Speaking Volumes | The Manatee public library can help you ‘visit’ Carlsbad Caverns

Out in the remote and windswept deserts of southern New Mexico lies a spectacular series of caves called Carlsbad Caverns. The park contains over 119 caves, although most of them are not open to the public. This is a year-round destination to visit, but if you want peace and solitude, the optimal time is in the winter. However, if you want to see the hundreds of thousands of famous bats fly out of the caves every evening, then summer is the time to go.

Although this attraction is very far away from Manatee County, our library system offers a variety of resources on the caverns, including eBooks and print books, suitable for adults and people of all ages.

For an insightful historical overview of these caverns, check out “Carlsbad and Carlsbad Caverns” by Donna Blake Birchell, available as an eBook through Hoopla. This book celebrates and preserves the history of this national park through series of evocative photographs and stories.

For a candid guide to the state of New Mexico, see the “Moon Handbooks: New Mexico” by Zora O’Neill. It has a small section on Carlsbad Caverns, including other attractions in that region of the state. Although this is in a desolate part of the country with few options for lodging and dining, this book covers nearby towns with a few options.

For guides to other parks in Southwest USA, including Carlsbad Caverns, look at “Guide to National Parks of the Southwest” by Rose Houk. The photographs and maps in this book are particularly helpful.

For works of fiction that feature Carlsbad Caverns as the setting, check out “Blind Descent” (1998) by Nevada Barr, available as a book and an eBook. This book is part of the Anna Pigeon mysteries; Pigeon is a fictional park ranger. In this story, she must rescue someone who is injured in the caves while confronting her phobia of confined spaces.

“Running Scared” by Gloria Skurzynski is part of the “Mysteries in Our National Parks” series. It features a couple of kids who are hopelessly lost in mazes of tunnels inside the caverns, surrounded only by bats and a lantern light. It is available as a book in the children’s fiction section.

For a heart-stopping crime biography set in Carlsbad Caverns, look at “Journal of the Dead: A Story of Friendship and Murder in the New Mexico Desert” by Jason Kersten. This book tells the harrowing story of a planned murder of a best friend in Rattlesnake Canyon.

Whether you want to learn more about traveling to this unique destination, the history and geology behind it or read some compelling fiction set in the canyons, the Manatee County Public Library is a great place to start your exploration.

Speaking Volumes is written by members of the staff at the Manatee County Public Library System. Rachel Suntop is a librarian at the Central Library.