Customer Reviews

Green Nature/Human Nature: THE MEANING OF PLANTS IN OUR LIVES (Environment Human Condition)

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I really enjoyed this book. It's a book about our human interaction with green nature. Very informative, very well researched, with individual text and quotes annotated to a huge and diverse bibliography. From window boxes in the ghettos, up through the role of plants in prisons and hospitals, to the attraction of parks and great forests and botanical gardens of the world, Charles Lewis explores our need to experience and/or nurture those historically ancient green living beings that are sharing their planet with us. The tons of gardening books I have (you know, the ones with compost-smudged pages and mispelled Latin scribbled in the margins) will not share the same shelf with this book. They are cookbooks, this is a book on hunger.

This book is filled with valuable information about our relationship with nature--and, therefore, ourselves at a very deep level. I find it an incredible resource, citing research on community gardens, horticultural therapy, the deep and enduring relationship between people and plants. Gardeners, environmentalists, and anyone who loves plants will find reinforcement, information, and inspiration in these pages.

I thought this book was a great introduction to the theories and ideas behind Horticultural Therapy, Wilderness Programs, and other such rehabilitative nature-based programs. It provides a good general overview and is easy to read.
For someone (like me) who is looking for a book more advanced psychological explanations and discussions, I'd look somewhere else. Lewis is an alright writer, but he is a horticulturalist, not a psychologist. He often lacks the insight into how and why plants are meaningful in our lives. I would provide another recommendation, but I'm still searching myself!
In general, a very good read. He's spot-on with a lot of stuff...just don't expect mind-blowing insights on the psychological impacts of the treatments and programs he discusses.

Charles Lewis is the undisputed champion of people-plant relationships. A learned man, well-versed in all aspects of horticulture, Lewis is also an excellent writer. Lewis asks: "In what ways do plants enter our mental and spiritual lives?" What exactly is the importance of cultivating our own "inner garden." Gardens grow persons, not just plants. Lewis found that to pursue his interest in the human side of horticulture he had to look to other disciplines - psychology, sociology, geography, and medicine. Charles Lewis's Green Nature/ Human Nature is a must read for anyone who loves to garden. "Horticultural Therapy for the Soul" perhaps describes this book, but actually it is more. Check out this rare gem--you'll love it. Tom Ogren, author of Allergy-Free Gardening, Ten Speed Press.