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The Pursuit of Paradise - A Social History of Gardens and Gardening (Paperback, New Ed) Loot Price: R340
Discovery Miles 3 400
The Pursuit of Paradise - A Social History of Gardens and Gardening (Paperback, New Ed): Jane Brown

The Pursuit of Paradise - A Social History of Gardens and Gardening (Paperback, New Ed)

Jane Brown

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Loot Price R340 Discovery Miles 3 400

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It is hard to imagine that Jane Brown's excellent and hugely knowledgeable book could be bettered. This is gardening history presented with a broad sweep yet in the most meticulous and fascinating detail. Her look at the world of growing and digging and philosophizing starts with the sound of the hoe and ends by reminding us that gardens are made of earth and are important because it is the only Earth we have. In between she presents a vast international panorama of gardens and deals with our pretensions and prejudices, yet she never neglects the small human scale and homely details that make the book so charming and memorable. As one would expect from an author who is as much a biographer as a historian, she deals with the different groups of people who have pursued their own version of paradise at different times. Canons and reverends abound in one chapter; women shuffle down the medieval corridors of history in another; while the Mogul garden (or chahar bagh) is populated by members of a harem, smoking opium and dabbing henna between a favourite's thighs to cool premature ardour. Homosexuals are a star turn, like William Kent and Horace Walpole, only recently outed. The toilers in the garden such as the vegetable growers and molecatchers are anonymous, but among the designers, big names feature. Brown, Repton and Gertrude Jekyll of course, but also the neglected J C Loudon, the sad heiress Ellen Willmott, and more recently, Sylvia Crowe and John Brooks. It is, however, the gardens that are the real heroes of the book. The glorious arboreta in the valleys of Central Mexico; the groomed landscapes; the military gardens whose legacy lives on in the straight lines of little allotments; the small post-war plots which emerged during the era of the Dunroamins; and the gardens of the future. As Brown points out, gardens are about the tension between order and chaos. Often funny and sometimes profound in the way she handles this, she is the most and energetic of companions and has given a treat to all gardeners who pursue their own Eden. Review by DIANA SAVILLE Editor's note: Diana Saville is the author of Capability's Eden. (Kirkus UK)
This book will provide a new perspective on the way we garden, why we garden and what it means for us. Full of fascinating characters and vignettes - from ancient Greeks to suffragettes, from eccentric military men to Catholics in hiding from persecution - The Pursuit of Paradise looks into how society's changes have altered our views of gardening, who does it, and how we do it. What drives people to risk their lives in search of a rare Himalayan flower? Why are so many gardeners homosexual? How did gardening become a respectable career for women? When did looking at other people's gardens become a national British pastime? Using particular gardens to lead into themes like power, refuge, female emancipation, distribution of wealth and fashion, Jane Brown presents a history of the nation through its most popular national pursuit. It will be essential reading for the horticulturally impassioned for years to come.

General

Imprint: HarperCollinsPublishers
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Release date: September 2000
Authors: Jane Brown
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 25mm (L x W x T)
Format: Paperback - B-format
Pages: 400
Edition: New Ed
ISBN-13: 978-0-00-638867-8
Categories: Books > Health, Home & Family > Gardening > General
Books > Reference & Interdisciplinary > Interdisciplinary studies > Cultural studies > General
Books > Gardening > General
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LSN: 0-00-638867-1
Barcode: 9780006388678

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