April 10, 2024
Protecting your wild starts at an early age with Yosemite Conservancy and these 10 books will encourage any youth to protect their wild. We believe in fostering a sense of self as well as a sense of stewardship in the youngest of Junior Rangers, which in turn helps to protect the wilds of Yosemite for future generations.
Below are books that Yosemite Conservancy sells online, as well as in our in park retail locations. Each of these books shares important messages regarding the natural and cultural history of Yosemite National Park. Which ones will you add to your story time line up?
5 Great Board Books for Tiny Tots
- A is for Acorn: A California Indian ABC. Beautiful illustrations of animals, plants, and cultural objects show off the spectacular diversity of California’s Indigenous cultures and environments. Sturdy enough to withstand any toddler’s grasp, A Is for Acorn is a playful, loving introduction to California’s oldest and most abiding sense of itself.
- Hello Meadow. The bouncy text and vibrant illustrations in this sturdy board book show little nature lovers how to easily protect meadows while enjoying one of Earth’s loveliest features.
- Eat Up Bear. The rhyming text and vibrant pictures in this board book show how people of all ages can help keep bears safe and thriving. Perfect for first-time and seasoned campers alike.
- So Big! Yosemite. Yosemite is a big place for little people, but with a whimsical bear and squirrel as their guides, children will feel right at home in their national park.
- So Small! Yosemite. A bear and a chickaree help the youngest visitors notice tiny natural treasures, like a wee Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog, a dainty alpine shooting star, a surprisingly teensy giant sequoia cone, and more. Small children will appreciate that everyone, even a bear, feels small in the big park.
5 Great Picture Books for School-Aged Children
- Where’s Rodney? A Black boy’s transformative day out in nature, recommended by Social Justice Books and We Are Kid Lit Collective. Rodney is that kid who just can’t sit still. He’s inside, but he wants to be outside. When Rodney finally gets a chance to go to a real park, with plenty of room to run and climb and shout, and to just be himself, he will never be the same.
- Tasha’s Voice. In this companion to the ground-breaking Where’s Rodney?, a Black girl finds connection on a day out in nature. Tasha is a girl who has trouble using her voice to speak in school or to even make a friend. Then her class visits a park, the best park ever. With the help of an encouraging park ranger, an understanding teacher, some new companions, and a tiny turtle, Tasha finds her voice*.*
- Mountain Chef. The true story of a Chinese American mountain man who fed 30 people for 10 days in the wilderness — and helped inspire the creation of the National Park Service.
- Fire Shapes the World. There is comfort in understanding the natural processes taking place all around. By learning the story of fire and how it has changed this planet, this book also addresses the question: Can we adapt to an increasingly fire-prone environment? This answer is: Yes. Because we always have.
- Two Bear Cubs. This engaging retelling of the Southern Sierra Miwok legend features the great Yosemite Valley monolith, El Capitan, and how it came to be.
Other Great Options
Do you have a real bookworm in the family? A few great titles that did not make our top 10 and are worth mentioning include:
- Little Muir’s Song and Little Muir’s Night. Legendary conservationist John Muir’s dreamy prose and award-winning illustrator Susie Ghahremani’s cheerful paintings come together in this luminous board book.
- The Sequoia Lives On. This book shares the life story of the giant sequoia, casting light on natural questions: How does this tree grow so big? How does it live so long?
- To Find Treasure in the Mountains. This lovely picture book highlights discoveries and connections that come from sharing time outdoors together.
- Call Me Floy. In this coming-of-age novel, a headstrong girl persists against expectations, following her dream in 19th century Yosemite. Great for when your reader graduates into chapter books.
- Coming soon: Wild Sierra Written by a Montessori teacher expressly to foster observation skills and a love of nature in young children, this book provides a depth of information and full-color watercolors that will engage the whole family.
Looking for books for adults? Check out Read Through Yosemite, a curated selection of Conservancy book offerings.
