“Who knew? This elegant, all-knowing compendium on all things pear is a boon companion to pomologist and fruit historian Morgan’s The Book of Apples (1994), among other fruit-centered histories. It’s truly intended as a reference, even for those culinarians intent on mastering the best information on pears. Much of the narrative traces the fruit’s transit from 1000 BC in the Yangtze Valley to today’s world distribution, documenting its role in various lands and in literature. In addition to Dowle’s realistic and detailed watercolors, innumerable historic photographs and illustrations grace the book’s pages. One-third of the book is occupied by a catalog of 500-plus varieties, from the former USSR’s Abas Beki to a French Zoe, based on the Defra National Fruit Collection, in Kent, with each entry including the cropping level, when-to-pick ripening season, vigor, use (culinary versus eating), size, shape, color, eye, basin, stalk, cavity, flesh, flower, and tree. A thorough investigation of one wonderful fruit.”—Booklist
“This comprehensive, highly specialized work discusses everything one might want to know about pears. The first section contains a complete history of the fruit, including about 90 reproductions of historic images featuring the pear. The following section is a directory documenting all pear varieties in the Defra National Fruit Collection in Kent, England, featuring well over 500 kinds, along with complete descriptions, season, use, tasting notes, and cultivation information. Artist Dowle, an extremely talented illustrator of fruit who earlier collaborated with pomologist Morgan on the Book of Apples (1993), presents 40 precise color illustrations of pear flowers, fruit, and branches. Their evident love for the pear yields a gorgeous volume. The detailed history could use additional editing, but it covers the subject in eight well-documented chapters. A key to pear identification and short essays on cooking and growing pears complete the volume. Due to its focus on the Defra collection, the work will appeal primarily to the clientele of specialized horticultural and art libraries. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and researchers/faculty; horticulturalists.”—Choice
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