.
| Outdoor Literature |
Winner. The Way Out: A True Story of Survival in the Heart of the Rockies. By Devon O’Neil. Harper One, New York.
Three fathers and four teenage children ski to a backcountry cabin in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado - and they are in luck. The first morning they wake up to the welcomed sight of fresh snow and more is on the way. One of the fathers, a forest ranger with a breadth of outdoor experience, along with a 15-year-old boy from another family can’t hold their excitement and hurry off for a run down a nearby slope. While they are gone, the storm intensifies, snow piling deeper by the minute. By late afternoon, when the two haven’t returned, it’s a full-on emergency. This gripping, multi-dimensional story, involving family, friendships, and survival, is a fable of how an error of judgement can lead to profound consequences. Well written, well researched, and well told, The Way Out will keep you reading late into the night.
| Journeys | |
Winner. The Ghost of the Mountains: Unraveling the Secrets of the Snow Leopard. By Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi. River Head Books, New York.
This is the story of a biologist who has spent his life studying one of the most elusive and beautiful creatures of the animal kingdom: the snow leopard. In The Ghost of the Mountains, Suryawanshi takes you along on his research journeys – which, we learn, are never uneventful. One night in the Himalaya he found himself clinging to the top of a bus with several others, holding a tarp over their heads as a pouring rain beat down on top of them. Occasional lightning illuminated wet granite walls on one side of the slick, narrow road while the other side of the road fell into a black void. The research itself was just as daunting, involving hiking through waist deep snow, climbing glaciated mountains, and always, sitting in the cold for hours, hoping for a glimpse of the white ghost. Over the years and with dogged tenacity, he has become one of the world’s leading authorities on snow leopards.
| Natural History Literature |
Winner. The Story of Birds: A New History from Their Dinosaur Origins to the Present. By Steve Brusatte. Mariner Books, New York.
Paleontologist Steve Brusatte makes no bones about it. Birds, he tells us, are dinosaurs. To prove his point, he lays out evidence upon evidence that the birds we know and enjoy each day have followed a direct path from their dinosaur origins. There’s a wealth of information in Brusatte’s book: from bone and muscle structure, to the pros and cons of wing aerodynamics, or the number of neurons packed in a bird’s brain. It’s all told in an inviting, informal style interspersed with lively stories of colleagues and historical figures that keep things moving along. It’s science, history, and the excitement of discovery all rolled into one fine package.
Winner. The Return of the Oystercatcher: Saving Birds to Save the Planet. By Scott Weidensaul. W. W. Norton & Company, New York.
We know that birds are in trouble. The great declines in bird populations are well documented. But in key locations, devoted individuals are working to do what they can to stem the tide. Scott Weidensaul travels about the US, Canada, Great Britain and Europe to introduce us to these heroes of bird recovery and shares with us their successes. Saving birds, of course, is a combination effort, involving organizations and the cooperation of national and local government, but the accomplishments are worth celebrating. Among them are the recoveries of North American raptors, Canada geese, and of course, the American oystercatcher. Weidensaul’s message is one of hope: if we can bring back the populations of some species, we can do the same for others.
| History/Biography |
Winner. The Everest Mystery: Sandy Irvine, George Mallory and the Truth Still Buried on Everest. By Julie Summers and Jochen Hemmleb. St. Martins Press, New York.
Much has been written about the disappearance of George Mallory and Sandy Irvine on Everest in 1924. It remains one of the most intriguing events in all of mountaineering history. Nearly all of the previously published material has concentrated on Mallory, but in this work we view the expedition from Sandy Irvine’s perspective. There’s no better team of authors to write it. Julie Summers is Sandy Irvine’s great niece and a historian and author in her own right. Jochen Hemmleb was a member of a research expedition in 1999 which found Mallory’s body at 26,700 feet on the mountain. Factual and immensely readable, it adds new insights to our understanding of that fateful day in June of 1924.
Silver Medalist. Mountaineering Women: Climbing through History. By Joanna Croston. Thames & Hudson, New York.
In this beautifully designed and photographed book, Joanna Croston chronicles 20 women who have made significant contributions in the world of mountaineering. Croston concentrates on women from the last 50 years. It’s a worldwide cadre of alpinists and rock climbers coming from Europe, Great Britain, Nepal, Ecuador, India and the US. From struggles and tragedies to celebrated first ascents, these are inspirational stories of women breaking barriers and forging new paths.
| Nature and the Environment |
Winner. Woodpecker: A Year in the Life of North American Woodpeckers. Text and Photography by Paul Bannick. Braided River/Mountaineers Books, Seattle.
Paul Bannick calls the woodpecker “a bird of distinction” which is an apt description considering the singular way they announce their presence as they tap, drum or wack away, the sounds echoing through the forest. But not all woodpecker species have this same behavior. Some catch insects in the air. Others hide acorns or nuts and recover them for nourishment in the winter. There’s plenty of beta about the woodpecker world in this elegantly designed book. Covering 40 different species from Mexico to Canada, and brimming full of photographs, it’s a woodpecker extravaganza.
Winner. Women Who Hike National Parks: Walking with America’s Most Inspiring Adventurers. By Heather Balogh Rochfort. Falcon/Globe Pequot,
Essex, CT.
Heather Balogh Rochfort believes that it’s not the famous - professional athletes, celebrities, and popular social media influencers - who have the best stories to tell. The best stories come from everyday folks, and she sets out to prove that in Women Who Hike National Parks. She highlights 17 women, all coming from different walks of life. None are famous, but all have a desire to explore the natural world and do something a little different. After a short biographical introduction, she follows each woman on a hike in one of the national parks. Read it as an incentive to do your own national park hike and as a guide to create your own stories to tell.
| Classic |
Winner. A Life on the Edge: Memoirs of Everest and Beyond. By Jim Whittaker. The Mountaineers Books. Seattle.
Even if you’re not a mountaineering enthusiast, you probably know that Jim Whittaker is the first American to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. A Life on the Edge is Whittaker’s story about his celebrated 1963 ascent and the ragtag group of American climbers with him. But he also had a fascinating life outside of climbing. He was REI’s first full-time employee, eventually taking over the reins and building the cooperative into the business that it is today with stores throughout the country. There’s plenty more to his life: time in the military, a brief foray into presidential politics, and a near bankruptcy which required selling most of his possessions. We get to know Whittaker as a climber, but best of all, we get to know him as a person.
| Children's Category |
Winner. Twelve Days of Autumn. Text by Sherri Maret. Illustrations by Thomas Hilley. Muddy Boots/Globe Pequot,
Essex, CT.
Young children from 3 to 8 years will quickly find themselves engrossed by this colorful celebration of wildlife. The book begins with “a turkey trotting down the trail.” Then on the next page, there are two snowshoe hares. And then three bears feasting. And then four skunks munching. Fun to read, it’s a clever take-off of the “Twelve Days of Christmas” song. Sized perfectly for bedtime reading, Twelve Days of Autumn is sure to be a hit with the little ones.
| Design & Artistic Merit |
Winner. Guardians of Life: Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Science and Restoring the Planet.
By Kiliii Yuyan. Braided River/Mountaineers Books, Seattle.
In this dramatic and moving collection of images, Kiliii Yuyan honors Indigenous Peoples and their stewardship of the land. He highlights nine Indigenous communities, each in a separate chapter, each providing a striking portrait of how that community relates to the natural world. In northern Alaska, it’s an age-old relationship with whales and how the hunting of whales can be done in a sustainable manner. In Palau, it’s a reverence for the sea. In Ecuador, it’s the conservation of the rain forest, and in Australia it’s the use of fire to enhance the ecology of the land. With a brilliant design, enlightening commentary, and Yuyan’s masterful photography, this book is a tribute to ancient cultures and their care of Mother Earth.
Winner. The Brooks Range: Journey, Life and Art in the Gwazhal. Photographed by Claude Fiddler. Claude Fiddler Publisher, Crowley Lake, CA.
Open this book and you’re suddenly thrust into the Brooks Range of Arctic Alaska: a kaleidoscopic panorama of misty, low hanging clouds, of meandering, braided streams, and the reds and yellows of lichen covered rock - an endless wilderness laid out before you. Claude Fiddler is an artist and these are his works of art. Along with Fiddler’s work are essays by four notable Alaskans including an adventurer, an Alaskan native, a wildlife biologist, and a former Alaskan writer laureate. It’s the perfect complement to this exceptional work.
| Nature Guides |
Winner. Ponds: An Illustrated Guide. By Patrick J. Lynch. Yale University Press, New Haven.
This book is a sight to behold: colorful and engaging photographs, superb supporting graphics, and just the right amount of information. Patrick Lynch is a wizard when it comes to nature guides, doing all the writing and much of the illustrative and design work. Oriented to the Eastern US, the guide broadly covers the ecology and natural history of ponds with an emphasis on natural processes and common plants and animals found there. It will help you see ponds in a new light, and with time, Lynch promises, you’ll be able to identify more and more of what you see there.
| Outdoor Adventure Guides |
Winner. Glacier Climbing & Crevasse Rescue: Essential Skills for Snow Travel. By Ian Nicholson. Mountaineers Books, Seattle.
“Impressive” is how one judge summed up his evaluation of Ian Nicholson’s book on glacier climbing. This stand-out book has it all: excellent and instructive graphics, dramatic color photography, enlightening vignettes by notable personalities, and a clear and understandable text by an author who knows his stuff. Absolutely no doubt about this one. It’s a first-rate guide through and through. If you plan to do any sort of travel on glaciers this is the book to have.
Note that a Silver Medal is not awarded in every category. It is only awarded when the winner and second place book are very closely scored.
Official NOBA reviews prepared by Ron Watters. Reviews are based on comments and insights provided by members of the judging panels. A special thanks to Katherine Daly for her editorial work. No artifical intelligence (AI) was employed in the writing of these reviews.
| End of Listing: 2026 National Outdoor Book Awards |
f
Judges Natalie Bartley, Boise, ID Jill Brigham, Seattle, WA Louis Dzierzak, Minneapolis, MN Meghan Fox, Silver Spring, MD Dale Harrington, Boone, NC Rob Jones, Salt Lake City, UT Paul Kallmes, Oakland, CA Hannah Lehmkuhl, Salt Lake City, UT Rodney Ley, Fort Collins, CO Kate Mapp, Heber City, UT Melissa K. McCeney, Germantown, MD John Miles, El Prado, NM Jill Morgan, Moncure, NC James Moss, Littleton, CO Tom Mullin, Richmond, ME Tammie L. Stenger-Ramsey, Bowling Green, KY Steve Walker, Bellingham, WA Ron Watters, Pocatello, ID |
Top of Page