Title:

The Art of the National Parks

Author:

59 Parks

Category:

Non-fiction

Rating:

Date Reviewed:

December 10, 2021

he Art of the National Parks is a coffee table book put out by an organization called 59 Parks. The organization enlisted an array of artists to produce posters for each of America's National Parks. Each park has a full page poster, some parks have more than one design. I am impressed by the artwork, I love poster art, and this book contains some excellent examples of the art form. It is a treat to flip through the book and admire the poster for each park.

On the page opposite the poster is a list of interesting details about each park. Since I cannot include the marvelous artwork in this review, I will instead include some of the interesting factoids that I learned from reading the book. The facts are cool, but get the book for the art. I enjoyed it!

The Mammoth Cave System is by far the longest the world, it stretches over 400 miles.

The Great Smokey Mountains are the most visited national park in America, with 12.5 million visitors in 2019

Ponce de Leon gave the name Dry Tortugas to the area due to the abundance of sea turtles he found there while he searched for the Fountain of Youth

Christopher Columbus named the Virgin Islands after St Ursula and the 11,000 virgins who followed her.

Isle Royale is the third largest island in the contiguous United States after Padre Island, Texas and Long Island, New York.

The Great Sand Dunes is home to the circus beetle, so named because it stands on its head.

Over 1 million eruptions of Old Faithful have been recorded.

When Glacier National Park was established, there were 150 glaciers within the park boundaries. Now there are fewer than 30, of which the largest is Blackfoot Glacier, 0.7 square miles.

Between 1914 and 1917, Lassen Volcano erupted over 300 times.

Delicate Arch in Arches National Park has also been named Cowboy's Chaps, Old Maid's Bloomers and Salt Wash Arch.

Crater Lake is 1949 feet deep, making it the ninth deepest lake in the world. Because no rivers or streams flow into Crater Lake, it's waters are devoid of silt and thus are crystal clear.

The largest national park in the US is Wrangell-St.Elias. It is more than six times the size of Yellowstone.