Objective review: An incredibly well-researched if rather verbose account of the role 7 different flowers played throughout history in art, literature, medicine, and society. Colour plates are included in two sections with b/w illustrations throughout, and a "Main Sources and Selected Bibliography" section at the back appears very thorough, although it mentions that the full bibliography is available on-line.

Subjective review: This is not the book I was hoping for; I think I might have been looking for something more oriented towards botany/science or even economics. The author's writing style bogged me down to such an extent that I could read entire paragraphs and not really be able to tell anyone what they actually said, making this a book a piece of work for me rather than the joy I expected. Admittedly, I found myself almost completely disinterested in the role any of these flowers played in ancient art and mythology and there's a lot of that here as well.

Why did I keep going? Because the tulip and the orchid - the two flowers I cared most about - were the last two chapters of the damn book. Because I actually did learn something about each flower that I not only didn't know but would have argued against previously. For example, I did not know people ate lily bulbs; having had cats all my life and hearing how deadly they are to them, I would have guessed eating them wouldn't have done humans any great favours either. Same for tulips. So. Something learned.

As I've mentioned before in other posts, my mother was a florist for 40 years, and my father was an orchid breeder, so I really wanted to like this book. I did find the orchid chapter the most interesting - but I suspect that has as much to do with its lack of ancient history as anything the author actually had to say. I know firsthand how difficult - almost impossible - it is to breed and cultivate orchids. I can't do it at all; I might as well have a black hooded robe and scythe as try to grow any orchid myself. My father, having named one of his registered crosses after me, took a photo of it, framed it and gave it to me, telling me (with love, of course) that the photo is probably as close I should ever try to get to the real thing. So, I would have liked to have read more about that side of orchids. The author does end the book with a quote from Reginald Farrer, that almost perfectly captures my dad's love for the plant though:

"In that instant I understood Romeo and Juliet better than I ever had before. But my doom was sealed; as cruel engines drawing first one's coat-tail, and then by degrees the whole body, so the Orchids have now enveloped me densely in their web. I am engulfed in Orchids and their dreadful bills; nor do I see the slightest chance of ever tasting solvency or peace again."

Luckily, dad found a lot of peace in orchids, if not exactly solvency. ( )