Customer Reviews

Flora Mirabilis: How Plants Have Shaped World Knowledge, Health, Wealth, and Beauty (National Geographic)

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Roughly translated, Flora Mirabilis means "a wonderful book of flowers" and National Geographic certainly doesn't disappoint with this beautifully designed and illustrated history of how plants have influenced our lives.

The publishers have collaborated with the Missouri Botanical Garden Library to reproduce over 200 rare botanical prints and woodcuts, beautifully illustrated on heavy gloss paper. The narrative recounts the trecherous adventures of early plant hunters who sought plants from far reaches across the globe to modern-day scientists who use plants for molecular biology, genetics and biochemistry. Sprinkled throughout the book are illustrated time-lines and individual profiles of significant plants in botanical history like wheat, rice, olive, tulip, tobacco, coffee, tomato, rose, grape, cotton, apple, potato, orchids and more.

Another reviewer noted that the chapters trail off in mid-sentence. Actually they continue after the one-page segments on individual plants. This is somewhat distracting but otherwise this is a beautifully designed book and full of fascinating information.

as you can imagine this is one enormous subject to cover in one book.
too bad some very interesting people and events were give such short mention.
the reviews of individual plants made the book worthwhile.
the print was awful small and difficult to read after a long day.
worth the price.

This lavishly illustrated book provides an introduction to the uses of plants by people throughout the ages, as well as insight into the efforts of many people to study, understand, and categorize plants.

The book has six chapters, with each chapter covering a particular period in history. The first chapter covers the single longest period of time, from prehistory to 1450 A.D. The five remaining chapters cover the period from 1450 A.D. to the present. The book explores the efforts, both theoretical and practical, of various people to study, understand, and categorize useful plants around the world at different times in history.

Each of the six chapters has a botanical time-line that summarizes knowledge about plants by region of the world ("Africa & Middle East"; "Asia & Oceania"; "Europe"; "The Americas") under six separate categories ("Knowledge & Science"; "Power & Wealth"; "Health & Medicine"; "Sustenance & Flavor"; "Clothing & Shelter"; and "Beauty & Symbolism"). A total of 27 major plants are discussed in separate, one-page synopses that note the origins, folklore, and uses of each plant. Numerous other useful plants are also mentioned and referred to in other parts of the book.

The book provides a multifaceted look at plants and their use by people throughout history. It is fairly readable and very informative. You do not have to be knowledgeable about plants to read and understand it.

This beautiful, compact volume is just as much an exhibition of botanical illustration as it is a narrative of the history between humans and plants. Readers interested in plants as a hobby will find this book a good introduction to many topics. I particularly love the vignettes on specific plants that have shaped history. However, serious plant scholars may not find this book useful beyond the wonderful illustrations. The many high-resolution prints of rare drawings make it worth the price on their own.

Aside from its contents, the book is a nice size for reading while relaxing. It is comfortable to hold in your lap while lounging (an important trait for me, as I love to lay about and read.)

FLORA MIRABILIS: HOW PLANTS HAVE SHAPED WORLD KNOWLEDGE, HEALTH, WEALTH AND BEAUTY offers gorgeous illustrations paired with stories of botanical exploration and trade through the ages. It's a fine survey illustrated with unique collector's edition reproductions and offers a host of botanical designs and explorations perfect for both specialty botany libraries and general lending collections alike.

This book is a gorgeous history of plants and specifically how some very important species have changed the world. The illustrations are perfect for looking at if you want this book to be a coffee-table book. But if you want a good read, this book is good for that too. I couldn't complain. Excellent from cover to cover. I Love this BOOK!

Although filled with some of the most gorgeous pictures of plants, this book is filled with tons of information about plants and how we humans relate to them. If you are looking for a gardening book, this is not necessarily it but for those who love plants and gardening it is one every gardener would love to have for the personal library.

This is a beautiful book on important plants in history. Interesting stories and beautiful botanical drawings. More suited to a student than a gardener. Nice for reference.

This book takes you on the daring and dangerous journeys and explorations of the early part of the 16th-19th centuries(and before) as Expanding Human needs and Modern Medicine moved from the Dark ages into Medieval and then Modern man and away from herbalists and apothecaries. However, it shows, that in fact, Life expectancy, our creature comforts, diet as well as modern medicine are much derived from these roots, stems, barks, leaves, flowers and other plant parts. Medicine and chemistry looked for molecular compounds that would help treat disease, clothe, feed, and create aesthetic improvements. Often native peoples folklore helped direct these explorers to the specimens to collect. The book is beautiful, with great illustrations and is a good read.

[[ASIN:0924381256]] Zen of Watering Your Garden]]Zen of Watering Your Garden Is a book I put together. As you look at the flowers in the garden think about the nearly endless compounds and uses in all the beauty of Mother Nature. Matt Cohen

Like Botany of Desire with more history and more art, this book, a joint effort of National Geo and MoBot (the Missouri Botanical Garden, one of the most emotionally effective and visually impressive bot gardens I've ever visited, with a spectacular library and important ongoing research), is both interesting to read and gorgeous to look at. You might not expect so many famous names and drug references in a book about botany. Or you might, if you read a lot of botany. Botany is packed with stories of derring-do, violence, and political intrigue. But regardless, you WOULD expect beautiful illustrations from the likes of Redoute, Catesby, Bateman, Shaw, etc. And those are in here.

BONUS: My old friend Doug Holland, director of the library at MoBot, contributed. His affection for and knowledge of the treasures in his care is evident in his Introduction. Go, Doug!