Customer Reviews

Growing Home: Stories of Ethnic Gardening

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With a text that glows as brightly as the book's sumptuous photography, Growing Home is a triumphant celebration of "diversity." But Ms. Price's work is far from mere political correctness; every page is warmed by her deeply felt sense of community with her subjects. From the Russian-born botanist who declares that gardening "is my soul" to the Hmong mother preserving her Laotian heritage and feeding her extended family, these men and women represent "a vast, invisible network of people living full, well-integrated lives." Their serenity and common sense testify that "even in the midst of a culture nourished on fast foods and hurried entertainments, it is still possible to live in concord with the rhythms of the earth." Beautifully designed and produced, the book is a perfect gift for any garden enthusiast...I love it.

Growing Home is a real treasure of a book. Price has profiled a very diverse group of "transplanted" gardeners--mostly immigrants--who use gardening as a way of maintaining connections between their ethnic and cultural roots and their present-day lives in Minnesota. The profiles effectively turn the subjects' gardens into windows on their life stories, revealing the broader cultural meaning behind the simple act of tending a plot of land. Price skillfully balances the botanical, historical, and culinary backgrounds of the gardeners she profiles, and John Gregor's photographs are beautiful on their own. I think this book's stunning layouts and engaging stories make its appeal extend far beyond the world of Minnesota gardeners.