10 Best of Everything National Parks, The: 800 Top Picks From Parks Coast to Coast (The 10 Best of Everything)

This is a beautiful book, but not what I was expecting. I flipped through it and now I am done. it isn't something that I would keep. I think I was expecting top highlights of each of the National Parks. This is more like top 10 parks for a category, such as the best mountains, the best golf, etc. I enjoyed it, just not what I wanted.

I'm a big National Parks junkie and had seen this in one of the bookstores at list price. A little pricey, so I took a picture of the cover for later reference, then 2 or 3 years later spotted the pic and bought a used one here at the big A.However, while it's good, I was expecting to see the 10 best things to do in each park. Instead it's more like the 10 best NP Caves. And the 10 best waterfalls, the 10 best glaciers, etc. OK as a coffee table book, but not very useful to me. YMMV.

National Parks are indeed America's Best Idea. I often think they are one of the few things the government has done right in this country. And this book is a good idea too, but I would like to have seen a little more in the production. Basically, this square volume on glossy paper is a coffee table book. It features various top 10 lists in several categories: scenery, hiking and climbing, water, scenic drives, etc. As one might expect, numerous parks get at least one listing and readers will almost certainly find someplace they have not been to and want to explore. On the other hand, some parks get mentioned again and again. It should be no surprise that Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Arcadia, Smokey Mountains and several other large national parks would find themselves in a top 10 list in several categories. There is a reason these parks are as popular as they are. Rounding out the book are a few 2 page articles about experiences in the parks.But I cannot give this book more than 3 stars. I actually like coffee table books, but I want to see more and larger pictures when I read them. Alternatively, if the text is to be emphasized, I want more details. Several chapters, for example, deal with hiking, my favorite sport. But routes are only roughly described. I doubt many of them could be followed by simply reading the short descriptions. Still, in all, I am pleased with the book. Its not perfect, but comprehensive books on the whole of America's park system are not that easy to find. This one is a good start.

It's a great book and reference for visiting parks and national monuments, but I do wish all the top 10 sections throughout the book had the state location in addition to the park/monument name. There are some national monuments listed with pictures and descriptions, but no location! I have to look them up in the index, which isn't a big deal but it would be easier to navigate with a state reference.

I got this as a gift, it was well received.Some of the other reviews mention the lack of actionable information in this book, but I think it fully serves its purpose. It gives a great idea of what each park is known for. It's definitely more to be used as a starting point and discovery book than as a guide, but that's what makes it unique!I'd definitely recommend this book for people looking for a general idea of what the parks have to offer. That said, I would have liked to see something of an index for every park for easier reference.

This is a lovely book and I enjoy going through it. It has a huge flaw with the lack of location in the park names, sometimes you can find it in the descriptive paragraph but not always. Not sure how that made it through editing but with patience, still a great book.

The book overall is very informative; but I would have preferred to have the "best" sorted by parks versus activities. I have to keep going back and forth in refference to a specific National Park. It is simply inconvient to me versus my expectations. Additionally, if you purchased this book for a specific interest; such as hiking; then it is a lot of book for a minimal amout of information on your topic of interest.

Bought the book for my husband's birthday and he was pleased. It's one you can pick up and thumb through the pages and always find something interesting. We love the national parks and found lots of unusual topics that we hope to explore! It was also fun to see the various write-ups of places we've already been to - we very much agreed! It may be considered a coffee table book but it's more than that. It's entertaining and educational with lovely photos to boot! A good buy for sure!

I had expected a slim volume, but was pleasantly surprised by the amount of detail that the book covers.It covers the top ten landmarks, volcanic wonders day hikes, winter sports, beaches, picnic spots, bus tours, war fields, forts, camp grounds, arts and gardens - to name but a few! I have been to Bryce Canyon, Yosemite, the Grand Canyon and Zion Canyon and wanted a book to help me plan to see other sites -such as Yellowstone. This book certainly stimulated my thoughts. It is well presented with great pictures and plenty of practical ideas that build on any "Rough Guide" you may also use..and it's all in colour -one of my key requirements!An excellent buy

I've done over a dozen USA roadtrips and was running out of ideas for routes which would bring daily sites to visit. This book helped to identify lots places which were new to me, now I've been to all the main places like Yosemite, Yellowstone and Grand Canyon etc.