1 post tagged “natural living”
For the holidays, I got some incredibly beautiful books that will truly become well-loved and much used in the course of time. They are not available for perusal on the Amazon site yet, so I wanted to draw people's attention to these so perhaps they can look out for them once they become available to a wider audience.
This utterly delicious book was a part of my Holiday Haul - Spice Notes and Recipes, by Ian Hemphill; a new edition of an Aussie classic. An absolutely beautiful herb and spice compendium that should be in the kitchen of anyone who enjoys good food. Not so much a recipe book - although it does contain quite a few - it is rather a glorious guide to the origin and history, cultivation, purchase and storage, and uses of most culinary herbs and spices and how they blend together to create the ethnic cuisines that now dominate Australian kitchens.
The only thing about the book that disappoints is the lack of pictures or illustrations of any kind. There's not even a single line drawing within, although the outer edge of each page is embellished with a floral/foliage design. It is a rather large book, being 496 pages including the index, so adding images to that would perhaps have made it unwieldly, but it's a real shame that they are lacking.
The second book I was given is the Essential Natural Health Bible, by Nerys Purchon. I'm working my way through this one, and it is truly not work; it's a joy. At 576 pages with index, it's a whopper, but it truly does cover pretty much everything the home user would need to know to maintain a lifestyle that's as close to natural as possible. It includes an A to Z of around 75 herbs and 70 oils and sections on growing, drying, storing, and using herbs, along with a guide to preparation methods for using them and essential oils, in natural treatments for illnesses and complaints, in body care applications, and for use around the home.
In the book, Nerys talks about the importance of body, mind and spirit being balanced, along with the essentials of a balanced diet and regular exercise. The importance of "Time Out" for oneself is adressed, and the sections on massage, relaxation and meditation are full of simple and useable advice. It is also beautifully illustrated with hundreds of photographs. The most enjoyable thing about this book is the manner in which the reader is treated. So many books concerning natural health that are printed these days are stongly anti Western modern medicine, but Nerys' approach here is realistic. Some books I've picked up on organic home and land care are quite patronising or condescending in their tone, where this one is encouraging.
I believe this is one book that everyone should own. Even if you read it all, and only use 1/10 of the information found within, you will come out well ahead in being a healthier, more balanced person, with an enhanced outlook on life.
