Cheerfully offering themselves to passersby, berries have been juicy staples of the human diet for millennia. They are good luck charms and amulets to some, portents of doom to others. They inspire everything from lip gloss flavors to amusement parks (Knott’s Berry Farm, anyone?)—but eat some varieties and your days will be numbered. We create special bowls and spoons for their presentation and consumption, and without them, there would be no Neapolitan ice cream, and jam would be nothing but a marmalade (though oranges are technically berries, too). However diminutive their stature, berries are of such significance to Northern and Eastern Europeans that picking them in the wild is deemed “everyman’s right,” an act interwoven with cultural identity.

In Berries, Heather Arndt Anderson uncovers the offbeat stories of how humans came to love these tiny, bewildering fruits. Readers meet the inventor of thornless brambles; learn ancient fables and berry-lore; discover berries’ uses in both poisonous witches’ brews and modern superfood health crazes. Featuring a selection of historic and original recipes for berry lovers to try, this is a witty and lushly illustrated ramble through the curious history of our favorite fruits, from interlopers like strawberries (not true berries) to the real deal: tomatoes.

There are some of us who can’t even stand to look at them—and others who can’t live without them: chillies have been searing tongues and watering eyes for centuries in innumerable global cuisines. In this book, Heather Arndt Anderson explores the many ways nature has attempted to take the roofs of our mouths off—from the deceptively vegetal-looking jalapeno to the fire-red ghost pepper—and the many ways we have gleefully risen to the challenge.
            Anderson tells the story of the spicy berry’s rise to prominence, showing that it was cultivated and venerated by the ancient people of Mesoamerica for millennia before Spanish explorers brought it back to Europe. She traces the chilli’s spread along trading routes to every corner of the globe, and she explores the many important spiritual and cultural links that we have formed with it, from its use as an aphrodisiac to, in more modern times, an especially masochistic kind of eating competition. Ultimately, she uses the chili to tell a larger story of global trade, showing how the spread of spicy cuisine can tell us much about the global exchange—and sometimes domination—of culture. Mixing history, botany, and cooking, this entertaining read will give your bookshelf just the kick it needs.