First, let me start by saying that I did enjoy the basis of this book. As someone who often practices in the natural craft, I like reading different sources as an opportunity to learn something new. I love herbs. I love learning about them and using them, and I like avoiding prescription-based medication when possible. On with the review. I think we are always looking at these types of books as if they might find a place in our libraries as a resource that might replace many books in just one book. Can I look up an herb and find out all I want to know without going through 5 different books to find what I am trying to remember? This book will not be that book for you. I liked the layout. I liked the informative beginning. What I didn't like is so very much. I didn't like that I felt like the author got less informative as the book went on. I didn't like that the author would tell you something but not tell how. For example: "The leaves are typically used to remove evil spirits from the home and to return evil to enemies and to protect against those doing you harm" is a line written in the book. That is all. Nothing more. What do we do with the leaves? Wear them? Burn them? Place them somewhere? Is a ritual needed? In another area the author states, "Augustus Caesar's Physician listed no less than 47 disease for which it was effective". That is all. That is fascinating. I googled it. Imagine my surprise when I found the exact same thing written in witchipedia and nothing more there either. If it's no longer relevant or you cannot find the information then it shouldn't be included. That's fascinating and all but...we use it for none now. Maybe that should have been a follow-up line, that they have since been dismissed. Most you seem to get from this is recommendations for teas and room sprays and a little bit of history that may or may not be relevant.
In the end, this books was very simple and it left me wanting more.

This is a comprehensive collection of the magical and historical uses of herbs and plants. Draco provides instructions on how to prepare a variety of recipes for things such as infusions, poultices, decoctions, etc. I intend to use this book as a reference for my work as a green witch!

So I love the information in this book and what I can create with these herbs. My only disappointment is that there aren't any images against some of the more obscure herbs to help you recognize what they look like. That was a lot of back and forth of reading and going to google to look at what these look like to learn and identify them more clearly. I loved how each section has the scientific name, common name, simple recipe, do not use's, magical use, superstition/folklore and the authors own personal note for each herb.

Really enjoyed this book and it was super informative.

Wow. I really like this book. It not only covers simples, but also provides the Latin names, Common names, Magical uses, and folklore information as well. I’m a history geek, so all of this extra information and the Latin names make this not only an insightful read, but an enjoyable one too. I highly recommend this book!