Description
Author: William Sturgis Thomas
Publisher: G. P. Putnam’s Sons
Place: New York
Year: Undated later impression; third edition originally revised in 1948
Edition: Third edition, fourteenth impression
Format: Hardcover with dust jacket
Page Count: 350
SBN: 399-10285-X
ISBN-10: 0-399-10285-X
Condition: Very Good hardcover in a Good dust jacket. The jacket shows age toning, scattered spotting and soiling, rubbing, edge creasing, and minor tears. The interior appears clean with light age toning. Photographs show the actual copy offered.
Description
A classic illustrated guide to the mushrooms commonly encountered in North American woods and fields, William Sturgis Thomas’s Field Book of Common Mushrooms combines practical identification information with the inviting character of a vintage naturalist’s handbook.
This revised and enlarged edition describes 164 mushroom species. It is profusely illustrated with nearly 100 full-page color plates and more than 200 additional illustrations drawn from life. The book discusses identifying features, habitats, seasonal appearance, and the historical classification of both edible and poisonous mushrooms.
Part of Putnam’s respected Nature Field Books series, this compact guide captures an earlier era of amateur natural history, when readers carried illustrated reference books into the field to observe and record the natural world firsthand.
Because mushroom classifications and knowledge about toxicity have changed, this vintage volume should be enjoyed for its historical, educational, and illustrative value—not relied upon as a current guide to determining whether a mushroom is safe to eat.
Why We Love This Book
The vintage jacket and abundance of mushroom illustrations make this a particularly appealing book for those people interested in foraging who want to do it safely. Because this is an older reference, identification and edibility information should always be confirmed with a current regional field guide or qualified expert before consuming any wild mushroom.