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Book Reviews:
Shoots and Greens of Early Spring in Northeastern North America |
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5/12/10
Mr. Brill, I cannot thank you enough for doing what you do. I and my family appreciate your efforts and work. I know you're an extremely busy guy, and probably don't have time to respond to every email that you get, so don't feel like you have to respond to this. But I did want to share with you my experiences, in the hopes that it would encourage you to continue to educate and enlighten folks about how to interact with the planet that we've been gifted with. I've been "getting into" the foraging thing over the last couple years, and have bought a few books and guides on the things you could safely eat that grew naturally. But, quite frankly, even though they are excellent resources on what you "could eat and live", nothing else that I've read/bought/used over that period of time even considered the very simple "but is it tasty?" factor that is so critical when beginning this journey into healthy and naturally replenishing food sources. Your book did. With the aid of your website and book (I can't wait for the other one to arrive!), my sons and I went on a walk through the woods today, and foraged a good 50% of our supper. I made a huge salad, and in addition to the 'normal stuff' you'd find in a salad, we added: sheep sorrel, wood sorrel, red clover flowers, wild onions (leeks), dandelion greens, plantain basals, violet greens, and some wild basil I found growing right along our trail. It was splendid! My wife is still a bit leery about "eating weeds", but she'll come around since the rest of us are enjoying it so thoroughly. My 9 year old son Joshua was particularly thrilled with the concept of finding and eating the things that we could forage naturally. This is a big deal...previously, we've had a hard time getting him to eat anything remotely resembling a vegetable. Once again, thank you. There's no need to respond to this email, but I did want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for finally creating a guide that considered not only "will this plant kill me?" but "hey, does this taste good?". Much appreciated sir, God bless you and your family. Violet is adorable, by the way. Jeremy Martin |
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Brill’s New Book by Mike Krebill When I read in ForageAhead that Steve's revised version of his Shoots and Greens book was available, I stopped reading. I went immediately to his web site, http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/, to find out more about the book that I had wanted to purchase for years. I read excerpts of it, and was impressed by the color photos, each labeled with key identifying characteristics. Deciding to buy it, I was a tad shocked that the color print edition was $54.95, so I looked at the other choices. It was available as a color download for $12.50, a black-and-white print edition for $14.95, or a black-and-white download for $6.25. I knew that I wanted it as a book instead of a download. The color edition is 263 pages, with 77 detailed illustrations and 161 color photos, all labeled to aid identification. The black-and-white edition is 127 pages, with 48 labeled drawings, but no photos. That made the decision easy. I ordered the color print edition. Now that I have had it in my hands for a week and a half, have looked through it several times and read about 2/3 of it, do I regret my decision? Absolutely not. I can understand the expense due to self-publishing, with 161 color photos. Steve's edible wild plants savvy and his culinary genius make this book a great reference for both beginners and long-time hobbyists. His anecdotes, his sense of humor, his experiences, and his writing skill render the book fun to read. Perhaps the biggest contribution of his book to the forager's reference library, however, lies in the photographs. These aren't just ordinary photos – they are great photos. Often, there are several photos per plant. They show the plant as it is in the early spring, then how it changes through the seasons. The photos are excellent at showing the salient characteristics helpful in identification. These characteristics are labeled on the photos and the drawings. One other thing ought to be mentioned: Steve has made the photos large enough to easily see the characteristics. Shoots and Greens is not a small field guide type of book; in length and width, it is nearly the size of a sheet of paper, 8 inches by 11 inches. Some of the photos occupy most of a page, a welcome contrast to the tiny, difficult to see photos in many wild food books. Steve's use of large, labeled photos has raised the bar for future authors. |
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BOOK REVIEW
BY PETER WARNY, "A real confidence builder". My confidence at identifying early spring plants is growing, just as bulbs of snow drops, hyacinths and other plants are emerging under winter snow in preparation for spring. After a long snowy winter and the current economic downturn, I'm glad I invested in this bargain of a natural history book. I look forward to spending more time afield this spring with Steve Brill's book in hand and in my field trip car! I used to be uncertain about which plants were which during early springtime when they all looked alike to me. This book is over 250 pages of color photographs, black and white drawings and clearly written text, printed on recycled paper. Over 145 color photos, including one of "THE WILDMAN" himself, grace this book. Fifty color and black/white illustrations, some depicting cross sections and details are also included. Wildman Steve Brill has logged thousands of hours examining specimens, and foraging for plants and their habitats, in both urban and rural landscapes. I have been afield with "The Wildman" enough to know about his high level of personal experience with wild flora, both native and introduced exotic species. Maybe now, with this book in hand and in my head, I won't have to ask him as many questions now that I can "read all about it". I recommend this book for "children of all ages" and all levels of experience and education. It is a "fun read." At 56 years old, I am still learning about plants and ecology from reading all of Steve Brill's books and videos. Enjoy this book. ECOLOGICALLY YOURS, PETER WARNY |