This has the potential to be an interesting and popular foraging book. Its laid-back style and anecdotal asides add to a well-structured and interesting approach to the topic.

That said, the book is dotted with attitudinal statements that detract and in some cases insult the reader. There is one aside where the author shows clear hostility towards people from a different country. As someone who is from that country, I found his statements to be both unpleasant and irrelevant, given that his book is clearly for a North American audience. I could easily have discarded the book at that point, but continuing on, this incident raised my awareness of other asides that could be omitted or rewritten as they are not necessary and are detrimental to the book as a whole.

The book is in draft format, so I will not post more widely. This will allow the author the opportunity to reflect.

--What You Need To Know To Eat Mushrooms and Live--

I received an electronic ARC from Storey Publishing through NetGalley and here are my thoughts.

This book delivers on the promise of its title. The author teaches the reader which 29 mushrooms to focus their foraging efforts on, which mushrooms to give wide berth to, and detailed, concise checklists and excellent photos to help you on your mushroom hunting journey.

This book will give you clarity about the mushrooms you seek to eat.

It will not overwhelm you with geeky mushroom science.

And it's written in an entertaining style, which elevates it even more.

Lastly, the book design, graphics, and layout are excellent, and further enhance the book's value as an invaluable field guide for beginner mushroom foragers.

I'm a forager by nature, and take great joy in finding 'free food' that's fresh, delicious and most importantly, safe to eat. I'll admit that I'm not a mushroom eater, but my husband loves them. Every week we purchase a container of store-bought mushrooms for him. My forager's daydream is to be able to gift him with a basket of fresh, fun, free fungi, picked by hand, and most importantly, safe. I have no wish to become a widow before my time.

If only I could sit down and spend the afternoon chatting with a knowledgeable mushroom forager. Oh, wait... I can! Author Frank Hyman takes a casual, friendly approach towards teaching us about mushroom foraging. The jokes, silly remembering-rhymes and fun anecdotes from his own foraging adventures entertain us as we learn. Behind that relaxed attitude though, the information he shares is solid.

I'm particularly interested in Chicken of the Woods. Frank swears it tastes just like chicken! I'm also intrigued by the Cauliflower mushroom. If it really does taste like buttered egg noodles, one of my childhood favorite dishes, I just might be converted to a mushroom aficionado after all. Based on his recommendations, I googled to see if these mushrooms grew in Michigan. To my delight, they do! I'll continue to search for other mushrooms available to me locally.

Thank you to author Frank Hyman, NetGalley, and Storey Publishing for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.

I came to this book as a complete beginner with no idea about foraging for mushrooms. What I got from reading it is that actually in a worrying amount of cases there are similar mushrooms, some of which are edible and some of which will make me very sick indeed unless I scrutinise the mushroom in a number of ways. Yet I found the author's tone occasionally a little obnoxious - very much "only idiots will accidentally poison themselves" - and some of his theories such as why English people don't forage for mushrooms were borderline offensive. I think this perhaps was intended as humour as the general tone of the whole book is quite light-hearted, but as an English person I didn't find it that funny. As an English person I also didn't find the book very useful at all as I don't think most of those mushrooms grow in Europe, and I wouldn't have read this book if I had been aware at the start that it is about North American fungi.

On the positive side, the pictures are lovely - but do I think that I would rely on this book to help me identify fungi as a complete beginner? No, absolutely not. I would want to see pictures of each of the identifying features that the author is describing so that I am absolutely sure what I am picking is edible and not a killer. I also think that some of the "small print" details such as "this edible mushroom might cause you gastrointestinal distress if not cooked properly" perhaps ought to have been put in larger print!

I love mushrooms but I'll be leaving their collection to the experts.

Thanks to Netgalley for a free review copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This is a very comprehensive guide on how to
Identify edible mushrooms. There are several cues and easy to remember rhymes to keep you from eating poisonous and more importantly deadly mushrooms. Initially I had intended on foraging for edible mushrooms but quite honestly after all the in depth color photography and discussion, somewhere along the line I lost interest. I think the idea of making a mistake led me to feel compelled to stick to simple white and portabella mushrooms from my grocers shelf. Thank you to #netgalley and #frankhyman for this advance copy

Delightful, easy to use, and full of colorful photographs. This is a book I'd recommend anyone carry in their backpack while hiking or taking a stroll out in the woods.

I adored this!
Easy to read and understand with analogy that had me chuckling out loud at times it is a wonderful addition for anyone who is interested in foraging!

Clear pictures, good descriptions or physical features make for easier identification this guide also includes a ton of resources for further reading, information on cleaning, cooking, and storing what you forage, and a really helpful section on the tools you will likely need.

I actually can't wait for this to come out in physical form so that I can add notes to the fungi found here in the UK too so that I can apply the info when I am out in the forests at home.

I would recommend this for all mushroom lovers and hope that one day there is a UK version too!

This book is not for clueless people. It is definitely not a beginner guid. If you never went in the forest for mushrooms I don’t recommend to take this book as a guide. I have been picking up mushrooms since I was a child with my father. Some if the tips are helpful but the book does not offer explanation on how to detect, compare and spot mushrooms that are eatable. The information is kind of vague for a beginner and I wished there were graphic and pictures and more illustrated informations

4☆ A Fascinating Guide to Mushroom Foraging.

How to Forage for Mushrooms without Dying is a fascinating book. It explores everything about Mushrooms, the facts and looks at how to identify and forage safely.

Mushrooms have always fascinated me, especially when you see them randomly pop up wild. I have really been impressed with this book. It goes into alot of depth about Mushrooms and I certainly have learnt quiet a bit.

Although there is a fair amount of information before you get to Identifying Mushrooms, the information is not boring in the slightest. I found it to be very informative and more of a conversation style. Perfect for Beginners.

I loved the photographs and they really show the reader just what to look for.
I prefer photographs to illustrations in books like these as the really highlight the colours, and any distinct markings to look out for.
I never knew there was so many types, colours, shapes and sizes. Even one called a Lions Mane and a Tinder Conk which is the shape and look of a Horses Hoof.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in Foraging, Mushrooms or just wants to learn something new.

I haven't had the chance to venture out with this in hand just yet but I really enjoyed reading it! Well designed and with really clear photos. The text has a lot of information with a great tone that made me want to read it all rather than just skimming for the important information. Hyman has actually done most of the work of making sure the most important details are obvious and front and center.

Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of HOW TO FORAGE FOR MUSHROOMS WITHOUT DYING (An Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Identifying 29 Wild, Edible Mushrooms) by Frank Hyman in exchange for an honest review. This books gives you novice-friendly description of the different types of mushrooms and their habitats before giving clear descriptions and pictures of the listed 29 edible mushrooms and their habitats. The work also goes above and beyond to point out all of the similar inedible mushrooms and how to distinguish them from the edible ones. The contents also include suggestions on how to store and use the edible mushrooms.

I liked it and recommend it to those interested in possibly finding and harvesting wild mushrooms.

#HowtoForageforMushroomswithoutDying #NetGalley

I received an ARC of this book on NetGalley

5 stars for this fungi.

This book is written with the burgeoning forager in mind. If you are just getting into mushroom hunting, like I am, this book is the perfect launch point. It doesn't overwhelm with hundreds of species, spore print requirements, and Latin names. Instead, it is a practical guide that highlights some of the main edible mushrooms and common poisonous ones. The simplicity helped me stay with the hobby instead of feeling like I was overwhelmed and didn't know enough.

I liked the casual tone of the author as well. Carry the book with you in the woods and you'll feel like you've got a guide over your shoulder when you read it. I wish it wasn't 9 pm, I want to go out in the woods after the rain we had all week and see what's sprouting!

I plan on purchasing a physical copy of this book as soon as I have the extra funds. I love mushrooms and have always been interested in foraging for food. The book was laid out so nicely for a beginner and would absolutely make me feel more confident when going out to hunt on my own. I would recommend this to any newbie mushroom forager.

How to Forage for Mushrooms without Dying is an absolute beginner's guide to safely foraging for edible mushrooms. The book includes basic information about mushrooms, guidelines for staying as safe as possible, and identifications of many common mushrooms a person is likely to find.

This a really great beginner's guide for someone who is starting the hobby of foraging for mushrooms. The author does a great job of using simplified language (and some humor) that makes the book easy to follow and understand without feeling like a textbook. The use of sayings and rhymes for the rules and guidelines is clever, and a helpful way to help the reader remember these very important tips. I found the book well illustrated, in particular the chapters on common mushroom identification. How to Forage for Mushrooms without Dying is well written and full of useful information, and is a book I would recommend for anyone interested in taking up this hobby.

Thanks to Netgalley and Storey Publishing for this ARC; this is my honest and voluntary review.

I read a LOT of foraging books (and have written a couple) and this is probably my favorite mushroom foraging book that I've read. It's filled with color photos and really complete information about mushrooms. It tells all the ways to ID them, doesn't overly rely on spore prints, tells look-alikes, and even tells you the best way to eat and preserve them. This is a fantastic book for beginners but will also be well loved by those of us who are already used to gathering mushrooms. Love, love, love.

I will definitely be recommending it on our family foraging blog and the free nature/foraging magazine that I publish (Wild Kids Magazine) when it's published in October 2021.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for review.

HOW TO FORAGE FOR MUSHROOMS WITHOUT DYING by Frank Hyman

As the title implies, this is a very interesting book. People ask all the time if the mushrooms you see growing wild are edible. I happen to be married to a Shiitake mushroom grower, so I have all the mushrooms I'll ever need. I think this book would be a very handy resource to have, in the event of an apocalyptic event, if food becomes hard to attain.

Everyone would become a forager and it would be awesome to know what mushrooms are edible and which are not. We live in the woods and are always on the lookout for morels. I have known people who hunt all of the wild mushrooms for food and fun.

The author gives expert advice as to what you are looking for and what to avoid when hunting for mushrooms.

Highly recommend.

Much gratitude to #netgalley for the complimentary copy of #howtoforageformushroomswithoutdying I was under no obligation to post a review.

I received a copy of this book through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.

This is an in depth book!

I was surprised how thorough it is! While the book is not written in a super academic way, but it is a bit dense at times. The book includes pictures, identifying tips, rhymes to remember what to eat, and other helpful information!

The book emphasizes what not to eat which is very helpful as a beginner. There's information on how to identify mushrooms as well as how to handle and prepare them. There's beautiful pictures and explanations of where to find mushrooms and the time of year.

A very interesting guide about mushroom foraging!

How to Forage for Mushrooms without Dying by Frank Hyman is an excellent collection and user-friendly read introducing the wonderful world of foraging, identifying, and enjoying mushrooms.

The author presents the subject matter concisely, easily, and in a way that even beginners can appreciate and understand. We get an overall introduction to mushrooms, how to forage, what to look for, how to identify commonly encountered types of mushrooms in the US,, and what to do with said finds.

The descriptions, the references, the images, and pictures were exquisite. I loved the Safety Rhymes for Beginners. So catchy and so accurate.

This is an excellent resource that has so much, yet is presented so well, that it can be essential for any forager, nature enthusiast, or recreational hiker from beginner to experienced, I will be using this book to help introduce and teach my son the wide world of mushrooms.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Storey Publishing for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 10/12/21.

The blurb reads "With the surging interest in foraging for mushrooms, those new to the art need a reliable guide to distinguishing the safe fungi from the toxic. But for beginner foragers who just want to answer the question “Can it eat it?”, most of the books on the subject are dry, dense, and written by mycologists for other mycologists.

Frank Hyman to the rescue! How to Forage for Mushrooms without Dying is the book for anyone who walks in the woods and would like to learn how to identify just the 29 edible mushrooms they’re likely to come across. In it, Hyman offers his expert mushroom foraging advice, distilling down the most important information for the reader in colorful, folksy language that’s easy to remember when in the field."

This book was very interesting and relevant, I know many people that forage for food. Mushrooms are something you really cant take any chances with and if you live in the US this is an excellent guide. the pictures were helpful and make the recognition simple.

Thank you to Netgalley, Storey Publishing and the author Frank Hyman for giving me the opportunity to read an early copy of 'How to Forage for Mushrooms Without Dyinng."

This is a great, easy guidebook for anybody who wants to try their hand at mushroom foraging! I've been foraging for mushrooms since I was little but I still learned so much from this book. My only wish was that they had included a map showing where each mushroom could be found by region.