Weeds – In Defense of Nature’s Most Unloved Plants

“Weeds are Flowers too, Once you get to know them” says Eeyore, Pooh’s Favorite Donkey.  A book with the title WEEDS came across my path recently.  The Byline in the book “In Defense of Nature’s Most Unloved Plants” caught my attention.  How could someone write a whole book about Weeds?  But the book is simply, delightful.

Weeds – A Book Review

Let me share the first paragraph, and where it goes from there:

PLANTS BECOME WEEDS when they obstruct our plans, or our tidy maps of the world.  If you have no such plans or maps, they can appear as innocents, without stigma or blame.  My own discovery of them was my first close encounter with plants, and they seemed to me like a kind of manna.

Weeds Image

Top 5 Reasons I adore this book:

  1. Richard Mabey, the book’s author is British, and you can feel his accent come out when you see and feel his mastery of the English language
  2. The book is sprinkled with Latin names of the various plants and flowers (weeds!) in the book, it doesn’t bowl you over, but it makes you feel as if you’re reading into a world that you just don’t know about, but, should!
  3. The author is not a believer, and has his heart set on deep evolutionary thoughts, BUT, he does a great job at noting the mentions of weeds in the Bible- and brings new life to THAT BOOK- Pastors could read this book for some new inspiration and insight!
  4. It’s challenged my assumptions about what I see on the ground when I walk over it.
  5. Reading WEEDS makes me feel smarter.

Top 5 things I’ve learned about Weeds from reading this book.

  1. In every major city across the world, you will find the exact same 5 most common weeds.
  2. Poison Ivy is THE Most Notorious weed in the WORLD (and I still have 87 lbs of it in my backyard)
  3. Weeds that started all over the world 100s of years ago are now SPREAD all over the world today
  4. Some weed seeds can lay dormant, from immediate sprouting to decades or centuries making it impossible to clear soil
  5. Weeds throughout history have had a variety of uses- and have been the ‘root’ of many desirable plants today.

I still have more of this book to read- and I think I am going to learn much much more

Buy WEEDS!

You can buy your own copy of Weeds for $25.99.

Win Weeds (3 prizes) (Closed)

Updated: 8/20/11 Winners Announced: Congratulations, Shannon Baxter, Brian E., and Debbie.

You have a chance to win your own copy of Weeds, 3 lucky AkronOhioMoms.com readers will win!

Important Links to enter this contest:AkronOhioMoms.com on Facebook, AkronOhioMoms.com on Twitter | AkronOhioMoms.com Google Friend Connect |Harper Collins Publisher of Weeds Website

 

This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. In order to comply with the latest Facebook Promotion Guidelines (revised 5/11/11), the following statements are true:* Giveaway participants release Facebook from any responsibility whatsoever.
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30 Day Winning Rule applies, so if you win this, you are still eligible to win again this month, so go ahead and enter! For complete contest rules, please see our Contest Statement and Blog Disclosure.

Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on August 19, 2011 when a winner will be drawn at random. I will notify the winners and they will have 36 hours to respond!

This was not a paid post. My own opinions were used based on my perceptions and experience. Thank you to Harper Collins Publishers who provided the products for review and giveaway.

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Cindy
Founder and Lead Blogger at Akron Ohio Moms
Cindy is the top Akron Blogger with her own take on awesome brands for families, where to vacation for families, a beat on local activities and family fun, a knack for getting moms to share , and a house that is always 2 weeks away from a complete remodel!
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