Books

THE SECRETS OF THE SEED: VEGETABLES, FRUITS AND NUTS, Barbara Friedlander, Grosset & Dunlap, $9.95.

What Ms. Friendlander has given us is a kind of ethnology of the various tribes comprising the vegetable-fruit-nut society. Her superb introduction traces briefly the origin of plant cultivation from vague pre-history myths through the fatal mechanization of the Industrial Age to our present preprocessed times.

There follows an alphabetical cataloging of individual fruits, vegetables, nuts and herbs. These individualized cameos include relevant information from literature and myth as well as historical and nutritional facts, with occasional simple line-drawings of the subjects.

Friedlander is careful to distinguish between fact and fancy. Any mythical attributes of her subjects are either dismissed as obviously erroneous or, if they seem to have some basis in scientific fact, explicitly explored. Thus, in her exposition on garlic's reputed currative powers:

"Young garlic contains a strongly antiseptic oil called allyl disulphate, which inhibits the growth of bacilli... Several laboratories in the United States have attempted to synthesize the antibiotic present in garlic and the Russians have already manufactured one, though there does not appear to be much literature about its efficacy. . . "

There is also a wealth of literary information here, including biblical quotations, and information on various foods' symbolic import. Often some historical explanation is included with the symbolic definition. Thus, in relation to almonds:

"In Israel the beautiful pink or white flowers of the almond tree appear even before the leaves do - as early as January. This phenomenon has made the almond tree symbolic; in Asian mythology it is often portrayed as the father of everything in nature ..."

There is also a plethora of information on what geographical areas certain foods are native to, what "sub-species" they produce, and accurate verbal descriptions of them.

Following the series of "portraits," there is a correlative index concerned with preparation of foods (including "consumer information" on when they are at their peak of freshness and how they should be appraised).

Lastly there are specific nutritional analysis charts, charts which inform the potential grower of foods on proper procedure, and a short series of recipes. With such an abundance of varying information the book can be used by anyone interested in growing or preparing foods, or simply taken as a fascinating compilation of historical and literary data on the charming world of our friends-and-victims, edible plants.

-- Leslie Coutant

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