Like Botany of Desire with more history and more art, this book, a joint effort of National Geo and MoBot (the Missouri Botanical Garden, one of the most emotionally effective and visually impressive bot gardens I've ever visited, with a spectacular library and important ongoing research), is both interesting to read and gorgeous to look at. You might not expect so many famous names and drug references in a book about botany. Or you might, if you read a lot of botany. Botany is packed with stories of derring-do, violence, and political intrigue. But regardless, you WOULD expect beautiful illustrations from the likes of Redoute, Catesby, Bateman, Shaw, etc. And those are in here.

BONUS: My old friend Doug Holland, director of the library at MoBot, contributed. His affection for and knowledge of the treasures in his care is evident in his Introduction. Go, Doug!

When I purchased this book I thought I would use it as an occasional reference. After actually sitting down and reading through it I am pleasantly surprised. Not only does it have beautiful illustrations on every page, but the content is fascinating. If you are the type that would enjoy learning where a multitude of fruits and flowers originated from and how important botanical exploration is to the history of mankind, then you will find this captivating.

This is a really pretty book with a lot of good information. However, the way it is organised is awkward and frustrating. One page will be in the middle of a sentence, then the next couple pages will be about something else entirely, then continue on where it left off. It makes no sense to make a book like that.