Have you ever thought about an apple. You know the saying “ An apple a Day keeps the doctor away. “ While lying on his death bed from tuberculosis in 1862 , well known writer Henry David Thoreau wrote an essay about apples which was published after his death, It was entitled ‘Wild Apples’- a must read on the ode to the apple through its history. In Michael Pollan’s book, “ Botany of Desire,” the first part of the book discusses the apple and its history. I urge you to read this book.
Perhaps being a doctor has intrigued my interest in Apples. I enjoy apples as part of my dietary regimen consuming at least 3 - 5 apples a week. This began my search for a book of Apples. Apples you think are truly American but they are not. The only apple trees in America were wild small bitter crab apples when first settled. The Europeans were smart enough to bring apple seedlings to be planted.
The book that drew my attention to this and much more is the Reaktion Botanical Series book on Apples by Marcia Reiss. There are 11 delicious chapters to read and digest ( no pun intended) with some called The Searching for Sweetness, Bad Apples, Good Apples and even Misplaced Apples.
You will come away after reading this book with a refreshness towards this fruit and more knowledge than ever thought possible.
Until tomorrow…