This review has been revised and can now be found at Expendable Mudge Muses Aloud.

Warning: Prepare for multiple baths

Not so much a narrative but an encyclopedia with a story or two. I am not likely to remember every plant and its toxin but its affect (no matter which genus) will likely be; nausea, vomiting, irritated bowel in the extreme, paralysis and respiratory failure. If there are others to note, by that time you won’t care!

I was surprised at how many of these I have actually cultivated in my own garden and home. Some of which I gave a "Jaundiced eye" while reading this book!

If your significant other has More...

As a caveat, don't think you will quickly find the plant that killed Lincoln's mother as you read this book. That tease doesn't get an answer until nearly the end of the book, and that is just fine.

Wicked Plants is a fast read, with interesting anecdotes about the plants from ancient and modern sources and plenty of information for further reading. Stewart does not try to give a complete guide, or detailed information about any of the plants, but such is not her intention. She wrote this book, a More...

Stewart wrote FLOWER CONFIDENTIAL about the floral industry, so one can posit that like me, she loves plants. Like me, she's also fascinated with poison and murder. The book is lush with exquisitely beautiful (and sometimes exquisitely macabre) illustrations. With short chapters, plentiful illustrations, and a thorough table of contents, this is a fast read.

(I'm not going to go so far as to say that this is the perfect book for the back of the toilet, but WICKED PLANTS does have short entries, e More...

Well, this wasn't quite on par with Wicked Bugs in my mind, but it wasn't too far shy of it. From referencing exactly what was in the sponge offered to Christ to why some streets and sidewalks are permanently red to which part of stinging nettles you can eat to what exactly will happen if you eat something that looks like a carrot but isn't, this was a pretty fun book. Of course it did include things that weren't necessarily in the plant family, which made me happy (crazy fungi that take over ra More...

Who knew plants could be so wicked? This book contains the terrors of the plant world. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

My favorite plant was the dangerous Jimsom weed. The Jamestown settlers used it against some British soldiers, to get the upper hand on ‘em. Clever colonists. Also interesting was the caster bean, whose poisonous extract was used to kill a communist in the 1970s. And how ‘bout those crazy poisonous ordeal beans, used to determine guilt within the West African criminal justice system? More...

This book frightened me, but in a good way. How could a book about lovely shrubs, trees and flowers scare you, you ask? Well, I was astonished how many plants in your garden can potentially be life threatening and cause severe damage to you and animals. Not only that, but how incredibly naive we are when it comes to handling these plants and we actually bring some of these things in our homes. I was amazed and shocked by just how powerfully potent some plants were. There's a tree in Australia th More...

This time of year is when I usually plan my garden for the coming spring and summer. Rather than turn to Western Sunset, I thought I'd thumb through Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln's Mother and Other Botanical Atrocities by Amy Stewart for inspiration, er, for what not to plant.

If you ever want to take a peaceful walk in a garden or hike on a nature trail again, perhaps this isn't the book for you 'cause it freaked me out. Just a little.

With section titles like "Lawn of Death" and More...

I saw this book and just thought it would be an interesting read. Besides who can resist the title "Wicked Plants"?

Basically the book goes through many different types of plants that are "Wicked". This means they are either deadly, illegal, destructive, painful, intoxicating, or dangerous...you get the idea. There are two types of entries in the book. The first are pages dedicated to a single plant. These have an etching of the plant on one page and then a description of why the plant is "wicked More...

Wicked Plants is a fascinating collection of facts and anecdotes about plants that are dangerous. The plants are listed alphabetically with the description of the plant features and their dangerous effects. Most listings are accompanied by an interesting story about how the plant has been harmful, and some contain a social history of the plants legality.

The biggest surprise for me while reading this book was how many common plants, even those we eat, have harmful effects. I learned that cashews, More...

This book was loaned to me from a friend and I admit at first I was a bit sketch about it. While I have begun to learn and enjoy the art of gardening in the last few years, I am not really into all things plants. However, after I began reading it, I really loved it. As a matter of fact, I am going to buy the book for myself AND buy one for my mother (who IS a gardening lover). The book is well written and doesn't get too bogged down in the tiny boring details. Instead, it more focuses on all the More...

Amy Stewart, a self-proclaimed gardener and writer (not a botanist or scientist) presents, in alphabetical order, mini-biographies of botanical villains, weaving in pop culture, mythology, history, folklore, medicine, and law with botanical and biological information. The most captivating entries are the topical ones that were interspersed in the encyclopedic style, themed with "houseplants," "ragweeds," and "the devil's bartender," all about more common plants.

While I love the concept, I was r More...

This is the nicest presentation of a 'fact' book that I've seen for a long time.

First off .... I love the cover. That's just me- I love how it gives a sinister vibe, looks old and has a solemn, menacing appearance with the use of that intertwining thorny vine. Absolutely made me want to pick it up and open it. Also loved the golden ribbon stitched into the binding so you could mark your place - or the plant that you want to use on your next victim.

Next, I love the beautiful illustrations and etc More...

Summary: A tree that sheds poison daggers; a glistening red seed that stops the heart; a shrub that causes paralysis; a vine that strangles; and a leaf that triggered a war. In Wicked Plants, Stewart takes on over two hundred of Mother Nature’s most appalling creations. It’s an A to Z of plants that kill, maim, intoxicate, and otherwise offend. You’ll learn which plants to avoid (like exploding shrubs), which plants make themselves exceedingly unwelcome (like the vine that ate the South), and wh More...

A very interesting little reference book - the plants are grouped by how "wicked" they are: dangerous, intoxicating, illegal, etc. I learned several tidbits from it. Did you know that Bayer drug company was the first distributor of heroin from the opium poppy? It was on the market for years before they completely realized the effects of the drug.

The bit about the deadly nightshade berries crossed my mind when I went berry-picking this past weekend...

I listened to the audio version, which was well read, though truthfully at times I did grow a bit sleepy, especially during the "meet the relatives" sections where a selection of choice latin names were listed out in a calming voice that all but put me to sleep.

The book was far from boring or dull, but perhaps the scientific names of plants are something that are better read than heard. It reminded me a lot of the cassette tapes I listened to at bedtime, chosen of course by my naturalist brother More...

One of the many gifts I bemoan not having, including the talent for drawing and painting and a gift for singing, is the lack of a green thumb. This has not, of course, been for want of any attempts to cultivate it. My grandmother raised prize orchids in her garden when I was a very little girl, and she encouraged an interest in this (very fiddly) aspect of horticulture. Later on there were many attempts to grow vegetables and kitchen herbs in pots - none of which worked out. My mother often tell More...

Stewart attempts to exhaustively catalogue toxic/medicinal plants and herbs using supposedly charming historical vignettes that illustrate and implicate the various species' morbidity and mortality on hapless folk. Humanity is the butt of the joke, all of us apparently being bumbling idiots or murderous half-wits in confrontation with our native flora. Not the most winning premise, and I was irritated by her tone right off the bat.
Long on attempted wit and short on scientific detail, with most More...

Wicked Plants is an interesting idea for a book, but one of the reasons for my 2 star rating is that I listened to the audiobook rather than reading the actual book. As an audiobook, this becomes just a list of possibly dangerous plants; in fact, I question why it was even released in audio format. Wicked Plants desperately needs pictures, and the actual book does contain etchings of some of the plants.

I think the other big thing missing in this book is a better explanation of "wicked". The aut More...

For information & entertainment purposes I give this little book a "5 star" rating.

Who knew that a simple stroll through your local woods, or even your own home, could be so deadly? There is a reason why your mother was always telling you "not to put that in your mouth" when you were a kid and why it is still true today. It could kill you, or at the very least leave you with a butt kicking that you will always remember.

So when I received “Wicked Plants” in the mail last week, I was pleasant More...

What you don’t know about plants can kill you. Most likely they will only make you sick or uncomfortable, but deadly is a possibility. Sure, everyone knows to stay away from poison ivy and not to eat the poinsettias, but who knew there were hundreds of other plants than can be ruthless?

In Wicked Plants, Amy Stewart gives us a fascinating tour through the plant kingdom highlighting some of the most badly behaved plants on the planet. In dictionary-like style, included are both common and scientif More...

Let me tell you, I knew there were some deadly plants out there, but wow.

It's probably weird to call this a fun read, but it really is--I mean, where else are you going to find out that Bayer actually introduced heroin (even came up with the name!), which was sold as a cough syrup for about ten years before being taken off the market.

Or how about the fact that Charles Julius Guiteau (who shot President James Garfield), was given a bouquet of flowers by his sister on the morning of his executio More...

Although this book is fascinating, it’s a little too detailed to make it a light read. It would make a great coffee table book to dip into, or an interesting reference book for the shelf.

Amy’s definition of ‘wicked’ is quite broad – not all of the plants are poisonous. Although she starts with plants used to produce arrow poisons, she moves on to intoxicating and narcotic plants, invasive weeds and carnivorous plants, and those that enslave animals (and humans) to spread their seeds through vari More...

"This palm is also responsible for the betel nut, an addictive stimulant that turns teeth black and saliva red. Four hundred million people around the world consume it ... 'There is an almost orgasmic satisfaction to be found in the experience of saliva-ducts open to full throttle. Delicious above all is the aftermath: when the chew is finished, your mouth is left astonishingly fresh and sweet. You fee uniquely cleansed, drained, and purified.' "

"Historians still wonder what caused the bizarre b More...

Wicked Plants was a fun, quick read to satisfy my (non-creepy, non-homicidal) fascination with poisons/toxic substances. Stewart does not go into great detail with any of the plants featured - it is more a volume of factoids and interesting tidbits - and the book is laid out beautifully with etchings of the various plants. My only complaints are primarily aesthetic: the type-font used for the plant headings is difficult to read (to the extent that I would not know about which plant I was reading More...

When I read the description, I thought Wicked Plants would involve more storytelling about how the plants were used to be atrocities. However, I enjoyed Stewart's description of the evil plants (many that we find among us) and learned many new things. If only I'll be able to recall these new facts when needed.

Best learned fact: Plants containing urishiol (poison ivy, oak, and sumac) can be identified by crushing the stem or leaf of the plant in white paper. If it contains urishiol, then the pap More...

Possibly the most interesting book related to gardening ever.
So many plants and flowers featured here have the most wonderful names, some delightful (the Rosary Pea, Finger Cherry and Angel's Trumpet), others clearly named so as to warn you of their nastiness (such as Ratbane, the 'poison that keeps on killing'), but all are potentially dangerous, and often fatal.
It was very interesting to learn how plants have interacted with social history, one notable example being the Peacock Flower, the se More...

The presentation of this book is lovely, from the interesting smaller size to the wonderful graphics and dark images on each page. The contents of the book are easy to digest (no pun intended regarding poisonous plants) and many of them fit the "good to know" category, so it's something you'll enjoy reading *and* you'll learn important things in the process. My main criticism of the book (and the reason for the 3 star review) was the amount of redundancy. There are too many "wicked plants" that More...

A fascinating compendium of plants that includes the traditional poisonous plants like Henbane, Mandrake, Deadly Nightshade and Strychnine; the intoxicating plants like Opium Poppy, Marijuana, Magic Mushrooms and Coca; to the truly bizarre plants like the Australian Stinging Tree (Dendrocnide moroides) whose fine silicon hairs contain a virulent neurotoxcin that causes unbearable pain and even death to those who regrettably touch its leaves or the Jaborandi (Pilocarpus jaborandi)aka "Slobbering More...

Could have been exponentially better if only it had had pictures! I kept referring to Wikipedia while reading the book to get an idea of what each plant looked like and where it was usually found, but that gets tiresome.[return][return]I really love this kind of book. Small blurbs that are just enough to get you interested in looking up more information sometimes... but I don't want to do it for each and every entry![return][return]The book is a lot of fun to read. As a fan of books like The Boo More...