This is a great handbook for children and families to explore and use herbs. My 3 children loved it and highly recommend it!

This is a fun and informative beginner herbal book for kids (and their grown ups) that's filled with lovely photos and simple recipes and crafts. It teaches kids about ten wild plants to use -- chickweed, elderberries, white pine, mullein, nettle, yarrow, dandelion, bee balm, catnip and plantain. Each one features information along with a few recipes or crafts. I read this as one of those "this ARC will self destruct in so many days" books and I let it sit after reading it too long so I can no longer refer to it for specifics.

There are great photos, although some of these seem to be stock images if I remember right, which I always find frustrating as they don't seem to always match the recipe or activity shown. Also, there were small drawbacks like the elderberries shown were not fully ripe when they're shown being harvested, which greatly diminishes their helpful qualities. They should be a deep purple-black and I think these were light in color with some green berries IIRC. That said, this is a great book and teaches a lot of beginning herbal information for kids. A great resource for families.

What a beautiful and informational book! Highly recommend this for herbal enthusiasts, foragers, or survivalists. It's put together in a way that is easy to understand and follow along with, which I really appreciated.

Herbal Adventures is a new foraging and wildcrafting guide which presents herbcrafting as a family activity. Released 23rd Oct 2018 by Quarto on their Young Voyageur imprint, it's 176 pages and available in flexibound and ebook formats. Author Rachel Jepson Wolf is a farmer/herbalist/educator and enthusiastic wildcrafter.

There's certainly no lack of herbing and wildcrafting books on the market lately. What distinguishes this one from the pack in my opinion is that it presents wildcrafting as a group learning activity. Children are naturally curious and almost universally enthusiastic learners. Activities picked up in childhood often have lifelong effects. Learning about nature and our natural surroundings, self sufficiency, experimentation, stewardship and responsible use of natural resources are vitally important lessons. This book is a useful tool.

The introduction and get-started chapters represent about 20% of the page content. The next chapters make up an herbal with 10 very common backyard herbs for temperate regions. These include mullein, elderberry, chickweed, yarrow and 6 other no-fail plants. There's also a chapter with a selection of simple, safe herbal recipes for crafting. The book includes a very short resource list and bibliography. There is also a simple index at the back of the book.

This would make a superlative family activity book or a good book for a classroom module for science, with a history tie in.

Five stars, well written, and well photographed.

Herbal Adventures was a simple read and a great introduction to herbs. The book also has great photos which helps bring the whole book to life.

I'm an avid hiker and I've often wondered about the different plants and flowers that I see along the trail. I attended a couple of lectures at my local library and co-operative extension office but was unable to make much of the information I was given there. All I really needed was this book! For many, many years, the only medicines or palliatives our ancestors had were the plants they gathered from around them. There was no Tylenol in the medicine cabinet.
Using the easy to understand information and beautiful pictures in this book, we have now identified many useful plants not only in my back yard but along the many miles of trail we walk. this has enriched our experience and allowed us to pass along the information to out grandchildren, nieces and nephews. We're not only preserving history but building memories for the next generation. I recommend this book to all of our friends and have even told the instructor at the library about it. That's the best review I could give any book.

Thank you Quatro Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC.

This was a great book to encourage and enthuse children to the world of gardening. We enjoyed reading this book and all the ideas it gave us.

There are more lists of tools / supplies given over here before one even begins to roam, watch, enjoy and learn from one's outdoors! Which means spending more money before you've even begun. Also, for herbal teas - I mean, doesn't it really depend on where one is? If chickweed resembles scarlet pimpernel which is 'not safe to eat' shouldn't there be a picture / image of pimpernel too in this book? (same for other plants / flowers given here). And if one has to stay away from every single thing that occurs in nature (including roads / pathways!) then why go to all this trouble of chewing and then spitting and then applying chickweed to a 'cut, scrapes, bee stings or rashes.' Why go to all this trouble! I also do not like the 'recipe' for chickweed: I think a person knows what to put in a salad and if one has to take the honey, olive oil, lemon, gelatin and beeswax to these excursions, then one is missing the whole point..There are recipes that frankly are idiotic: 'Elderberry Flower Honey': which is basically the flower placed in honey for 2-3 weeks, stirred daily and then sifted out (!) It goes on and on for other flowered honey pots: 'Dandelion Fritters' is nothing more than a pancake recipe with a dandelion flower thrown in the mix. Also, the 'natural dye' looks cheap - just because one can use something in more than one way does not mean one should (dyed wool on pg. 69). Rice Buddy (pouch full of rice and herbs) are made through baking oven / microwave oven! 'Nature's Brushes' ('brushes' made of pine and celery leaves) is useless.

Lovely photography though - done by Wolf, the author. It's great to look at and someone may find it useful too. It's a cross between herbal-benefit book and food recipes, with not much exploration involved.

Instead of the very complicated and time-consuming directions for 'The Young Herbalists Plant Press,' (which I did not understand), kids should do what we used to do - like our mom - as children - which is gathering the leaves and pasting them in a simple sketch book - and then pasting a plastic paper over them for 'preservation' - though they will dry out - or take a picture (!) and you can draw them, paint, do whatever around them too! You'll appreciate the uniqueness of each leaf, petal, stem, root, appreciate nature (and / or God) and horn your creative skills too. (of course, the irony of preserving leaves on the same thing that is created by cutting trees is not lost on me!)

Instead of following the 'Nature's Brushes,' do an idea that is alluded to by the author there, but not explored - cut fruit in half, look at core, put in some paint and then place on a cardboard paper to copy the colorful image on paper. Create cards and thank you notes this way!

I am really interested in foraging and I loved how many photos they are in this book. It helps a lot. Also, the recipes are great and really interesting to start with a plant you do not know about. I therefore recommend this book to everyone who wants to know the plants that can be easily foraged and used but also some other things that were a great addition to this book.

I'm interested in foraging, so this was right up my alley. I like that the focus is pretty narrow. Here are a few plants that a person can safely find and use. They are common plants, relatively easy to find, and with a wide range of uses. I might have liked a little more information about identifying the plants, specifically a guide to similar plants and how to distinguish this plant from similar plants. I like that there were a wide range of used for these plants - medicinal, nutritional, and artistic. Plenty of safety warnings too.

I am a gardener and a hiker, but I hadn't really thought about how these two things go together. I grow many herbs, but foraging wasn't something I ever did when I was walking in the woods or hiking. Herbal Adventures opened my eyes to the fact that many of the things I seasonally grow are also available thanks to Mother Nature. Having some basic knowledge of what you can pick and how you can turn an enjoyable time outside into something that also means you might come home with some herbs has me looking forward to spring.
There is quite a bit of useful information in this book. Chapters cover Getting Started, 10 different plants(from chickweed to white pine), and Basic Recipes. I especially appreciated the section, “Leaflets three-let it be”. I am one of those people who has a severe reaction to poison ivy and for anyone who doesn't know how to recognize and avoid it, this was information you don't want to skip.
The author does a wonderful job explaining each plant. In the Elderberry chapter( for example) the plant is identified by a picture and a breakdown of the stem, leaves, flowers, berries, growth habit, habitat, range, and lookalikes. She then discusses how you can use it to make natural dyes, syrup, gummies, soda syrup, honey, and switchel. There is something to learn in every chapter even if you aren't a novice. Lots of pictures, lots of ideas, and a good selection of resources at the end. If herbs and/or foraging interests you, I would recommend this book.

This book is a fabulous beginning way to become familiar with a few common herbs and their uses. I will for sure be purchasing this book as soon as possible. Loved it!

Herbal Adventures: Backyard Excursions and Kitchen Creations for Kids and their Families is a carefully worded, simple to understand guide for kids and their adults to create - and enjoy! - the cultivation, storage and use of many of the herbs that have been used by families for generations to promote health and ward off illness. I have many guides I have collected over the years but this is the best I have ever seen for youngsters and beginners to understand and enjoy the family herb garden. The photos are crisp and clear, making identification simple, and the enthusiasm expressed by Rachel J. Wolf is contagious.

I received a free electronic copy of this guide from Netgalley, Rachel Jepson Wolf and Young Voyageur publishing on Jan 5, 2019. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

Wanting share the magic of plants with your kids? This book is perfect for parents and kids wanting to know the basics of foraging, herbalism and wild crafting. Wolfs infectious style will have you in the garden or your local forest hunting with your children for ingredients to make delicious tasty healing treats. Kids will love the spit poultice recipes readying them for any scrap or bee sting on the go. Educators and homeschoolers will find this book most useful with lots of eco and sustainable activities included. Written for the northern hemisphere market, southern hemisphere folk may need to purchase some ingredients dry from a herb provider although most herbs discussed in this book are readily available globally or recipes can be adapted.