In one sense this is a popular book, easy to read with helpful line drawings of the vegetables (gracefully rendered by Signe Sundberg-Hall). Weaver even gives phonetic guidance on how to pronounce the names of the vegetables, which include peppers, beans, potatoes, lentils, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, eggplants, etc. Part of the book is a celebration of those names and an appreciation of their history. While reading this I made a mental note to get to my local Whole Foods or Begonia Farms store more often and try something new and exotic!
In another sense this is an advanced book for gardeners and culinary experts, not because the book is technical, but because for most people most of the vegetables presented will not be found at the local supermarket, nor will their seeds be found at the local garden and seed store. Additionally it is not always clear to this amateur how these exotic varieties differ from their more prosaic fellows at the local A&P. Weaver helps by attempting to describe the taste (hard to do!) and advises on things like texture, color and spiciness (e.g., wear gloves when cooking Aji Lemón peppers, and don't breath the fumes!). He includes some recipes and advice on complementary foods to go along with the featured veggies. He gives some recipes, sometimes from the culture of origin. For gardeners there are five pages of seed catalogue stores and their web addresses. For botanists he includes the botanical names and the plant's family name. No fungi, by the way. There are varieties from "every continent, except the frozen one," e.g., "Shungiku Edible Chrysanthemum," from Japan, "Pepino Dulce Melon" from South America, "Jaune du Poitou Leek," from France, even the "Petaluma Gold Rush Bean," from my native California. Among the exotic names I found some terminology new to me. Some vegetables are referred to as "heirloom" varieties and/or "cultivars." Weaver uses the term "landrace," which I couldn't find in any of my dictionaries, defined on page two as a noncommercial or "backyard" variety in cultivation for a long time. Weaver has himself cultivated all the varieties presented here on his farm in Pennsylvania where he grows three thousand or so vegetables on a rotating basis. His knowledge about vegetables and his love for them is very impressive. His appreciation of the culinary arts is evident. This is a pretty little book from Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill that would make a nice present for someone you know who loves cooking or gardening.
