Reviewed by Lily Massee For David Asher, the right to clean water, access to good food, and the right to make, sell, and eat natural cheese should all be considered human rights. Asher is a nomadic natural cheese educator and advocate. He travels the globe to establish a new culture of cheesemaking, one grounded in ecological principles and biological science, and to show that natural methods are the best approach for making all styles of cheese. Milk into Cheese: The Foundat

Reviewed by Jeremy Pelletier Rooted by Lyanda Lynn Haupt offers a profound and beautifully written exploration of our connection to the natural world. Haupt masterfully weaves together personal narrative, scientific observation, and spiritual reflection to illuminate the essential bond between humanity and the earth. The book encourages a mindful engagement with the environment, urging readers to find solace and meaning in the rhythms of nature. Through vivid descriptions and

Survival Gardening. Grow Your Own Emergency Food Supply from Seed to Root Cellar BY SAM COFFMAN | STOREY PUBLISHING, 2025. 256PP. $24.99 Reviewed by Mary A. Nelen Addressing a current climate of uncertainty and, in some cases, hoarding, this extremely comprehensive, no-nonsense, just-the-facts-ma’am Baedeker poses the following question: "What would you do if you absolutely had to grow your own food to survive?" When Sam Coffman, author of Survival Gardening, poses the questi

By Tara Couture

Reviewed by Scott Chaskey Published by Milkweed Editions, June 2025, pp. 256, $26.00 A good book often begins with a good sentence, a sentence that invites you in: “With my fingertips in the dark, I can feel a nose and two feet.” So Helen Whybrow begins her story of the seasons of a shepherd’s life, The Salt Stones, and the reader is engaged, not only throughout the first chapter (The Cord), but through to A Shepherd’s Mind, the epilogue of this poetic book. The first chapte

Reviewed by Bill Taylor Chelsea Green Publishing, November 2024, pp. 304, $34.95 Pascal Baudar’s latest book, Wildcrafting Seeds and Grains, focuses on a seldom-covered aspect of foraging. Many of these plants are non-native, and some are considered “invasive” (a pejorative way of saying they proliferate and crowd out other plants). Utilizing their seeds or grains is a way to manage them and obtain nutrients often lacking or limited in cultivated crops, whether as a spice or

Reviewed by Michael Glos The author of this book will not be new to most people involved in market farming. As one of modern Organics' “OGs,” Eliot Coleman is a well-respected voice in refining organic methods, extending seasons, developing small-farm-scale tools, and protecting Real organic farming. His New Organic Grower and subsequent Four-Season Harvest and the Winter Harvest Handbook were essential reading when we were starting out in the 90s. We learned to farm “pre-int

Reviewed by Erika Guay How does one make a farm last through several generations? Not just that the farm is successfully passed from one generation to another, but how can families find harmony together, be happy to work together, while ensuring lasting foundations? Mike C. Young is one of the lucky few in the 4th generation, with the 5th generation ready to take on the task. This book is his manifesto, his secret recipe, the code that has led his family to success. Young us

Reviewed by Lindsay Kazarick I picked up Heart of the Hive expecting a solid primer on bee biology, but Hilary Kearney surprised me with something far more intimate — a love letter, really, to the buzzing communities just beyond our backyards. As someone who’s spent countless hours marveling at pollinator gardens and swapping stories with Appalachian beekeepers, I immediately connected with Kearney’s voice: warm, curious, and deeply knowledgeable. She opens by reminding us t

Reviewed by Richard Robinson Carrots Love Tomatoes was first published in 1975, coincidentally, the same year I had my first garden. I believe the campus biology department had a copy, but I only glanced at it then, and it left little impression, other than the memorable title, and that marigolds, which I didn’t grow, were good for…um…something. The book is now 50 years old. I’ve been a casual farmer for much of that time, and a serious one for the past 15 years, without ever

Reviewed by Chris Travis Storey Publishers, 2024, 328pp, $24.99 A must-have for all gardeners, Tanya Denckla Cobb's The Backyard...

Reviewed by Hannah Shafer This book review comes to you from my living room couch, where I’m currently nestled in my coziest fleece, tea...

Reviewed by Casey Merkle Chelsea Green Publishers, 2024, 228pp, $45.00 If there were ever a perfect time to take the leap and start your...

Reviewed by Jeremy Donnelly Storey Publishing, 2025, 152pp, $18.99 In recent years, the movement towards sustainable living and...

By Adam Davidoff and Ryan Power Storey Publishers, 2025. 224pp, $29.99 Reviewed by April Jones This book offers strategies to help a...

Chelsea Green Publishing, 2019. 272pp. $22.79 Reviewed by Jeremy Donnelly Chris Smith’s The Whole Okra arrives like a refreshing burst...

Reviewed by Lindsay Kazarick The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer is an authoritative guide for cultivating and commercializing medicinal...

By Liza Gabriel Fungi are all around us. They’re beneath our feet, in the air we breathe, in the soil we work in, and sometimes even in...

By Liza Gabriel There are many misconceptions about how to cook mushrooms. They are often overcooked, losing much of their flavor. First,...

by Steve Gabriel Shiitake yard at Wellspring Forest Farm Fungi and Mushrooms Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of a specific group of...