Chasing the Rain: My Treasure Hunt for the World's Most Beautiful Mushrooms By Taylor Lockwood. Taylor Lockwood has done it again. Through pictures, he relates the diversity of life-forms found in this very large, but still relatively little-known kingdom. He tells the stories behind those pictures, shows us ones not yet published, and reveals something new. Taylor's anecdotes on photographing mushrooms in various climes and conditions chronicle the connection between people who hunt mushrooms all over the world. Developing friendships with colleagues and fellow mushroom enthusiasts around the globe has afforded Taylor a unique perspective on people, travel, and nature-from the ground up. With fungi as the common denominator, barriers of language, culture, and politics are erased. Through his lens, we are taken on a gentle journey that is sometimes exciting, oftentimes funny, and always close to the earth. Hardcover, 128 pages, with over 500 full-color photographs. BSCTR $29.95

NEW! Mycophilia: New Revelations from the Weird World of Mushrooms By Eugenia Bone. Throughout history fungus has been prized for its diverse properties—medicinal, ecological, even recreational—and has spawned its own quirky subculture dedicated to exploring the weird biology and celebrating the unique role it plays on earth. Accomplished food writer and cookbook author Eugenia Bone examines the role of fungi as exotic delicacy, curative, poison, and hallucinogen, and ultimately discovers that a greater understanding of fungi is key to facing many challenges of the 21st century. Engrossing, surprising, and packed with up-to-date science and cultural exploration, Mycophilia is part narrative and part primer for foodies, science buffs, environmental advocates, and anyone interested in learning a lot about one of the least understood and most curious organisms in nature. 384 pages, hardcover. BSMP $26.95

Chanterelle Dreams, Amanita Nightmares By Greg A. Marley. With tales from around the world, Marley, a seasoned mushroom expert, explains that some cultures are mycophilic (mushroom-loving), like those of Russia and Eastern Europe, while others are intensely mycophobic (mushroom-fearing), including, the US. He shares stories from China, Japan, and Korea—where mushrooms are interwoven into the fabric of daily life as food, medicine, fable, and folklore—and from Slavic countries where whole families leave villages and cities during rainy periods of the late summer and fall and traipse into the forests for mushroom-collecting excursions. From the famous Amanita phalloides (aka “the Death Cap”), reputed killer of Emperor Claudius in the first century AD, to the beloved Chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius) known by at least eighty-nine different common names in almost twenty-five languages, Chanterelle Dreams, Amanita Nightmares explores the ways that mushrooms have shaped societies all over the globe. This fascinating and fresh look at mushrooms—their natural history, their uses and abuses, their pleasures and dangers—is a splendid introduction to both fungi themselves and to our human fascination with them. 288 pages, softcover. BSCDAN $17.95

Trees, Truffles, and Beasts: How Forests Function By Chris Maser, Andrew W. Claridge and James L. Trappe. Because today's ecological decisions are tomorrow's consequences, every small effort makes a difference, but a broader understanding of our environmental problems is necessary to the development of sustainable ecosystem policies. The authors make a compelling case that we must first understand the complexity and interdependency of species and habitats from the microscopic level to the gigantic. Comparing forests in the Pacific Northwestern United States and Southeastern mainland of Australia, the authors show how easily observable species—trees and mammals—are part of a complicated infrastructure that includes fungi, lichens, and organisms invisible to the naked eye, such as microbes. Eminently readable, this important book shows that forests are far more complicated than most of us might think, which means simplistic policies will not save them. Understanding the biophysical intricacies of our life-support systems just might. 288 pages, softcover, with 42 color and 67 B&W illustrations. BSTTB $26.95

NEW! Sepp Holzer’s Permaculture Sepp Holzer farms steep mountainsides in Austria 1,500 meters above sea level. In this book, Holzer shares the skill and knowledge acquired over his lifetime, covering every aspect of his farming methods; not just how to create a holistic system on the farm itself, but how to make a living from it. Holzer writes about everything from the overall concepts, down to the practical details. Yet the book’s greatest value is the attitudes it teaches. He reveals the thinking processes based on principles found in nature that create his productive systems, principles that can be applied anywhere. Includes a chapter on mushroom cultivation. 256 pages, softcover. BSSHP $29.95

Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture By Toby Hemenway. Newly revised and expanded! Picture your backyard as one incredibly lush garden, filled with edible flowers, bursting with fruit and berries, and carpeted with scented herbs and tangy salad greens. The flowers nurture endangered pollinators. Bright-featured songbirds feed on abundant berries and gather twigs for their nests. The plants themselves are grouped in natural communities, where each species plays a role in building soil, deterring pests, storing nutrients, and luring beneficial insects. You have created a garden paradise. This book provides the botanical knowledge and technical expertise to take the principles of permaculture and apply them on a home scale, with simple yet comprehensive strategies for creating a self-sustaining ecosystem in your own backyard. 320 pages, softcover. BSGG $29.95

A Safe and Sustainable World: The Promise of Ecological Design By Nancy Jack Todd. This well-researched and readable book is a first-hand account of the efforts of the New Alchemy Institute—a nonprofit organization formed in the late sixties to address the basic human needs of food, shelter and energy. Detailing the Institute's design and construction of two large, independent bioshelters-cum-research facilities, this book is full of practical ideas as well as lofty principles. A great text for the sustainability movement and an inspiring story. 232 pages, hardcover. BSSSW $28.95

Mr. Bloomfield's Orchard By Nicholas P. Money. Internationally recognized mushroom expert Nicholas Money has written a fascinating and entertaining look at the elusive world of fungi, from brewer's yeast to Death Caps and beyond. Biology, history and humor are interwoven to form a truly remarkable book, with topics as varied as economics, mycological techniques and the history of mycology, and the ecological role of mushrooms. A must for anyone who marvels at the mystery of mushrooms. 224 pages, hardcover. BSMBO $26.00

Magical Mushrooms, Mischievous Molds In this lively book, George Hudler leads us on a tour of an often-overlooked group of organisms. Along the way the author stops to ponder the marvels of nature and the impact of mere microbes on the evolution of civilization. Nature's ultimate recyclers not only save us from drowning in a sea of organic waste, but also provide us with food, drink, and a wide array of valuable medicines and industrial chemicals. Some fungi make deadly poisons and psychedelic drugs that have interesting histories in and of themselves, and Hudler weaves tales of those into his scientific account of the nature of the fungi. The role of fungi in the Irish potato famine, in the Salem Witch Trials, in the philosophical writings of Greek scholars, and in the creation of ginger snaps are just a few of the many great moments in history to grace these pages. Hudler moves so easily from discussing human history to exploring scientific knowledge, all with a sense of humor and enthusiasm, that one can well understand why he is an award-winning teacher both at Cornell University as well as nationally. 264 pages, softcover. BSMMMM $26.95

Reflections on the Fungaloids By Betty Williamson. This beautiful, 13 1/4 x 9 3/8 inch coffee-table book interweaves science, mysticism and art into a fascinating tapestry. The full-color illustrations of mushrooms are breathtaking, and are accompanied by taxonomic, historical and cultural data on the species depicted. Reflections on the Fungaloids is a valuable addition to any mycophile's library! 144 pages, softcover. BSROTF $39.95

The Rainbow Beneath My Feet By Arleen and Alan Bessette. This amazing reference guide by two prominent names in the world of mushrooms details the use of mushrooms as wool dyes. Includes descriptions and illustrations of dye mushroom species (including over 200 photographs), description of dyeing equipment, preparation of wool for dyeing, a color key for dye mushroom species, and more. 176 pages, softcover. BSRBF $24.95

Shroom: a Cultural History of the Magic Mushroom By Andy Letcher. Much stranger than the fictions it has inspired, the world of the magic mushroom is a place where shamans and hippies rub shoulders with psychiatrists, poets and international bankers. The magic mushroom was rediscovered only fifty years ago but has accumulated all sorts of folktales and urban legends along the way. In this timely and definitive study, Andy Letcher strips away the myths to get at the true story of how hallucinogenic mushrooms, once shunned in the West as the most pernicious of poisons, came to be the illicit drug of choice. Chronicling the history of the magic mushroom, from its use by the Aztecs of Central America and the tribes of Siberia through to the present day, Letcher takes a critical and humorous look at the drug's more recent manifestations. Informative, lively and impeccably researched, Shroom presents a unique and engaging study of this most extraordinary of psychedelic drugs. 384 pages, hardcover. BSSCHM $14.99

Teonanácatl: Sacred Mushroom of Visions Edited by Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. Teonanácatl was the name given to the visionary mushrooms of Mesoamerica by the Aztecs, who used them in shamanic religious ceremonies for healing and divination. In modern times, the visionary mushrooms have become the focus of study into their psychological and spiritual benefits, and have been cultivated and collected worldwide by those seeking to expand their consciousness. In this inspiring work, Dr. Metzner has assembled a collection of writings by some of the most influential thinkers in the field, including John Allen, Timothy Leary, Terence McKenna and Paul Stamets. 293 pages, softcover. BSTSMV $15.95

The Sacred Mushroom Seeker Edited by Thomas J. Riedlinger. This book is a tribute to R. Gordon Wasson, legendary figure whose work with psychoactive plants helped to revolutionize the field of ethnobotany. Features essays by such luminaries as Terence McKenna, Peter T. Furst, Gastón Guzmán, Albert Hoffmann, Alexander Shulgin, and many others. 304 pages, softcover. BSSMS $24.95

The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants By Christian Rätsch. In this epic and exhaustive work, world-renowned anthropologist and ethnopharmacologist Christian Rätsch details the botany, history, distribution, cultivation, and preparation and dosage of more than 400 psychoactive plants. He discusses their ritual and medicinal usage, cultural artifacts made from these plants, and works of art that either represent or have been inspired by them. The author begins with full monographs on 168 of the most well-known psychoactives—such as Cannabis, Datura, and Papaver—then presents minor monographs on 135 lesser known plants. He also explores plants used by indigenous people that have not yet been identified by modern botanists as well as plants and psychoactive substances known only from mythological contexts and literature, such as ephemeron, kykeon, and soma. He offers a thorough discussion (including 20 full monographs) of psychoactive fungi, referred to in ancient times as the "food of the gods" and used by shamans in many cultures for entry to the spirit world. Dr. Rätsch concludes with an analysis of the chemical constituents responsible for plants' psychoactive powers. 944 pages, hardcover, with 645 black-and-white illustrations and 797 color photographs. BSEPP $125.00

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