Wild Food (Natural history photographic guides) - Books (Roger Phillips, Paperback)

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Customer Reviews of Wild Food (Natural history photographic guides)

shepherdess
UK
16th September 2008

What a crock-pot
I've just ordered this book (or at least my partner did) based on reviews and the fact it was called a photographic guide. Perhaps my book is different, but I was expecting pictures of the plants themselves based on the title.
I did not expect arty-pharty pictures of a glass jug of juice on a table with an oak tree in a field as a background.
There is nothing "photgraphically guiding about it" unless you dont know what a wicker basket is!!!
Utter waste of time.

17th December 2004

Nettles are tasty
Brilliantly photographed and well thought out book with some excellent simple recipes for each listing. It will certainly have you out of your arm chair and grubbing around in fields and ditches for your next meal! I thoroughly recommend the Crab apple jelly/cheese, Rowan Jelly, Elderflower Champagne(superb) and Elderberry Syrup.

I do throw caution to the wind and agree with a previous reviewer that this is more of a guide than an identification book. If you want to stick to the obvious (ie Crab apples , Elderberries etc) then perfect but if you wish to stray (ie Cow Parsley, Mushrooms) then I would certainly cross reference to another book. However, Phillips comes to the rescue here with his other publications "Mushrooms and other Fungi" and "Wild Flowers" both worth their weight in gold.

All said, the book never sets out to be an identification manual but more to wet the appetite and sow the seed in this very interesting topic of Wild Food. It has certainly inspired me, many generations before and hopefully many generations to come. A very worthy 5 Stars.

Shaun (East Yorkshire)

nicktomjoe
Oxford UK
29th August 2003

Eating the great outdoors
This is a truly interesting book. Now, if "interesting" makes you think of dull, trainspotter-like accumulation of facts, then this is not the nature book for you. It is less of an identification book (something of a problem in the fungus section, maybe) than a guide to what possibilities there are -some bizarre, some sensible - for using plants as food. As such it sits somewhere between the field guides Roger Phillips is known for and the hearty survival guides or Ray Mears and co. It is a gentle book, and firmly rooted in the plant world; Wild Food does not include rabbit stew, crow pie, fricassee of dormouse... An ideal book for a winter's evening, it is also the book to browse before a summer walk. The recipes (Blackberry water ice, blanched sea kale) are straightforward and easy to follow even when the subject is a trifle odd (pickled ash keys), the photography excellent, and there are notes for use rather than full recipes for loads of plants.

22nd October 2001

Stunning food and fabulous photography - inspiring!
I bought this book when I bought my first house back in the mists of the early eighties. The stunning and inventive photography had me pulling my walking boots on and heading out into the wilds of the Pennines to sample my first wild food. The recipes don't disappoint, in all the years I've owned this book I've never had a duff one. The wines are extraordinarily good, and a real treat is a liqueur, Beech Leaf Noyu. So my recommendation is to pull on your boots and get out there and get cooking!

27th October 2000

An Inspirational Classic
Roger Philips' book taught me and my wife to love the countryside more than ever before. A walk is no longer just a walk; every turn might lead to something for the pot! Well written; great photos; clear identification notes; excellent recipes. It contains all the worthwhile foods and some of the less worthwhile - but at least he warns you in advance if it tastes unreasonably bitter.