BOOK REVIEWS--NONFICTION
The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia : A Comprehensive Resource for Healthy Eating
by Rebecca Wood
©1999 Penguin/Arkana, New York. 426pp.
I am often on the lookout for the history and health benefits of various unusual edible plants. I get a kick out of exploring specialty food stores and markets in search of fruits, veggies and herbs I have never before seen or tasted. It is incredible to realize just how little of the world's food is unknown to those of us living in the West. In the past, the best way to go about researching my unusual "discoveries" was to purchase various cookbooks that specialize in a specific style of cooking.
I can't tell you how excited I was when I found The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia by Rebecca Wood. It is an incredibly comprehensive A-Z reference volume that covers the heath and nutritional benefits of just about anything edible. The purpose of the book is to educate on the health benefits of food - both traditional and alternative. Ms. Wood covers a wide range of diets such as Western nutrition, traditional Chinese medicine, ayurveda - and each entry provides information that supports these various world theories on good nutrition.
While I find that information very useful, most gardeners will like the book for the wealth of information it presents about over 1, 000 different types of edible plants. This book is so complete I am yet to come up with a topic that Rebecca Wood doesn't cover. Most entries include an historical context and background as well as uses, storage techniques, and buying guidelines. However, scattered throughout the book are sidebars that cover topics such as preparation suggestions, recipes, personal anecdotes and strange factoids.
While this book will not inform you of the horticultural needs of plants, it is an excellent resource for those who are making decisions about what they want to grow in next year's garden. While the where, what and how's of growing plants are important to any gardener, it is often the fascinating histories and uses of edible plants that spark our interest in putting all that time and effort into growing them in the first place. I highly recommend this book as a valuable resource for not only those with an interest in diet and nutrition, but for gardeners who want a little background knowledge on the plants that are currently taking up residence in their soil.
-GS
Buy This Book
| 
