The National Parks
America's Best Idea
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Narrated by:
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Ken Burns
About this listen
Audie Award, Nonfiction, 2010
The companion volume to the 12-hour PBS series from the acclaimed filmmaker behind The Civil War, Baseball, and The War.
America’s national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nation’s most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone. In this evocative and lavishly illustrated narrative, Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan delve into the history of the park idea, from the first sighting by white men in 1851 of the valley that would become Yosemite and the creation of the world’s first national park at Yellowstone in 1872, through the most recent additions to a system that now encompasses nearly 400 sites and 84 million acres.
The authors recount the adventures, mythmaking, and intense political battles behind the evolution of the park system, and the enduring ideals that fostered its growth. They capture the importance and splendors of the individual parks: from Haleakala in Hawaii to Acadia in Maine, from Denali in Alaska to the Everglades in Florida, from Glacier in Montana to Big Bend in Texas. And they introduce us to a diverse cast of compelling characters - both unsung heroes and famous figures such as John Muir, Theodore Roosevelt, and Ansel Adams - who have been transformed by these special places and committed themselves to saving them from destruction so that the rest of us could be transformed as well.
The National Parks is a glorious celebration of an essential expression of American democracy.
©2009 Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns (P)2009 Random HouseListeners also enjoyed...
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Immersed in country music!
- By Lori Hanson on 09-30-19
By: Dayton Duncan, and others
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The Vietnam War
- An Intimate History
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Ken Burns, Brian Corrigan
- Length: 31 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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More than 40 years after it ended, the Vietnam War continues to haunt our country. We still argue over why we were there, whether we could have won, and who was right and wrong in their response to the conflict. When the war divided the country, it created deep political fault lines that continue to divide us today. Now, continuing in the tradition of their critically acclaimed collaborations, the authors draw on dozens and dozens of interviews in America and Vietnam to give us the perspectives of people involved at all levels of the war.
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The usual Vietnam info delivered in the old prose
- By Kevin Warren on 10-26-17
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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Discovering America's National Parks
- A Complete Guide
- By: William Peterson
- Narrated by: Gary Middleton
- Length: 4 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Spanning more than 84 million acres, the national parks have something for everyone. Whether you want to traverse rocky mountain cliffs, see majestic wildlife like black bears and buffalo, or walk the rims of active volcanoes, any outdoor adventure is possible. You just have to know where to go. Which is exactly where this book comes in handy.
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Great info on national parks
- By Chris on 02-29-24
By: William Peterson
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Our National Parks
- By: John Muir
- Narrated by: Peter Coates
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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In this poetic audiobook, hear the words of legendary outdoorsman John Muir's entreaty to the American people imploring them to develop, as he did, a connection to their national parks. An ardent outdoorsman, a gifted writer, a dedicated preservationist, and a spiritual beacon, John Muir worked in his life and in his writing to inspire everyone to find a love for the wilderness and to become invested in its preservation.
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A must read for anyone even remotely interested in forest preservation
- By "bchandle" on 05-17-21
By: John Muir
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Lewis & Clark
- The Journey of the Corps of Discovery
- By: Ken Burns, Dayton Duncan
- Narrated by: Ken Burns, Adam Arkin
- Length: 3 hrs and 57 mins
- Abridged
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In the spring of 1804, at the behest of President oThomas Jefferson, a party of explorers called the Corps of Discovery crossed the Mississippi River and started up the Missouri, heading west into the newly acquired Louisiana Territory.
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Brilliant history and so exciting
- By DSR WALK on 02-16-17
By: Ken Burns, and others
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The War
- An Intimate History: 1941-1945
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Ken Burns, Tom Hanks, Josh Lucas, and others
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Abridged
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Here is the audio companion to the magnificent seven-part PBS series. The individuals featured in this audiobook are not historians or scholars. They are ordinary men and women who experienced - and helped to win - the most devastating war in history, in which between 50 and 60 million lives were lost.
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Good book, poor audiobook
- By Stewart Gooderman on 09-26-07
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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Country Music
- A History
- By: Dayton Duncan, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Brian Corrigan, Dayton Duncan, Ken Burns
- Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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The rich and colorful story of America's most popular music and the singers and songwriters who captivated, entertained, and consoled listeners throughout the 20th century - based on the upcoming eight-part film series to air on PBS in September 2019.
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Immersed in country music!
- By Lori Hanson on 09-30-19
By: Dayton Duncan, and others
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The Vietnam War
- An Intimate History
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Ken Burns, Brian Corrigan
- Length: 31 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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More than 40 years after it ended, the Vietnam War continues to haunt our country. We still argue over why we were there, whether we could have won, and who was right and wrong in their response to the conflict. When the war divided the country, it created deep political fault lines that continue to divide us today. Now, continuing in the tradition of their critically acclaimed collaborations, the authors draw on dozens and dozens of interviews in America and Vietnam to give us the perspectives of people involved at all levels of the war.
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The usual Vietnam info delivered in the old prose
- By Kevin Warren on 10-26-17
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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Discovering America's National Parks
- A Complete Guide
- By: William Peterson
- Narrated by: Gary Middleton
- Length: 4 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Spanning more than 84 million acres, the national parks have something for everyone. Whether you want to traverse rocky mountain cliffs, see majestic wildlife like black bears and buffalo, or walk the rims of active volcanoes, any outdoor adventure is possible. You just have to know where to go. Which is exactly where this book comes in handy.
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Great info on national parks
- By Chris on 02-29-24
By: William Peterson
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Blood Memory
- The Tragic Decline and Improbable Resurrection of the American Buffalo
- By: Dayton Duncan, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The American buffalo-our nation's official mammal-is an improbable, shaggy beast that has found itself at the center of many of our most mythic and sometimes heartbreaking tales. The largest land animals in the Western Hemisphere, they are survivors of a mass extinction that erased ancient species that were even larger. For nearly 10,000 years, they evolved alongside Native people who weaved them into every aspect of daily life; relied on them for food, clothing, and shelter; and revered them as equals.
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a story that needs to be told.
- By Amazon Customer on 11-30-24
By: Dayton Duncan, and others
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Baseball
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Ken Burns
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Abridged
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The authors of the acclaimed and best-selling The Civil War, Jazz, and The War turn to another uniquely American phenomenon: baseball. Geoffrey C. Ward's and Ken Burns’s moving and fascinating history of the game goes beyond stolen bases, double plays, and home runs to demonstrate how baseball has been influenced by, and has in turn influenced, American life.
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Abridged
- By David Munoz on 02-15-16
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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The National Parks
- America's Best Idea
- By: Ken Burns, Dayton Duncan
- Narrated by: Ken Burns
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
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The companion volume to the 12-hour PBS series from the acclaimed filmmaker behind The Civil War, Baseball, and The War. America's national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nation's most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone
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Almost like being there!!
- By Ron H on 01-24-24
By: Ken Burns, and others
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The Wilderness Warrior
- Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America
- By: Douglas Brinkley
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 40 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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In this groundbreaking epic biography, Douglas Brinkley draws on never-before-published materials to examine the life and achievements of our "naturalist president." By setting aside more than 230 million acres of wild America for posterity between 1901 and 1909, Theodore Roosevelt made conservation a universal endeavor. This crusade for the American wilderness was perhaps the greatest U.S. presidential initiative between the Civil War and World War I.
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I DID keep listening
- By Susan Gardner Bowers on 01-13-10
By: Douglas Brinkley
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Jazz
- A History of America's Music
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: LeVar Burton
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
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The story of jazz encompasses the story of American courtship and show business; the epic growth of cities, and the struggle for civil rights and simple justice that continues into the new millennium. If you haven't already, download the accompanying audio to Ken Burns' remarkable documentary!
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Good content but reading not clear
- By Ken on 02-07-03
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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The Naturalist
- Theodore Roosevelt, A Lifetime of Exploration, and the Triumph of American Natural History
- By: Darrin Lunde
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Perhaps no American president is more associated with nature and wildlife than Theodore Roosevelt, a prodigious hunter and adventurer and an ardent conservationist. We think of Roosevelt as an original, yet in The Naturalist, Darrin Lunde shows how from his earliest days Roosevelt actively modeled himself in the proud tradition of museum naturalists - the men who pioneered a key branch of American biology through their desire to collect animal specimens and develop a taxonomy of the natural world.
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Great book for hunters and nature lovers!
- By Bryce Marshall on 04-25-18
By: Darrin Lunde
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USA National Parks
- Lands of Wonder
- By: DK Travel
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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USA National Parks: Lands of Wonder is a celebration of these magnificent parks - packed with inspiring ideas for your next adventure, whether you want to be alone amid the vast and haunting wilderness of Alaska's Denali Park or get up close to the teeming tropical wildlife of Florida's Everglades. All 62 national parks are covered, showcasing what makes each one unique, with maps, facts and figures, things to do, and when and where to experience it at its best.
By: DK Travel
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The Lewis and Clark Journals
- An American Epic of Discovery
- By: Lewis, Clark
- Narrated by: Patrick Cullen
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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In their own words, recorded in the famous journals of Lewis and Clark, the members of the Corps of Discovery tell their story with an immediacy and power missing from secondhand accounts. All of their triumphs and terrors are here: the thrill of seeing the vast herds of bison, the fear the captains felt when Sacagawea fell ill, the ordeal of crossing the Continental Divide, the misery of cold and hunger, and the kidnapping and rescue of Lewis' dog, Seaman.
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Enlightening
- By Scott Wilkerson on 01-28-18
By: Lewis, and others
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The Ultimate John Muir Collection: Our National Parks, Stickeen, My First Summer in the Sierra, The Yosemite, Travels in Alaska, & A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf
- By: John Muir
- Narrated by: Museum Audiobooks cast
- Length: 36 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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The pioneering advocate of wilderness preservation, John Muir (1838-1914) was influential in the creation of many national parks.
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Chapter Numbers cheat sheet (you're welcome!)
- By Terry Angel on 07-14-21
By: John Muir
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Ranger Confidential
- Living, Working, and Dying in the National Parks
- By: Andrea Lankford
- Narrated by: Julia Motyka
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
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The real stories behind the scenery of America’s national parks. For 12 years, Andrea Lankford lived in the biggest, most impressive national parks in the world, working a job she loved. She chaperoned baby sea turtles on their journey to sea. She pursued bad guys on her galloping patrol horse. She jumped into rescue helicopters bound for the heart of the Grand Canyon. She won arguments with bears. She slept with a few too many rattlesnakes. Hell yeah, it was the best job in the world! Fortunately, Andrea survived it.
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Depressing from Cover to Cover
- By Drew (@drewsant) on 04-13-15
By: Andrea Lankford
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Stories of America’s National Parks
- By: Megan Kate Nelson, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Megan Kate Nelson
- Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins
- Original Recording
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Many Americans remember a family road trip to visit one of our 63 national parks. Why did Americans start preserving these sites of natural and historic interest? How were these parks selected, and what steps did conservationists, activists, philanthropists, politicians, and others take to protect millions of acres against the booming developments of an expanding nation? An award-winning writer, researcher, and American Studies scholar, Dr. Megan Kate Nelson tackles these questions as she takes you on a marvelous journey through some of the most beautiful places on Earth.
By: Megan Kate Nelson, and others
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The American Experiment
- Dialogues on a Dream
- By: David M. Rubenstein
- Narrated by: David M. Rubenstein, Ken Burns, Madeleine Albright, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Exploring the diverse make-up of our country’s DNA through interviews with Pulitzer Prize-winning historians, diplomats, music legends, and sports giants, The American Experiment captures the dynamic arc of a young country reinventing itself in real-time. Through these enlightening conversations, the American spirit comes alive, revealing the setbacks, suffering, invention, ingenuity, and social movements that continue to shape our vision of what America is — and what it can be.
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A post graduate experience
- By Barbara or Jerold Gendler on 12-08-21
What listeners say about The National Parks
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- nick
- 12-28-17
Please, everyone, read this!
Few books could benefit the American public more than this one. It is our heritage and I think we are obligated to at least try to understand why we have public lands. This is an excellently researched book and gives a great broad view of the subject. There are many other books that go more in depth into certain aspects of the conservation movement but this might be about the best starting point.
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- Maggie Rust
- 07-04-19
The Best Way to Celebrate the 4th!
One of the best titles I've listened to all year! I've loved the National Parks for a long time, and had enjoyed this miniseries from PBS; listening to the book was excellent! Historic facts woven with interesting stories and interviews that make me appreciate the natural beauty of the parks in a new way and leave me even more grateful for the men and women who have fought to preserve them. In an age when "America" is a complicated and emotionally fraught entity for many, this helped recapture what is truly America's Best Idea!
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- Maria Panousopoulos
- 11-05-22
Amazing book!
So inspiring to learn about the history of the National parks and those who passionately fought for the preservation of America’s finest and most unique lands
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- Christopher
- 09-17-09
"See America First", and often...
Being the grandson of a park ranger, I greatly appreciated this long overdue in-depth examination of how the NPS and its various parks and monuments came into being.
While they gave credit where it was rightfully due for the most part, there are two instances here where they did not (hence my 4-star rating of an otherwise 5-star book):
1) The cover states "Read by the authors with a supporting cast". While Mr. Burns does read the preface and Mr. Duncan does read the afterword, the "supporting cast" does most of the reading, especially Danny Campbell. He definitely should be listed in the narrated by section, along with Ms. Farr, Mr. Ervin, Mr. Mayer, Mr. Peterson, and Ms. Raver.
2) In the book, we hear about George Melendez Wright's unsuccessful effort to turn Big Bend into an international park with Mexico, yet there is no mention of the successful effort that Rotarians in the U.S. and Canada made for creating the very first international park, uniting Canada's Waterton Lakes with Glacier. Given the amount of time Mr. Duncan has spent in Glacier, maybe this was an unintentional oversight, thinking it was always so?
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36 people found this helpful
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- mike brozick
- 05-31-18
FANTASTIC!!!!
If your not motivated to visit every national park after listening, listen again and you will be.
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- Amazon Customer
- 11-13-17
Great for any fan of the Parks
great companion to the documentary series by Ken Burns, and for anyone who supports our public lands.
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- Mark Dalmeida
- 05-03-22
WOW! Amazing and enthralling!
Such an enthralling history of the national parks and how they came to be! I wish I had listened to this before my national parks road trip! May even listen again it was so good!
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- Amazon Customer
- 03-31-19
Brilliant Chronicle of Our Parks and their People
Let's get this out of the way first - any hesitation as to whether the book will live up to the amazing cinematography, music, etc., in the fabulous PBS projection... just wipe that from your mind. This book is beautifully descriptive, in both geographic terms and personal characterizations. I couldn't stop listening (and I didn't expect that.) I now appreciate the history of the parks as an important aspect of the history of our Nation, and I have great respect and admiration for the men and women who created the National Parks Service. Who else preserves history? Who else ensures that fact (real fact) is available for future generations, with thoughtful interpretation? Not the universities, not our government at large, and NOT the media. Thanks for Ken Burns, Dayton Duncan, and all who made this book possible.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 11-29-20
Everything and More
A tribute to the parks, their history, and especially to the individuals who made them possible. John Muir comes through as the spiritual father of them all. Sierra Club, are you listening, after your shameful denigration of him?
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- Steve Ebert
- 09-27-17
a must for NP lovers
great companion to Ken Burns national park series. great narrarators. a must for national park lovers!
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