RUTH KASSINGER – BOOK GIVEAWAY

RUTH KASSINGER’S NEWEST BOOK A GARDEN OF MARVELS  – CURRENTLY ON MY BED TABLE, AND HERE, IN THE GREENHOUSE ON A RAINY DAY.

It’s rare today, to find an author who will not only research each topic well, but who will bother to jump not on the Internet, but into a car or onto a plane, to go visit a nursery – to experience it, and then to write so thoughtfully about the entire experience. Ruth Kassinger is such an author. I’m not sure how to say this eloquently, but here’s the honest truth – her two recent books A GARDEN OF MARVELS and PARADISE UNDER GLASS sit next to my bed table ( well, sometimes on the floor – but hey, that’s where I keep my favorite books – you know, the ones I actually pick up and read most every night).

A GARDEN OF MARVELS is one on those rare books that I can read a few chapters of each night, whispering out loud “Oh wow” or,” Oh my God” and still jot notes down in my notebook, for a plant that I might need to find. It’s that sort of cross-over book, that I can read, appealing to my horticultural geekyness, and yet I can share it with a non-gardeners, who would find it equally as interesting.

For what it’s worth, for  book to remain on my side table for so long is perhaps the best praise I could ever bestow on a book (Really – that Real Estate is hot in my little world – a silly world which is jam packed with journals, iPads, laptops, lorazapam, empty glasses of wine, tv remotes, Candy Crush and bottles of Evian and an alarm clock.) I admit, I am a piece of work, but I do love my personal time when I can read – and there are far too many books that just remain in the bookcase.

So, althgouh I am a bit ‘picky’ what I choose to read – any book  that can hold my short attention span on the downside of Ritalin for weeks on end deserves praise. Ruth joins a handful of selected favorite authors in this private club of the bedside table including the likes of Wayne Winterrowd, Thalasa Cruso, Bernd Heinrich and Ruth Stout. Yes, all light reading, but totally an informed and immersive sort of reading environment – exactly what I crave.

I spent some time Saturday repotting seedling and orchids in the greenhouse, taking short breaks to read Ruth Kassingers latest book. Here, a Dendrobium linguiforme blooms on a post.

I first met Ruth Kassinger at a garden bloggers conference last September. After I spoke to a large crowd, she came up to me and introduced herself briefly – we chatted about greenhouses, and conservatories, and she handed be her card, all the while telling me about her newest project, a book about building a conservatory, her journey through the process ( which included everything from a diagnosis of Cancer, to overcoming many hurdles in both dealing with a life change, a family death, and rebirth through plants).

Later that month, I received a package in the mail from her publisher with her book Paradise Under Glass. I didn’t have high expectations at first, feeling that this could very well end up being a book about dealing with a horrid disease, and then, recovery perhaps. Not something I am sure that I would want to relive right now, at least, not before I go to bed. But once I passed through the first chapter, I discovered that Ruth and I shared a lot of passions in life, and even though she was more on the learning/beginner end of gardening, and in constructing a greenhouse, I could not only relate, I found that while spending each evening on the journey with her, helped me rediscover my passion for plants.

In her most recent book, A GARDEN OF MARVELS, I am continuing on her same journey, but on deeper mission. To be honest I have not finished the book yet, as I am a slow reader, but as I said earlier – there are very few books that I read completely – page 1 to the end, but Ruth’s books are in my top 7. I am one third through the book, and delighted with it even more than the first. It’s a beautiful hardcover book, with a nice deckle edge and great cover design ( I am a sucker for nice books, with good hand feel, paper quality and typography, and this book has all of that – so refreshing today.

A GARDEN OF MARVELS, By Ruth Kassinger, available at bookstores everywhere, and at Amazon

Ruth must love researching, as she can jump from the history of glass greenhouses, to poly hoop houses in Florida where citrus grafting takes place, back to the 19th century, all within a single chapter. If she has an interest in begonia’s or rare tropical conservatory plants, she actually drives north to Logee’s in CT to find out from their owners, the exact history of a plant, or even their greenhouse business. She is a story teller supreme, but a factual one – the best kind. No fiction here, just interesting curious backstories, which all seem to connect in various chapters to help her make a point.

I am going to give away my second copy of A Garden of Marvels, so please leave a comment and I will draw next Friday night. Good luck!