American Wildflowers: A Literary Field Guide

A unique, stunningly illustrated exploration of North American wildflowers, weaving together history, folklore, and literature.

This beautiful coffee table book pairs the detailed botanical knowledge of a field guide with the evocative power of a literary anthology, offering a new way to appreciate the flora around us. Beyond being a simple identification guide, American Wildflowers is a rich journey through the history, cultural significance, and enduring beauty of the American landscape.

A perfect gift for anyone who seeks a deeper connection to the American landscape, this book is a winner of the American Horticultural Society Book Award.

Each entry is a meticulously crafted profile that includes:

• Striking, full-color botanical illustrations for accurate identification.
• Essential scientific and habitat information.
• Fascinating histories of medicinal, culinary, and decorative uses.
• Cultural folklore and myths associated with the species.
• Poetic and literary excerpts from naturalists, poets, and writers like Henry David Thoreau, Emily Dickinson, John Muir, and Mary Oliver, highlighting the plant's place in American consciousness.

Perfect for gardeners, nature lovers, hikers, and literature enthusiasts alike, this book celebrates the biodiversity of North America and shows how wildflowers have inspired—and continue to inspire—our greatest thinkers and artists.

With exquisite watercolors by National Book Critics Circle Award-winner Leanne Shapton throughout, editor Susan Barba has gathered insightful and meaningful writing from contributors including:

• botanists William Bartram, George Washington Carver, and Robin Wall Kimmerer, and horticultural writers Neltje Blanchan and Eleanor Perényi
• essayists Aldo Leopold, Lydia Davis, and Aimee Nezhukumatathil
• poets Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, William Carlos Williams and T. S. Eliot to Allen Ginsberg and Robert Creeley, Lucille Clifton and Louise Glück, Natalie Diaz and Jericho Brown