David Hoffman (1) (1951–)

In my opinion, one of THE herbal books to have on your reference shelf. Accurate, concise description and plenty of illustrations. Great for amateur herbalists to learn what parts of the plant are used and why. **Of course, one should always know what they have before using it to make any remedy so I highly recommend using a field guide for plant identification purposes.

I think I will find this book useful, but it is rather dry to read in one take and needs to be dipped into as and when required.

I'm sure there's good information here. Unfortunately, I can't read it. Large portions of the book are printed in 2-3 point font. With my reading glasses and a magnifying glass, it's still unusable.

Practical and hands on approach to a herbal this book is divided into 5 main sections:

1. Holistic approach looking at herbs and health and prevention of disease

2. Practical herbalism - good guide to gathering and preparing herbal remedies. Goes into chemistry and action of herbs and has a brief theraputic index (listing ailments and what herbs can be used).

3. Herb index - illustrated with clear and large photos eahc entry briefly describes what the herb is used for, prts used, collection, show more constituents and how it acts. Also useful highlight boxes on how to prepare the herb and what dosage is appropriate as well as what it can be used in combination with and warnings!

4. Bodily systems - examines each of the main bodily systems and how herbs can be used to strengthen and treat them.

5. Reference section on useful contacts etc show less