Product Description

Drawing on the healing traditions of Native Americans, Quakers, and the English, as well as botanical literature and his own observations, the author explains the medicinal uses of thirty-six herbs for alleviating a variety of ailments. Original. IP. "

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #84615 in Books
• Published on: 1997-09-15
• Released on: 1997-09-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 580 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781556432323
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Review
"There are many fine herb books written by our country's great herbalists gracing the shelves these days. But only once in a while does a classic arise. The Book of Herbal Wisdom is surely that. Written with grace, intelligence, and warmth, this book is richly infused with the gift of wisdom and earns its title at every turn."
- Rosemary Gladstar

About the Author
Matthew Wood is a registered herbalist with the American Herbalists Guild, and has maintained a private practice as an herbalist for twenty years. He lives and practices at Sunnyfield Herb Farm in Minnetrista, Minnesota.

Customer Reviews

This book puts it all together.
This herb book is one of the best I've read because of the vivid descriptions. I've been able to help myself much more effectively with herbs now than in the past due to the detailed descriptions. The author explains traditional systems of classifications and includes examples that really stick in the mind. It's obvious the author has a deep understanding and love of each plant.

The Best from the Best
Matthew Wood is one of the herbal mentors for my own herbal mentor who is an AHG recognized professional herbalist. Within her herbal apprentice program, this book is required reading, and it is a very good thing that it is. Matthew Wood discusses not only the medicinal values of the herbs but the energetics, almost to the point of the magical.

For those of us who consider not only our physical relationships to the herbs, but also the metaphysical ones, this book is invaluable. It is very affirming that when we work closely with nature and the energies of the herbs and herbal medicine, we all are much better off. This is a work that empowers the reader and gives them a very deep knowledge of the herbs discussed. It has the highest recommendation I can give it and should be rated even higher.

A Masterpiece, A Classic, A Literary Goldmine for the Herbal Miner of Truth
As a student of Western herbalism though not Homeopathy specifically or soley, I still found--continue to find--this book one of my greatest literary assets in understanding the contexts, traditions and mostly importantly the herbs I am studying.

Throughout the book (and his other books) readers will not fail to notice the author's strong personal perspective emphasizing the spiritual aspects of understanding plants. At times I found this intriguing, at other times nauseating, and occasionally both at the same time. Your reaction to this will depend on your own predilections in matters of spirituality and religion. The thing that made Wood's spiritual anecdotes interesting to me was the way he is able to intelligently narrate and describe them and weave them into the fabric of the overall story he tells.

Above all else, this book is a book of powerfully written stories about herbs. Each herb discussed in the book has its own story and it is told through the lens of experience of previous herbalists, the vast herbal literature from the dawn of Western history to the present day, as well as the authors' own insights and experiences and those of his patients and colleagues. The strength of these stories is the fact that Wood is able to include so much information from so many sources and still end up with a bunch of fascinating, readable stories rather than a dry, dead series of academic monographs. Each section is so well sourced and cited, even the staunchest critic would have a very difficult time assailing the scholarship found in this book.

Ultimately you should buy this book for three reasons: 1. Wood does the herbs justice. You can tell he loves them by the way he writes about them and draws them. His respect for his subject is clear as day. 2. He respects his readers, including skeptical or reluctant students of herbalism and does them justice too, inviting them into his world to take a look without harsh judgments or proclamations or pontifications. If there is one thing I cannot abide, it is an author who hates their readers and you'd be surprised how many there are. Wood never commits this unforgivable crime. 3. You'll re-read this book. I think people should avoid buying books (if possible, many things just aren't available at the library) unless they plan to re-read them. Here is a book I've read parts of multiple times and I haven't had it for more than six months!

I have one more thing to say. I wish Matthew Wood would write two or five more books exactly like this one but with different herbs and stories. I'll buy them.