After tramping through national parks for upwards of four decades, I've understandably picked up a few books on the parks. Among my collection are the usual trail guides and park guides, natural history selections and park histories. While many folks no doubt have a few park-related texts on hand, such as hiking guides and park guides, how might the park aficionado round out their library?

Who runs the National Park System? Is it the National Park Service, or communities that fuel their economies off the parks? That's a good question to consider in the wake of the moxie and clout that tiny Cody, Wyoming, summoned to turn the heat up on its golden goose, Yellowstone National Park.

The renowned amateur astronomer and telescope maker, John Lowery Dobson, 92, once said, "National Parks are special places where dark skies and curious minds collide." Dobson and the famed Sidewalk Astronomers have spent three decades taking their home-made telescopes to the national parks to meet park visitors willing to stay out after dark to help them explore the "other half" of their parks.

A leatherback sea turtle nest has been discovered at Padre Island National Seashore. This is the first time since the 1930s that a leatherback has nested on the Texas Gulf Coast. What are we to make of this remarkable event?