Exactly what you'd expect National Geographic to come out with.

Good pictures, concise information, what more do you need?

This book would make a great gift, or serve as source of inspiration for anyone itching to travel and explore again. The images are beautiful, the layout is clear and modern. A lovely addition for any coffee table.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

100 Great American Parks is a nice overview of nice parks in the US.
I really like how along the amazing photos, the authors have added both information about the native species of flora and fauna, but also important historic notes when applicable. With the added info of "best time to visit" and overall info on accommodations and what attracts people there, it can be a great "what should I visit?" guide for nature lovers and tourists.
I'd definitely recommend checking out the book and if you like it and it fits your personal library, to get it in print, as I'm sure these photos look even better printed.

*Thanks to NetGalley and National Geographic for providing me with an free review sample of this title in exchange for an honest review.*

Not Enough to Review

When I choose books at NetGalley, I typically do so on my laptop, which only shows a small part of a book's page. Unfortunately for this one, I didn't scroll down to see that this would only be a sample of the book. As a highly ranked Amazon reviewer (top 25 at the point of this writing), a general rule of mine is to never review a partial book. I need to see and read all of a book to be able to confidently review it. Many people follow my reviews, and I don't want to disappoint them with an inaccurate review based on a small portion of a book.

This book's sample was only 18 “pages” out of an over-400-page full book—and four of those pages were the front cover, the table of contents, and the back cover! Seriously, how does the publisher expect me or any reviewer to give a decent review of a book giving us so little content—14 pages! Even if the book is 400 pages, not more, that makes the percentage 3.5%. That is certainly not enough to truly judge a book, especially one depending so much on photos. If you are reading the reviews here because you hope to learn what other people think about the book before you buy it, remember that all the reviewers here only saw 3.5% of the book; personally, I wouldn't trust book reviews based on so little. Because my policy is not to review samples, I will not be sharing any sort of review on Amazon, Goodreads, BookBub, Kobo, Google Play, or any other bookseller/book fansite as I typically would. I am just going to do so here to fulfill my review obligation.

I wasn’t wild about this book’s 14 content pages. In this sample, the pictures of nature were uninspiring, and I didn't like the photos focusing on people (not the scenery), which was a surprising lot of them. This book is likely meant to be a coffee-table book, therefore heavily dependent on the visual aspect. This one’s photos simply lacked. Even the photo of the usually striking El Capitan in Yosemite was pedestrian and actually bland. Based on this sample, I would have likely rated it a 3 on booksellers/fansites—perhaps the full book would have been more impressive, but I’ll never know!—but I am lowering that here because of the tiny sample provided to look at.

If I ever see a National Geographic book on NetGalley that interests me, I will certainly scroll down to see if it is only a sample or a full book. I will give a hard pass on the former and only consider the latter!

4 ☆

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the parks have offered a much needed respite and the great outdoors have never been more popular. This coffee table book / travel guide provides a curated selection with a slightly different perspective. The "great American parks" include national parks, of course, but 33 state, recreational, and city parks have been highlighted as well. Photos display the parks' splendor and also ideas for those who want more activity than just gazing with appreciation. The accompanying text touches upon the lesser known histories such as the indigenous peoples who were pushed out by European settlers.

I was provided a sample that only had 10 pages, 2 of which were the front and back covers. I saw snippets about the following parks: Yosemite National Park (CA), Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness (ID), Cape Cod National Seashore (MA), Central Park (NY), and the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail (AL). Given that this book is expected to be printed with 400 pages, my sample is too slight for me to give an unreserved endorsement despite its potential of meriting 5 stars.

Thank you to National Geographic and Netgalley for providing me with a digital sample ARC in exchange for an honest review. This review is based upon an uncorrected proof (ISBN 978-1-4262-2200-9). Publication date is May 10, 2022.

I seem to have the same issue other people had: samples I get, but ten pages? It’s a mere step above judging a book by its cover.

What I could see looks marvelous. I’m a huge fan of photography books, and the topic at hand—American parks!—intrigues me. The Cape Cod lighthouse is a thing of beauty, same with the Yosemite picture, say. The writing style seems informative and easy to read too.

I’m sure the entire book or even a decent-size sample is worth five stars. As it is, I can’t give it more than two and a half, rounded up to three.

I must say I find it hard to review a book that is only a very small sample of what it should be so this one will be short and sweet.

It looks like a great book, great photos and information but as far as that I cannot tell as I haven't been able to see the full book.

If I can get the full book eventually from my local library I may do a proper review in future.

Unfortunately I'm unable to provide useful feedback as both the protected pdf copy (I tried 3 times) and the Kindle version provided just a few pages of the book. in the pdf this was just 10 pages and similar on the Kindle. Such a pity as I was really looking forward to reading this one.

I didn’t see that this was only the sample and I’m so sad about it!
From the few pages I read, the places are divided in pacific/atlantic coast and the middle part.
The pictures are breathtaking.
I thought it was going to be also about the most famous trails for each park, but it deals more with the history behind it.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. The is a beautiful coffee table-style book for anyone who loves to look at amazing pictures of many of America's parks.

Stunning photographs and interesting facts about the national parks (and a few state parks and recreation areas) make this book a great resource for traveling within the National Park Service. All 63 parks are to be highlighted with planning information such as lodging options and the size of the park.

* Note: review is based on a sample copy with very few pages making it somewhat difficult to give a full review. However, what I did get was enough to see that 1) the photographs will be amazing 2) the facts about the park will offer history and hints and 3) that it will be a very good guide to the parks that I will definitely purchase.

What a lovely book about our National Parks! The parks featured were some of actual parks such as Central Park in NYC and seashores such as Cape Cod National Seashore that are just as amazing as the large mountainous parks in the West. I’ve visited several all over the country and this book just gave me more to see!

I’m a big National Park person and love to explore them and learn about the parks I want to plan to go to, so I was very interested in this book.

I saw a snippet of the book showcasing 6 or 7 parks. It is more of a coffee table book to enjoy quick perusing and casual reading rather than thick details. With each park it showcases the size or the park, when it was established, interesting details with its history and a popular trail or activity to do in the park. It includes beautiful pictures—which always sells me on what parks I want to visit.

This would be a good gift for the casual road vacationer, nature enthusiast or new explorer.

Because I only saw a small fraction of the book I can’t review the book as a whole. I will hope to see this when it is released die a full review.

Thanks to NetGalley and National Geographic foe this advance e-reader copy portion of this book.

There's a lot of new books about the beautiful parks across America lately and I am glad. There's nothing more beautiful than our country. The parks are very diverse from one coast to the other. There's something for everyone. Not everyone can venture out to the parks so this is a great way for people to enjoy the beauty when they can't visit. For those that visit, this can give them a preview of what is to come. There's some great history about the different areas that is very interesting.

100 Great American Parks is a wonderful book that highlights the natural beauty of the USA. Each page features information about a different park. The photography is stunning! This would make a great gift for anyone who loves National Parks.

The following evaluation is based on a 10 page promotional pdf file for this book. This evaluation is not a book review since the promotional pdf file was not the actual book. I have several National Geographic books on my bookshelves, and I am very happy with each. I have high expectations for this book also.

"100 Great American Parks" written by Stephanie Pearson, published by National Geographic seems to be exactly what nature loving travelers in the U.S. need. From the review material, it is not clear exactly which parks are included, but it seems to be thorough and well chosen. The table of contents indicates that the parks are broken down into five categories: "The West & the Pacific", "Off the Mainland", "The East and Mid-Atlantic", "The South", and "The Midwest & the Plains." Summary information mentions that at least one park from each state is included. Apparently about 2/3's of the parks covered are national parks, with the remainder being "state, recreational, and city parks and green spaces." The review material included chapter introductions for Yosemite National Park, Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness in Idaho, Cape Cod National Seashore, New York Central Park, and Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail in Alabama. I have stayed at Yosemite and Cape Cod, so from experience I can heartily agree that these are worthy parks to visit. The pictures included are beautiful, vivid, plentiful, and do a wonderful job of enticing travelers. The prose is well written including useful information in an inviting fashion that made me want to visit each area. I am very curious as to what the remainder of these chapters would share with us, but have high expectations that it is both well written and useful.

I am confident that this will be a five-star book. In fact, I suspect I will purchase a copy when it is published in 2022 to help plan future family travel. However, since the review material only had 10 pdf pages, I feel obligated to remove a star since I have not actually seen the remaining 390 pages of this book. Likewise, I feel uncomfortable posting a book review on Amazon or Goodreads on a book that I have not actually read. I look forward to updating this review and posting to other social media after I purchase and read a copy. Thank you gentle reader for your understanding.

This book was AMAZING! I want to buy the entire book and take a cross country trip. I loved learning the little bits about each place, and those pictures were gorgeous. I also loved the little addition of the activities in each area. It is all very helpful and well put together.

Through NetGalley, I was given a sample of the book. Looks like it will be a beautiful book, with gorgeous pictures of 100 Great American Parks, with some narrative about each location. Looks like an ideal table book, would be great to own or check out from the library and get out there and travel. Thanks for letting me know about the book, I have a taste and will check out the book upon release.

If you love to travel and take in pure majestic beauty, you will love this pictorial guide to some of the most treasured American parks. I received a truncated review copy, but it ignited a taste for the full version. There are vivid pictures and helpful descriptions provided to sate any curiosity about the location.
I received a complimentary advanced copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own, freely given.

This preview is a sampling of the 63 national parks and 37 state parks that are featured in this book. I enjoyed looking at the high quality photos of the five parks that were featured. My favorite part of each description was at the bottom of the title page for each park which includes the size of the park, best time to go and the available in-park accommodations making this book not only beautiful but useful.