This will bring back memories for anyone who visited these Siamese-twin national parks. It would be a nice inexpensive gift for someone who likes the Sierras, particularly someone who has not gotten around to visiting these parks yet.
Many of the items a regular tourist can see in these parks is pictured, including some of the Sequoia trees and Mount Whitney (from the east). This magazine-sized booklet also includes many pictures of the spectacular Sierra High Country in Kings Canyon that can only be reached after 2-3 days of hiking, including Dusy Basin, Rae Lakes and Evolution Valley. The pictures are good enough to give you a feel of what you'd see in the high country, but the picture of Rae Lakes, one of my favorite spots, does not do the spot justice. Perhaps no photograph can.
King Canyon is a Rodney Dangerfield among national parks. While I lived in California, I noticed that relatively few people have heard of it. The Grant Grove entrance is exactly 250 miles from San Francisco and I dare say that many people have driven through the entrance on their way to Sequoia National Park without realizing they were in another park. Most people coming from a distance will not even consider visiting Kings Canyon when the more famous Yosemite is a bit more accessible.
Kings Canyon was founded in 1940, but upon its creation absorbed one of the first national parks, General Grant National Park, which was founded in 1890. While Kings Canyon is the deepest canyon in the United States, its no Grand Canyon. And visiting Kings Canyon is no substitute for visiting Yosemite. Kings Canyon (and Sequoia) are best savored by hikers in the know who'll gladly hike for days to see alpine scenery most people will never experience.
The largest wilderness unbroken by roads in the lower 48 states extends from Cedar Grove in Kings Canyon to the popular Yosemite Valley. The John Muir Trail (which includes perhaps the most beautiful section of the Pacific Crest Trail) extends in this wilderness. Any person who enjoys multi-day hikes should consider hiking in Kings Canyon.
This is no coffee table book, but the quality of the paper and the pictures is very good for the price.