Book excerpt: The best photographs of the first 21 years of the 21st century take center stage in this incredible volume of National Geographic's world-famous imagery. In just two short decades of the 21st century, National Geographic has ushered in a new era of visual storytelling excellence, including innovations in digital, drone, and smartphone photography, and reached out to a global audience through one of the world's most popular Instagram accounts, @NatGeo. In these 21 years, photography has transformed from a rarefied discipline to a universal medium of communication, available in the palm of everyone with a mobile phone. Through it all, National Geographic has remained at the forefront, shining a light on the beauty, wonder, and heartbreak of the world. A remarkable collection, The 21st Century culls more than 250 of the very best, most impactful National Geographic images across print, digital, and social media, celebrating: Extraordinary wildlife Unique cultures around the world Beautiful landscapes One-of-a-kind portrait photography And behind-the-shot stories from celebrated National Geographic photographers like Joel Sartore, Nick Nichols, Jodi Cobb, Anand Varma, and Evgenia Arbugaeva. Spanning the remarkable moments year-by-year from 2000 to 2021, The 21st Century is a beautiful, giftable, and important record of our rapidly changing world--a treasury you'll want to keep on the coffee table and turn to again and again. Complete your National Geographic photography collection with best-selling favorites: America the Beautiful: A Story in Photographs Women: The National Geographic Image Collection National Geographic Rarely Seen: Photographs of the Extraordinary National Geographic The Photo Ark: One Man's Quest to Document the World's Animals