Originally posted March 10, 2023 and updated May 17, 2024: This blog was updated to reflect new authors and books on the PA Wilds Marketplace.
Books take us on new adventures! Sometimes those adventures are mental journeys, which we can read from the comfort of an armchair while envisioning historical events or faraway destinations. Other times, those adventures are quite literal... guidebooks can tag along with you on your explorations, providing you with maps and expert tips. Whatever type of adventure you enjoy, we have books on the PA Wilds Marketplace that can take you there.
PA Wilds Outdoor Discovery Atlas - PA Wilds Conservation Shop
The Outdoor Discovery Atlas truly tells the story of the Pennsylvania Wilds. The 50+ page atlas is the go-to guide for people looking to explore the wonders of the PA Wilds. Serving as a print companion to pawilds.com, the PA Wilds Outdoor Discovery Atlas provides travel tips and planning resources, ideas on things to see and do throughout the region, and navigable maps. It also attempts to underscore our region’s conservation legacy and nods to some private industry partners who practice sustainability in their businesses and helped make the Atlas a reality!
The PA Wilds Outdoor Discovery Atlas was sourced and made entirely in-region! The design work, photography, and printing were all completed by PA Wilds artisans and businesses. Even the paper was sourced in the PA Wilds!
This Outdoor Discovery Atlas is also currently being offered for free with any orders of more than $30 on the PA Wilds Marketplace.
Pine Creek Rail Trail Guidebook - Linda Stager
Written by photographer and outdoor enthusiast Linda Stager, this 206-page illustrated guide to the award winning Pine Creek Rail Trail will help any visitor have an enjoyable visit. Railroad buffs will also enjoy the history and stories sprinkled throughout the mile by mile guide. The guidebook is divided into short sectional hikes-rides to make it easy to choose your favorite ride-walk. Free shipping.
PJ Piccirillo Books
Heartwood (Middleton Books) is a careful rendering of the region's industrial and timbering boom. This inspiring and heart-rending novel traces the intertwined lives of two men with common roots in the rugged timbering industry of north central Pennsylvania, but whose destinies and loves turn them against each other.
The Indigo Scarf (Sunbury Press/Brown Posey/2019 SUNY Award) is based on the true story of two ex-slaves and the white women they’re forbidden to be with who flee the black codes of post-colonial Pennsylvania only to confront the privations of a wild frontier while their former owners scheme their returns. Though shadowed in whiskey-making and timber-pirating, The Indigo Scarf is a paean to devotion, testing the lengths a woman will go to save her man from a burning vengeance. Scenes take place in historical locations along the West Branch and its tributaries, and in Williamsport during its days as a fledgling outpost.
From the title story’s beautiful reflection on a couple’s grief, guilt, and awakenings in the aftermath of a stillbirth, to a graduate student navigating the trauma of assault and the prerogative of her identity, this novella and stories features conflicted hearts searching for human connection across vivid landscapes.
Yoga with Trees - Jenny Garrison
Author Jenny Garrison calls thi book her act of love to Mother Earth. Simple practices and poses are illustrated, along with stories, poems, folklore, and science surrounding trees and the ways we as humans interact with them. Jenny was inspired to write the book after a trip in 2018. As she walked down a shady path, she was “called” to one of the giant trees of the forest. As Jenny stood beside it, her hand on its bark, she began to move into some simple yoga stretches. The tree was a sturdy support, and energy began to fill her as she moved through side bends, simple back bends, spine lengtheners, and balance poses. Jenny knew she could share this practice with others!
Kevin Coolidge Books
Author Kevin Coolidge created the Totally Ninja Raccoons for reluctant readers. These fun, short adventures are set right here in the Pennsylvania Wilds--such as the Coudersport Ice Mine, Cherry Springs State Park, and the Pine Creek Rail Trail. These books will turn your child into a reading ninja! In addition to the Totally Ninja Raccoons series, Kevin also has stories about bookstore cats, a service dog, a doog with diabetes, and even a White House raccoon! Check out Kevin Coolidge's full PA Wilds Marketplace storefront for more book titles.
PA Wilds Murder & Mystery Books - James Baumgratz
James Baumgratz is an author who explores the darker side of the Pennsylvania Wilds's history. He has written six books so far which focus on true cases of murder and mysterious deaths from all corners of the Pennsylvania Wilds. His first book, Elk County Murders & Mysterious Deaths, Volume I, came out in 2018. James has since followed this book up with Volumes II and III of Elk County Murders and then wrote McKean County Murders & Mysterious Deaths Volume I. He has now been focused on the Pennsylvania Wilds with Volume I of Murders & Mysterious Deaths in the Pennsylvania Wilds being published at the end of 2021 and his latest edition, Missing in the Pennsylvania Wilds being published this past fall. James is presently working on Volume II of Murders & Mysterious Deaths in the Pennsylvania Wilds and has several other books in progress.
The Giving Garden E-book Download - Sally Azzato, WC Blooms
Learn how to create a cut flower garden in a small space! This guide includes 6 of my favorite flowers to cut and display in a vase. You'll learn what varieties to look for, how to plant and harvest each one, as well as substitutions that you may prefer! You don't need to start seeds indoors, you don't need a greenhouse- you'll just need a 15 square foot area, or several containers to get started after your danger of frost has passed. No prior gardening experience is required..this guide provides everything you'll need, including a sample layout plan and printable sheets you can take straight to your planting site. It will set you up for success so that you can experience the joy and connection to nature that beautiful flowers can bring.
Coffee Table Book & Children's Books - C. F. Lawrenson
Carl Frederick Lawrenson grew up in Susquehanna, a small town in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania. He attended Mansfield State college from 1967 to 1971 majoring in art education. Since graduation he has spent much of his life teaching art, coaching basketball and painting in northern Tioga County, a rural area in the mountains of north central Pa. Fred is a painter who has placed in several regional juried exhibits along with receiving 4 viewer's choice awards. He created a coffee table book called "All the Difference" which is a collection of 56 of his paintings and tells the story behind them.
He went on to write and illustrate two children's books. "In Search of The Great Wild Kawkins" is a paperback about a five-year-old boy named Blaine who believes in the existence of a very wild and colorful creature. He imagines himself as a great explorer/hunter, who will find this incredible creature in a far away land, capture him and bring him home to the adoration of many people. Our hero discovers that his greatest reward is looking beyond the world as it is, but also learns that some things are better left in the environment they were meant to live in. "Shalock and the Cloud of Bad Dreams" tells the story of a four-year-old girl named Erin who loses her after dark safety net when her twelve-year old sister moves into a room of her own. In her loneliness, she imagines her room as a haven for nightmares. However, that same imagination comes to the rescue in the form of a stuffed toy lion.
State Park Passport - PA Wilds Conservation Shop
This 135-page passport includes maps, a history of the state’s park and forest system, a brief description and most memorable feature of each state park and forest, and additional online resources. Participants can track their visits to our public lands by initialing their book or having it stamped at the park or forest office. The Pennsylvania Passport not only guides people to our state parks and forests, but it also breaks down interest areas and challenges users to complete each area to receive recognition for their accomplishments with a special metal "dog tag" for the theme. How many state parks and forests have you visited? Fun Fact: You can have 3 parks stamped when you visit Kinzua Bridge State Park!
