Simply the best and most complete mushroom field guide and reference book, with over 950 photographs.
This is the be-all and end-all of mushroom books! Truly an encyclopedia of mushroom facts and lore, lavishly illustrated with full-color photographs, literally everything you need to know about mushrooms, edible or not. Arora has taught mycology for close to twenty years and has hunted and photographed mushrooms across the North American continent. Threaded through the book are his wry and humorous observations and comments, making what could have been a rather dull, "just-the-facts, ma'am" reference book into a really enjoyable read. The stunning photographs of the incredible variety of fungi are fascinating and eye-opening, and while the author gives clear and factual information, the mysterious allure of mushrooms in their countless shapes, sizes and colors is only increased by this huge and delightful book. --Mark Hetts
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Mushroom's are still a mystery...:
For people interested in shroom hunting, this book is great. I only wish it contained more color photos. For people of the Pacific Northwest, I am told that the 1st edition is more area specific, and I think I'll buy me a used copy.
For Western US only:
At first glance this little gem of a guide seems to cover most world-wide species of mushrooms. But, its not until you begin to read the preface that you realize that this guide is for only the Western US, specifically California. Being in Belgium, I dont see many of these mushrooms mentioned around. But it a great book and explains in great detail the bio-sheres where mushrooms can be found. My only negaive is the lack of color plates to describe particular varieties. Black and white plates do not cut it... more info
Mushrooms demystified?:
If I were a beginner, I would have been totally confused by this book. The problem comes from the dichotomous keys. They can be confusing and lead you in the totally wrong direction. The author says up-front, that there are several reasons you can be lead astray by the keys, mainly user error. Well, the keys are only as good as they are written. After having said the keys are confusing, the rest of the information provided in the book is quite good and very detailed. I wish there were more color photos to... more info
Excellent book with loads of good info:
This is a very good reference book with tons of information. It is well written and easy to use.
