How Herbs Healed the World was such a fun read! I didn't realize the length and breadth of how herbs have been used in the past years and it was fascinating to learn. I have a lot of all things herbs, from cooking to tea to decoration, and this was a fascinating deep dive!

A really neat book about the historical use and modern use of herbs in our world. Lots of great details that you may not know about plants.

I was hoping for more medicinal information and modern herbal information from this book but it’s the standard type that says Romans believed this and Europeans used it for this, with occasional references to a study that says they could be useful for something. There is absolutely no information on how to use the herbs and in most cases it doesn’t list the most helpful properties that I happen to know for these herbs. In addition, it only covers 100 herbs and they’re rather random, including poisonous ones you (hopefully) won’t be using.

(Read via a digital ARC through NetGalley)

This book was a fascinating journey through the history and impact of various herbs. The book's rich storytelling and blend of historical and scientific insights make it an engaging read for anyone interested in the remarkable ways plants have shaped our world.

A deep dive into the remarkable history of herbs. I was surprised by this book - it surpassed my every expectation and I learned so many new things about herbs I had thought I knew everything about. This title was complex and intriguing, a take on herbs that I had not yet experienced. My perspective and understanding of herbs has grown and changed greatly having discovered this cultural exploration! Many thanks to Connor Smith, Netgalley and Hachette Book Group | Greenfinch for access to this title. I think this title would be suitable for any adult interested in history, herbs, and the cultural exploration that follows their cultivation.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hachette Book Group | Greenfinch for this free copy for an honest review. I really enjoyed this book as it highlighted some unknown facts on some well-known herbs. 75 herbs are written about here as well as pictures of each are included. Some good information is given with each. Some information I was familiar with for some of the more common herbs, like Echinacea, but there were some really interesting facts as well as origins given for each when found for each. Very informative book.

I am a big gardener and I am very thankful to the publisher, Connor Smith, and Netgalley for granting me advanced access to this book before publication day.

This book has beautiful illustrations and I enjoyed that it focused on the history and use of the herb in indigenous countries. It seemed a little like an information dump. While the information was insightful, I was left wanting to know more about how each herb might be used by me. This turns me away from sharing this book with others.
If ever there is a sale of the illustrations, I will feel more inclined to purchase a print or two than to purchase this whole book.
Thank you Connor Smith, Hachette Book Group and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The full review will post to my blog dandelionlit.wordpress.com on the release date, July 4, 2024.

As someone who gardens, HOW HERBS HEALED THE WORLD naturally caught my eye. The promise of short histories of various herbs sounded intriguing, particularly since I like to grow quite a few of my own. Unfortunately, though the subject matter interested me, I chose to not finish it at about 25% in.

I can look over the formatting issues, since this is an advanced reading copy. Albeit, there were several sections with jumbled sentences that were illegible. What ultimately caused me to put down HOW HERBS HEALED THE WORLD is how the author delivered the information. There are so many herbs for the author to write about that each section is, frankly, too short for the amount of information to communicate. Not only does the reader learn about the etymology of the scientific names, but also historical and current uses as well as where it originated or any other fascinating historical tidbits.

The issue I personally had is I felt like I was reading an incredibly abridged encyclopedia entry for each herb. It was dry. The information didn't flow very well. I think part of the reason it didn't feel cohesive is because it lacked a narrative for each herb. There wasn't exactly a story that held up each entry, so my attention waned. In short, I think this book tries to cover too much ground. Perhaps this is a nonfiction format that appeals to others, but sadly the presentation style wasn't for me. It might be best for a reader who just wants the quick and dirty factoids and historical tidbits about several dozen herbs.

I liked the illustrations in this one a lot, but that's really all this one had going for it. I wasn't really as interested by the descriptions for each herb as I thought they would be. I was actually kind of bored by them.

This was a very informative book and I really enjoyed reading about the background of each plant that was included in this book. My only complaint was the format of the book made it very messy to read on my kindle. I understand this was an ARC, but the images weren't great on my iPad and on my kindle. The words weren't all together in a line, it was broken up and a little bit annoying to my eyes to read, so that is why I gave this book a 4 star as the format/layout made it difficult to read and concentrate what I was reading on.

I do think this will be a great book once it is formatted correctly and in print format. I think I would definitely enjoy this book more as a physical form than on the kindle.

a beautifully illustrated book filled with informative information presented in a clear way. This book is ideal for those interested in herbs and who want to know the blend of the history, culture, and science behind their uses.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me an early opportunity to read this in placement of an honest review.

When I requested this book, I had also requested another herbal book just to be able to compare them. Honestly, I'll be buying both! This book was so aesthetically pleasing to the eye; the pictures are positively gorgeous, and with the right about of color so you do feel as if you're reading a textbook. The author did an amazing job adding in folklore and history with each herb, they also did a great job adding respecting the witch community, by including the magical properties. I've already pre-ordered this book and I cannot wait for it to get here.

I love the sections this book is broken down into and the herbal tales that go along with it. Fascinating stuff right here and this book weaves the history of how plants have always been used for their medicinal, spiritual, edible and narcotic purposes. Herbal medicine is widely used worldwide and accessible to even the most remote communities. As an aromatherapist and crystal healer I’m always wanting to learn more about herbal remedies and traditional healing practices and this book definitely fits the bill. There’s just enough information—including Latin species names and sketches of each herb— to be immensely valuable and interesting without going overboard. Bravo Connor Smith! ♥️🌱

Thank you Hachette Book Group, Connor Smith, & Netgalley for an arc of this book. I really appreciated the information in this book. I am learning holistic healing and love having information and history of Ayurveda.

I really enjoyed this book. As an avid gardener and herb grower, I found the information in this book to be both informative and educational. I really like how the herbs were organized into sub-categories such as “Cooking Herbs.” Each herb contained a sufficient amount of information including history, uses, and most importantly growing information. The number of herbs included in this book was astounding. There were many herbs I had never even heard of. Finally, the bibliography at the end was a great addition providing sources for further information should anyone need it.