As curator of the Miller Library, I often have to make difficult decisions about adding new books.\u00a0 This is especially true for books on subjects already well-represented in the collection, such as roses, herbs, or (especially!) orchids.<\/p>\n
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Therefore, I was skeptical when learning about a new book titled \u201cOrchid Muse.\u201d\u00a0 Did we really need an addition to the already bulging shelves on this plant family?\u00a0 My mind changed only after reading praise for the book by Doug Holland, Director of the Peter Raven Library at the Missouri Botanical Garden, who described it as \u201ca happy reminder of why I fell in love with plants and the history of botany.\u201d<\/p>\n
More a collection of biographies than plant profiles, author Erica Hannickel recounts the zealous passion orchids have instill in historical figures.\u00a0 Some, like Charles Darwin, are already celebrated for their love of plants, but most are better known for other pursuits.\u00a0 This includes heads of state, heads of industry, artists, and scholars, but also enslaved peoples, and women who strived to have their voices heard in a male-dominated world.<\/p>\n
Several stories stood out for me.\u00a0 It may surprise you that the first public orchid show in the United States took place in a dime museum located in the \u201cTenderloin District\u201d of New York City in 1887.\u00a0 The actor Raymond Burr is best known for his role as the criminal defense lawyer Perry Mason in a television series from 1957-1966.\u00a0 Less well known was the escape he found from bigotry in his orchid collection that he shared with his male partner of 33 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cVanilla is an orchid that has benefited from, and been decimated by, global trade.\u201d\u00a0 This succinctly describes the history of only genus of this family that has become an important food crop.\u00a0 This saga includes Edmond, a twelve-year-old, enslaved boy with no last name on the island of Bourbon (now R\u00e9union), who discovered how to hand-pollinate this orchid, making it a profitable crop.<\/p>\n
This book has proved its worth by winning the 2023 Annual Literature Award by the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries \u2013 and a place on the shelves of the Miller Library!<\/p>\n
Reviewed by: Brian Thompson on August 4, 2023<\/p>\n
Published in Garden Notes: Northwest Horticultural Society<\/em>, Fall 2023<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As curator of the Miller Library, I often have to make difficult decisions about adding new books.\u00a0 This is especially true for books on subjects already well-represented in the collection, such as roses, herbs, or (especially!) orchids. Therefore, I was skeptical when learning about a new book titled \u201cOrchid Muse.\u201d\u00a0 Did we really need an addition to the already bulging shelves on this plant family?\u00a0 My mind changed only after reading praise for the book by Doug Holland, Director of…<\/p>\n