The Gardener's Bedside Reader - Rilegato

In this beautifully illustrated anthology, editor Cornell gathers a delightful mix of 24 essays and book excerpts that are the perfect antidote for those times when we can t actually be in our gardens. Suzy Bales describes the delights of weeding, while William Alexander calculates how much each of his luscious tomatoes really costs him to grow. Ann Lovejoy tells us how to rid our gardens of slugs. Anna Pavord s excerpt details the history of the tulip, and Susan Orlean shares the obsessions of those who collect the sometimes rare and always fascinating orchid. (Some collectors put their orchids in "orchid kennels" between blossoming times!) Tovah Martin writes of Tasha Tudor and her well-known garden, and Dayle Allen Shockley shares the healing power of the garden. Diane Ackerman, Henry Mitchell, Jamaica Kincaid, Michael Pollan, and Vita Sackville-West are among the other well-known writers whose pieces are included --Suzy P-- think most gardeners like reading about other gardeners. Perhaps we're nosy or perhaops it's a comfort thing - reassurance that we aren't the only ones out there investing hours of sweat nto maiing things gorw. This collection of horticultural stories has an American slant, but I found that an advantage since you're more likely to find authors you've never touched on before, and the tales are as true for our shores as abroad. Most essays are brief, perfect for unwinding before bed or brightening the afternoon when torretial rain locks you indoors. It's impossible to pick a theme, except to say thay a thread of humour and warmth runs through all of them. The book is illustrated with everything form botanical drawings to vintage seed catalouges and modern colour photography, which can seem a bit random at times, but gives the reader an extra dimension to look at. All in all, it's a throughley entertaining and engaing read. --Garden News magzine, October 2008--Kick of your wellies, set down your secatures and pick up a copy of The Gardener's Bedside Reader - an entertaining look at gardening throguh the ages. In ths collection of writings, stories of gardeing unold in full colour written with characer and imagination. Fellow gadeners will recognise stories about fantastic growth and sympathise with experiences of humbeling faliure. --Country Living, January 2009

This entertaining book is not only a lively and amusing read but also contains excellent contributions by a variety of gardeners, mostly American, but also including our onw Anna Pavord. I was particularly attracted to The Gardeners Bedside Reader because of its layout and illustrations. it has a strong nostalgia bent to it and many of the illustrations are pure joy as editor Kari Cornell has sought out some amazing old adverts from seed catalouges and newspapers as well as including modern colour photographs. It has a warm feel to it and once in your hands you immediatily want to start browsing through the many chapters covering all aspects of gardening. This collection of stories and essays, all illustrated with vintage advertisments, gardening memorabilia and boranical drawings is just the ticket for when you want to put down your trowel and sit down with a glass of wine. The jacket promises a little something for every gardener which is no ideal boast as we are taken throguh articles under six diffrent chaper headings covering everything form Gardens of Lore to Vegetables Heaven and On the Mend in the Garden. The whole book is rather like having a bunch of garedning friends aroud to talk about experiences, funny stories, failures and successes, just the sort of chat that we all get up to when discussing our gardens. I loved Anna Pavord's essay on The Tulip and laughed at Ann Lovejoy's tunge-in-cheek tips on how to combat slimy slugs, just two of the many stories which share experiences 'in the dirt' with passion and humour. -- --Reckless Gardener dot com

The Gardeners Bedside Reader provides a mix of sound advice, coupled with a healthy dose of nostlagia, to create an entertaining and enjoyable guide to gardening throguh the ages. Edited by Kari Cornell, The Gardener's Bedside Reader should appeal to both novice and experienced gardeners. Comprising a collection of stories and essays, this book is designed to inspire readers to pick up their tools, don their 'wellies' and set about creating a breathtaking oasis outside their home - whetehre they ahve a postage stamp or a football pitch,Contributons are provided by celebrated authros and renowned gardeners - the likes of Michel Pollan and Jamaica Kincaid - who share their experiences with the reader, form outlining gardens visited inthe past to detailing the challenges faced in designing their own garden space. A particularly delightful feature is the use of vintage advertisments and other illustrations which hark back to a bygone, more organic era. These provide added focus and interest when viewed alongside eye-catching illustrations of gardens to which readers can aspire. From creating the perfect garden to discovering ' the Delights of Weeding' The Gardeners Bedside Reader is not your typical gardening manual. Even if you don't have green fingers and the garden is alien territory to you, there are enough adittional, unexpected fetaures in this book to hold your interest and encourage some bedtime reading - even if it is just to pour over the charmingly classic advetismnets librally peppered throughout its 255 pages. --Scotland's New Homebuyer, June, 2009

Editor Kari Cornell has been knitting and collecting vintage patterns for years. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband, two sons, and a beagle. Jennifer Simonson is a photographer in Minneapolis, MN. Her photographs have appeared in Sew Retro, published by Voyageur Press, and the Minneapolis Star Tribune.