Welcome to ‘Read through Yosemite’ with Conservancy staff member Charnelle Ruff where we will explore the plethora of books offered through the Yosemite Conservancy.
We will update this blog as we move through 2024. Check back to see what titles gets added as we move through the year. All of the titles are available at Conservancy retail locations in Yosemite National Park as well as in our online store.
February: Read Through Yosemite’s Black History Month
Books to check out this month:
Gloryland by Shelton Johnson
Haunted by the terrors endured by Black Americans during the Reconstruction Era, Gloryland follows the life of Elijah Yancy who joins the Federal army as a Buffalo Solider. He is sustained only by visions, memories, prayers, and his questing spirit — which finds a home when his troop is posted to Yosemite National Park in 1903.
Yosemite Stagecoach Driver – the Life and Times of George Monroe and His Family by Tom Bopp
Yosemite Stagecoach Driver reveals a family’s epic journey from the Antebellum South, through the California Gold Rush and on to Yosemite, ending in Southern California at the dawn of the automobile era. The story follows George F. Monroe’s rise to the top of his profession, his mother’s heroic fight for her family, his father’s role in civil rights, and how they built a 480-acre ranch near Yosemite.
March: Read Through Yosemite’s Women’s History Month
Pioneers in Petticoats by Shirley Sargent
Biographical histories of the women who played a role in the early history of the Yosemite region. Sargent covers stories from the Native women experiences to the first women tourists of the 1850s through the development of the Valley in the 1890s.
High Country Women by Chris Enss
Women have played an important — though often hidden — role in shaping the history of Yosemite National Park. High Country Women reveals the contributions made by strong and independent pioneers. The stories range from the nation’s first woman park ranger to the first women to climb Half Dome to a Paiute woman who lived humbly in the traditional manner and taught Yosemite visitors her tribe’s customs.
Nature Swagger by Rue Mapp
Filled with breathtaking photography, inspiring stories, profiles, and spotlights from Outdoor Afro group members, prominent Black leaders in outdoor spaces, and other organizations, this book inspires Black communities to reclaim their place in the natural world.
Interspersed throughout are essays from Rue Mapp on the rich history of Black involvement in the outdoors, activism, and conservation, as well as resources for readers who want to deepen their own connection with the elements.
Cliffs and Challenges by Laura White Brunner
Laura White Brunner’s memoir, recovered from the Yosemite Archives, recounts two summers spent working and hiking in Yosemite Valley during a time of great change–in the park and in the world beyond. In captivating prose Brunner describes her unlikely adventures in the summers of 1915 and 1917, as well as what she calls “the interlude” between them.
Sometimes funny, sometimes painful, always engaging, her account captures the “trails” and tribulations of a young woman coming of age in America’s most beautiful national park.
April: Read Through Yosemite’s Spring and Poetry Month
Ancient Sentinels by H. Thomas Harvey
Giant Sequoias are some of the few things on earth that can literally be described as “awesome.” Ancient Sentinels will unlock the secrets of these trees and will provide a deeper connection to Yosemite’s three Sequoia groves through maps, descriptions, ecologies, histories, comparisons to redwoods and more.
Sisters of the Earth by Lorraine Anderson
With more than 150 poems, essays, stories and journal entries, Sisters of the Earth introduces the reader to female perspectives on nature that complement Thoreau’s, Muir’s, and Edward Abbey’s.
This stirring collection of women’s writing focuses on the varying roles that nature plays: Nature as healer. Nature as delight. Nature as mother and sister. Nature as victim. Nature as companion and reminder of what is wild in us all.
Experienced authors like Diane Ackerman on the opium of sunsets; Ursula K. Le Guin envisioning an alternative world in which human beings are not estranged from their planet; and Julia Butterfly Hill on weathering a fierce storm in the redwood tree where she lived for more than two years.
Read Through Yosemite’s Children’s Book Week
Tasha’s Voice by Carmen Bogan, illustrated by Floyd Cooper and Daria Peoples
In honor of Children’s Book Week and Floyd Cooper Day, Charnelle Ruff was delighted to highlight Tasha’s Voice by Carmen Bogan. This was the first time Ruff had seen a book about children in a national park where the main character looked like her. This is an incredible reminder about the power of representation in children’s literature and the impact that can have on readers’ perceptions.
May: Read Through Yosemite’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Mountain Chef: How One Man Lost His Groceries, Changed His Plans, and Helped Cook Up the National Park Service by Annette Bay Pimental, illustrated by Rich Lo
The origin story of the National Park Service would not be as delicious a tale, were it not for the incredible – and true – story of Tie Sing. Pimental weaves in historic quotes into the retelling of the Mather Mountain Party from the perspective of Tie Sing, the Chinese American chef who made sure the guests of the Mather Mountain Party were nourished and delighted by his food as well as the scenery.
Fatima’s Great Outdoors by Ambreen Tariq, illustrated by Stevie Lewis
Tag along with Fatima and her family on their first camping trip where Fatima discovers her many superpowers in the great outdoors. A wonderful story of the immigrant experience trying out a classic American pastime. Road trip with a Bollywood playlist, setting up tents for the first time, sharing meals of samosas, anda, and roti around a campfire. Fatima discovers her superpowers as she is able to help around camp.
June: Read Through Yosemite’s Pride Month
Been Outside: Adventures of Black Women, Nonbinary, and Gender Nonconforming People in Nature edited by Amber Wendler and Shaz Zamore, foreword by Carolyn Finney
What does it mean to be a Black woman or nonbinary scientist studying the natural world? In Been Outside, the stories from twenty-two writers showcase the challenges and joys of carving out your own path through the natural world–and will inspire anyone seeking to craft their own outdoor life. Encompassing identity, inspiration, ancestry, and stewardship these writers and researchers contemplate the moments that sparked their love of nature, as well as the ways time in the field and outdoor adventures have enhanced or expanded their perspectives about what is possible.
July: Read Through Yosemite’s Wild About Wildlife Month!
Falcon Pocket Guide: Nature Guide to Yosemite National Park by Ann and Rob Simpson
Pocket-sized for every adventurers’ convenience, the Nature Guide to Yosemite National Park features incredible photographs and detailed information by Ann and Rob Simpson about the mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, butterflies, and moths you may see when exploring in the park. The written descriptions provide helpful identification clues and insights into the wildlife’s ways of being in the world.
The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada written and illustrated by John Muir Laws
Award-winning naturalist, educator, and artist John Muir Laws illustrated every image in The Laws Field Guide. A favorite of many in-park naturalists, this guide is great for generalists who are looking to broaden their knowledge about Yosemite flora and fauna.
Hello, Meadow! written by Terry Pierce and illustrated by Nadja Sarell
Hello, Meadow! is a great way to introduce meadows to youth. This joyful children’s board book highlights the biodiversity of meadows – a great place for wildlife viewing on your next Yosemite trip!
Get to reading!
