happy. That's why I'm so in awe of the sixty-two national parks across the United States. They're spread out across the country. You don't even have to go outside to feel like you're on an adventure when you think about or read about how beautiful this world is. Nine stories set in the US's national parks will make you want to get away from the world for a while.

The Wild Inside

by Christine Carbo

It is Glacier National Park.

How did Ted Systead's dad die? His father was attacked by a bear and dragged to his death in Glacier National Park. Ted is now a Special Agent for the Department of the Interior, and he has been called back to investigate a very similar murder. This time, the victim was tied to a tree before being mauled. Ted finds out that the locals are afraid of outsiders walking on their land. To find out what happened to Ted, he goes into the wilderness to look for clues. The trail leads him to a shocking and unexpected ending.

Death Canyon

by David Riley Bertsch

Yellowstone is a national park.

Having three seemingly unrelated deaths happen in one day makes Jake's idealistic life a mess. The evidence points to him as the person who did this. With the help of park ranger Noelle Klimpton, Jake tries to solve these crimes and clear his name. They follow a trail of clues through Yellowstone National Park to find them.

Eternal on the Water

by Joseph Monninger

Yellowstone is a national park.

ETERNAL ON THE WATER is about Cobb, a teacher and nature lover who takes a break from teaching at his New England prep school to kayak to the last known campsite of Henry David Thoreau. The book is set in beautiful places like Maine's backcountry, Indonesia, and Yellowstone National Park. In Cobb's mind, taking a break from his daily life will bring him closer to the experiences Thoreau and other transcendentalists had in the early 1800s. During his trip, Cobb meets Mary, a beautiful woman who is also a teacher. The two become inseparable. Mary eventually tells Cobb that she may have the gene for a devastating, incurable illness that runs in her family. This turns their journey of commitment to each other into a journey of joy, hope, heartbreak, and love.

Gloryland

by Shelton Johnson

There is a national park in Yosemite:

When Elijah Yancy was born in 1863, he was not a slave. As a Black and Native American boy, he was forced to leave his home in the South during the Reconstruction era for his own safety. As many young African American men did at the same time, Elijah walks west to the Nebraska plains. He joins the US cavalry, like many other young African American men of the time. Only memories and prayers keep Elijah afloat as he adapts to his new life. In 1903, he and his troops are moved to the new Yosemite National Park. He wants to become a man who can own his whole body. He lives there under the stars and around campfires. It's still hard for him to forget the parts of himself he left behind on the way to where he is.

Boar Island

by Nevada Barr

Anna Pigeon is a National Park Ranger who goes from park to park to solve mysteries in the deep woods. In the 19th book by Nevada Barr, Anna is about to start her new job as Acting Chief Ranger at Acadia National Park in Maine, which is in the state of Maine. Elizabeth, the adopted teenage daughter of Anna's longtime friend Heath Jarrod, is bullied by a cyberbully and tries to kill herself. Elizabeth is taken out of the situation by Heath. He brings her to live with Anna, and they become friends. Even though they make the move, the stalker follows them. The stalker also kills someone just a few days after they arrive on their deserted island home. if you enjoy BOAR ISLAND, make sure to read the rest of the Anna Pigeon books.

The Emerald Mile

by Kevin Fedarko

Park: Grand Canyon

In the spring of 1983, a dam broke, causing a lot of flooding on the Colorado River. This caused a lot of people to have to flee their homes. That's why Kenton Grua decided to use the catastrophic flood as a "hydraulic slingshot" and try to break a long-standing record: The fastest boat that has ever been pushed down a river. Readers will be in awe of this incredible story of how a group of people survived through the Grand Canyon.

Down by the River

by Lin Stepp

The Great Smoky Mountains are a national park.

Grandmother Grace Conley, a middle-aged widow who lives in a big city called Nashville, decides to leave her big city life for the small town of Townsend. She opens a bed and breakfast there. Her whole family is shocked by Grace's decision. Grace's daughter, Margaret, has moved in with her after graduating from college. There is never a bad time to start over, and as the women become interested in the men in their own town, they realize that it isn't too late to start over.

Desert Solitaire

by Edward Abbey

Park: Arches National Park

 

When author Edward Abbey set out on a journey to see nature in its most natural form, he called his book DESERT SOLITAIRE. During this time, Abbey worked as a ranger at Arches National Park outside of Moab, Utah. She thought a lot about the future of a society that can't live in the natural world. Abbey's call to protect the earth's natural beauty was written in 1968, but it's more important now than ever.

Unquiet Ghosts

by Glenn Meade

A plane carrying Kathy Kelly's Iraq War veteran husband and their two children went missing from the sky in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Her world was turned upside down by the loss of her family. The plane was not found. Jack and the kids haven't been seen for eight years after the wreckage was found in the Great Smoky Mountains. Could they have made it out alive? It turns out that Kathy is desperately looking for clues when she finds a briefcase with a lot of money in it, a pricey mask that was stolen from an Iraqi museum, and a clue that links her family to her death years ago. Kathy soon finds out that other people have been looking for the wreckage as well, and these "others" want to make sure she doesn't get to see her family again.

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