Reviews

“A don’t-wanna-put-it-down unspooling of the socio-political, economic and historical forces that led to the cultivation of four crops. Pollan is a master at making connections, seeing the lines that connect disparate dots in the complexities of the garden, be they of a political, literary, historical, socioeconomic or, even, sexual realm.” Chicago Tribune

“Funny, interesting and as delicious as a slice of summer peach … a must for people who like a good story.” New York Daily News

“A glorious piece of prose … Pollan leads readers on his adventure with humor and grace.” Chicago Tribune

“An utterly terrific book … an inspired meditation on the complex relationship between space, the human body, and the human spirit.” Francine du Plessix Gray

“A captivating and informative adventure.” John Berendt, author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

“Michael Pollan looks at the world as a poet does, very closely and obliquely, and writes in prose that has the brilliant plainness of a piece of Shaker furniture.” Janet Malcolm

“By weaving in thoughtful bits of architectural history and theory with a simple, honest writing style, Pollan has created a glorious piece of prose that speaks to everyone of the built environment, how it shapes us and we it.” Chicago Tribune

“[Pollan] alternates between describing the building process and introducing informative asides on various aspects of construction. These explanations are deftly and economically supplied. Pollan’s beginner status serves him well, for he asks the kind of obvious questions about building that most readers will want answered.” The New York Review of Books

“A tour de force … [Pollan] writes gracefully and humanely. He is a true carpenter-craftsman of prose.” Phillip Lopate

“By shrewdly combining just the right mix of personal reflection, architectural background, and nuts-and-bolts detail, Michael Pollan enables us to see, feel, and understand what goes into the building of a house. The result is a captivating and informative adventure.” John Berendt

“Second Nature is…as delicious a meditation on one man’s relationship with the earth as any of you are as likely to come upon.” The New York Times Book Review

“One of the distinguished gardening books of our time.” Noel Perrin, USA Today