Targeted Trade Books: Botany

We are all familiar with Gertrude Stein’s “a rose is a rose is a rose.” One of the most popular flowers, roses appear in a rainbow of colors, although there has never been a true blue rose. Roses have been described as “an index of civilization.” Author Catherine Horwood follows the history of roses over many centuries in multiple areas of the world, using interesting stories not usually found in other books. It is not known how long roses have been sharing their beauty and scents around the world, but fossils of primitive roses dating back 25–30 million years support the conclusion that they have been longtime inhabitants. In the early years of the first millennium, Arabs grew roses to produce rose water that was used for cooking, ritual cleansing before prayer, and building purification. In those times, the rose was important in Islam, but condemned or rejected in Judaism...