Chicago Botanic Garden

Education — Lenhardt Library

Current Books & Book Reviews

Volume 12, Number 1
(January 2010)


John Alcock. When the Rains Come: A Naturalist’s Year in the Sonoran Desert. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2009.

Terra Brockman. The Seasons on Henry’s Farm: A Year of Food and Life on a Sustainable Farm. Evanston, Ill.: Agate, 2009.

Katie Campbell. Paradise of Exiles: The Anglo-American Gardens of Florence. London: Frances Lincoln, 2009.

Alan Dunn. Alan Dunn’s Sugarcraft Flower Arranging. London: New Holland, 2009.

David J. Ellis, Fiona Gilsenan, Rita Pelczar, and Graham Rice (editors). New Encyclopedia of Gardening Techniques. New York: Mitchell Beazley, 2009.

Sandra Friend. Exploring Florida’s Botanical Wonders: A Guide to Ancient Trees, Unique Flora, and Wildflower Walks. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2009.

Rhonda Massingham Hart. The Dirt Cheap Green Thumb: 400 Thrifty Tips for Saving Money, Time, and Resources as you Garden. North Adams, Mass.: Storey, 2009.

John Hemming. Tree of Rivers: The Story of the Amazon. New York: Thames & Hudson, 2009.

Wendy Jelbert. Flowers in Acrylics: Ready to Paint. Tunbridge Wells, Kent, U.K.: Search Press, 2009.

Noël Kingsbury. Hybrid: The History & Science of Plant Breeding. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009.

Mark Laird and Alicia Weisberg-Roberts (editors). Mrs. Delany & Her Circle. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2009.

Robert L. Lippson and Alice Jane Lippson. Life Along the Inner Coast: A Naturalist’s Guide to the Sounds, Inlets, Rivers, and Intracoastal Waterways from Norfolk to Key West. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2009.

E. Charles Nelson. An Irishman’s Cuttings: Tales of Irish Gardens and Gardeners, Plants and Plant Hunters. Wilton, Cork, Ireland: Collins Press, 2009.

Rhoda Nottridge. Wildlife Gardening. Ramsbury, Wiltshire, U.K.: Crowood Press, 2009.

The Puzzle Society. Garden Lover’s Puzzle & Quiz Book. Kansas City, Mo.: Andrews McMeel, 2009.

David Allen Sibley. The Sibley Guide to Trees. New York: Knopf, 2009.

Gideon F. Smith and Neil R. Crouch. Guide to Succulents of Southern Africa. Capetown, South Africa: Struik Nature, 2009.

Amy Stewart. Wicked Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln’s Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities. Chapel Hill, N.C.: Algonquin Books, 2009.

Joe C. Truett. Grass: In Search of Human Habitat. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2010.

Alan Weller. Photoshop Brushes & Creative Tools: Floral & Botanical. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover, 2009.

Margaret Willes. Pick of the Bunch: The Story of Twelve Treasured Flowers. Oxford: Bodleian Library, 2009.

Ellen Wohl. Island of Grass. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, 2009.

Current Books is an Internet–only journal reviewing new books about gardening, horticulture, and botany. Reviews cover a wide range of new literature in print and are written primarily by the staff and volunteers of the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Please send your comments and suggestions to

Edward J. Valauskas
Editor, Current Books on Gardening & Botany
Lenhardt Library of the Chicago Botanic Garden