Witch-Doctor's Apprentice: Hunting for Medicinal Plants in the Amazon (Library of the Mystic Arts)

Amazon.com

This memoir of travels in the Amazon has an agreeable twist: Nicole Maxwell was hunting for medicinal plants with the triple goal of conserving the jungle, improving the lot of humanity and having a great deal of fun. Her tales span countries and decades, as we watch her mature from an enthusiastic if somewhat naive idealist to a true trouper. Despite setbacks and disillusionment, she never lost sight of her goal, and lived to see others pick up the task of cultivating important medicinal plants and knowledge, and further her cause of preserving the jungle through wiser use.

Book Description

When Nicole Maxwell first visited the Amazon more than forty years ago, she had no idea that she would make a life's work of the people, plants and lore to be found there. Decades before Americans became aware of the riches to be found in the knowledge of plant medicines which native shamans had passed down over thousands of years, Ms. Maxwell, a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, was scouring the Amazon ram forest for clues to this ancient medical tradition.

Now, on the eve of the decade in which mankind will have its last chance to determine the fate of this region and its wealth of traditional knowledge, Citadel Press's Library of the Mystic Arts is proud to bring out a newly revised edition of this classic work. Long hailed as one of the major works of popular ethno-medicine, this book is both an engaging adventure story and an engrossing account of the traditions of plant medicine to be found among the tribes of Amazonia -- and its re-release could not be more timely.

Scientists now fear that one plant species per day is being made extinct by man's ravenous appetite for "progress". Of the plants which are found only in the Amazon rain forest, only a tiny percentage have been tested for their full medical possibilities. Witch-Doctor's Apprentice is an inspiring and amusing plea to modern civilization to save these plants -- and the people who know how to use them -- before they are destroyed forever.

On the occasion of this newly revised edition, Ms. Maxwell has created an appendix which catalogs all of the plants mentioned in the text, with their scientific names, the names by which they are known locally, and their medicinal uses. This edition also includes a newintroduction by the noted ethno-botanist Terence McKenna.

"A spirited and engrossing personal narrative, as much about people and places, discomforts and dangers, the beauty of the jungle and the arc-leap of wordless communication across cultural barriers, as it is about... bringing natu

Customer Reviews:

Remarkable woman, ethnobotanical classic.......2005-07-30

Nicole Maxwell was an amazing woman who devoted much of her life to collecting and studying jungle plants for medicinal purposes. I read the first edition twenty years ago before leaving for the same location she had been to in the late 1950's of the Peruvian Amazon. This third edition is also first class.
After putting up with remote jungle river travel, wading through swamps knee deep, fighting off persistent insects, confronting the hot, humid climate and accommodations of isolated tropical living, plus other dangers and hazards of the rainforest too numerous to mention, she was snubbed by major pharmaceutical companies for the plant cures she discovered from local natives.
She had found plants that cured arthritis, eye diseases, diabetes, forms of cancer and plants that enhanced healing. Along with plants used as contraceptives, she also located ones which increased fertility and some that assisted in childbirth. Plants for infections, intestinal parasites, tooth and gum disorders, etc. are a few more to mention. The list goes on.
An extraordinary woman whose sole purpose in life was to benefit the well-being of humanity but unfortunately had it fall upon deaf ears.

Witch-Doctor's Apprentice : Hunting for Medicinal Plants in.......2001-06-21

This was a great read for me back in '94 when it was presented as a gift and I have often recommended it. Nicole shares her life story when she is in her 80s. One needs to keep in mind the prevalence of ethnocentricity of our society back in the 50's and 60's. And to her credit she tells the WHOLE story, including all her fumbling bumblings of an imperfect human. As one who has ventured a little into the Bolivian and Belizian jungle her misadventures are only to be expected and provide great humor and reading. An example of her humor is while she is deep in the amazon jungle she relates that she wasn't all that concerned because what self respecting warrior would want a meazly female head for a trophy. Nicole was way ahead of her time in two areas: collecting ethnobotanical information and plants, and fighting multinational corporations in the pharmaceutical industry by bringing information directly to the people. I wonder if anyone has ever discovered what that one plant was that given one tbsp a woman was sterile until given a tbsp of another plant and she was fertile again! One may only be able to realize what an adventuresome and hardy soul she is, if you have taken steps into the amazon jungle yourself.

Witch Doctor's Apprentice Review.......2000-10-31

The book Witch Doctor's Apprentice is a personal narrative about Nicole Maxell's Journey into the Amazon. On her quest to find medicinal plants of the Amazon she is forced to overcome many obstacles. The book appealed to me as a nature enthusiast and an aspiring physician. I expected to learn about tropical plants and their uses in modern medicine. Instead it was a boring journey where she spent most of her time wandering around.

Maxell did do a good job using sensory detail. For instance, "She changes her distinction on every new fashion she follows. She changes the length of her hemline, the shape of her hate, the way she does her hair without altering her own strikingly individual personality." That description of a chic woman was used in a comparison with the town of Lima in Peru. The purpose of the book was informative, but it was nice when she did include the detail. Details helped move the story along and let us relate to the people/characters. She included a few travel troubles but instead of allowing the reader to find humor in them she made her dilemmas into catastrophies. In a similar book, Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams, he is looking for nearly extinct animals. That book was much more enjoyable because he was able to include humor. His book also included photographs. Often Maxwell would attempt to describe a complex plant and a photo would have been useful. She tried to include every detail of her trip, which made it boring. If she could have focused more on a few major events the book would have flowed better. Some chapters were extremely dull.

I liked how this non-fiction story included character evolution. Maxwell started out almost naïve about the Amazon and ended up far wiser. If she had done more research it would have cut out half of the story, which was made up of her messing around. Throughout the book Maxwell insults the indigenous people many times. At one point she states that, the Indian is the 'best looking male animal she has seen.' She is also surprised that the Indians are not savages. I hope her stereotypes can be attributed to the fact that she set out on her journey in 1958. She seems to think she is better than the people instead of treating them as equals. If she had valued the information they gave her, perhaps she would have had a more successful journey.

In my own writing I would like to use better imagery. She was able to describe things I've never seen before exceptionally well. I learned from her how difficult it could be to write a personal narrative. There are always ways to improve and she definitely had some improvements to make. The language she used made the time period clear and also showed how inexperienced the people were. This book was interesting but it was an un-enjoyable slow read.

Waste of Paper.......2000-09-04

I am a big fan of ethnobotany and Amazon stories but this is pathetic. She gets nearly no medicines on her journey, ends up chasing Indians around becuase she never meets them, and has racial slurs (published in 1961 originally) about how suprised she is that the Indians are not savages and unpolite ,etc.. She actually says that one Indian was the 'best looking male animal she has seen' Insane. Not a good book.

The essence of the Amazon is "captured" in words........2000-03-18

An excellent book on the amazing Amazon jungle written by atrue "worldly treasure," Nicole Maxwell. END

Witch Doctor's Apprentice: Hunting for Medicinal Plants in The Amazon

Average customer rating:

Witch Doctor's Apprentice: Hunting for Medicinal Plants in The Amazon
Nicole Maxwell
Manufacturer: MJF Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MB9L0W

Book Description

America's oldest major city, Boston has adapted to the modern age while still retaining an old-world charm. With many of her streets tracing original ox-cart paths to historic waterfronts, Boston is "America's Walking City." This volume documents the amazing changes that Boston has undergone during the last 150 years. Seventy modern color photographs are compared side-by-side with seventy archival photographs from the 1850s to the 1950s. While focusing on famous vistas and familiar landmarks, it also explores well-known neighborhoods. The Then and Now series includes: New York, Washington, Boston, and San Francisco.

Customer Reviews:

* Great Series .......2006-12-02

If the reviewer above, Charles Henry Higgensworth III, is the epitome of what a Bostonian is, then I will feel much more satisfaction in reading this book in the comfort of my dilapidated home here in Hickville, Indiana, than actually visiting the city of Boston. If you are not a true Bostonian, and are time-pressed and vapid, like me, this book is probably right up your alley. So us simpletons, who don't like to read, should find this book a real pleasure. This book isn't intended to give an entire account of the history of Boston. Mr. Higgensworth apparently can't see the forrest for the trees. I guess his superior intellect has it's limitations.

In all seriousness, this book is what it is. You take an old or historic photo, then see a contemporary photo taken from about the exact same spot and compare the two. If you don't find that concept interesting, this book probably isn't for you.

* I haven't actually flipped through this particular book, but I have seen at least 7 other books in this series. They were all fantastic and work as a great substitute for actually getting to visit that particular city. I was not disappointed in any of them and have little doubt that this one is of the same caliber.

Then and Now.......2006-09-16

The photographs in this book are good shots - clear, and larger than I had expected. It is very interesting to see how the historical city of Boston was, and how it has changed over the years, most times for the better, though sometimes for the worse.Perhaps I would get more out of this if I knew more about Boston. Unless you are already familiar with this city, then "Boston Then and Now" gives you the feeling of peeping through the windows of a house that's up for rent, rather than being taken on a guided tour. A map certainly would have been helpful, and how about an entire page of background information rather than a footnote? Just an idea, in case someone decides to revise it someday. Nice book. Worth buying.

SNOBS.......2004-06-26

"Boston Then And Now" was reviewed by Charles Higgensworth III. I do hope there won't be a number 4 Higgensworth. This man should drop the attitude. Then people may like him almost as much as this book. What a jerk!

A good backstop to any trip to Boston's sites.......2003-05-28

We purchased this book in Boston and found almost all of the sites we saw in town in this book. In this book, the older, up to 150-year old photo of the original structures on the current site, or older pictures than offered a juxtaposition of the surrounding landscape of buildings present in the past and now around selected sites.

While I was a little disappointed in no picture of Fenway Park, or in a map to help locate where some of these pictures were taken in the city (after all, I'm not a native of Boston), I found the book to very ably support the exhibits we saw on Boston's history, and add greatly to my understanding of the city and the growth of urbanism in general. The architecture depicted is often unique, and the descriptions offer a bit of information on who the architects were, how the areas shown were constructed, and more.

Overall, I came out pretty pleased by what is found in this book.

Boston for the Time-Pressed and Vapid.......2003-01-01

If Boston were a lengthy work of great scholarship, "Boston Then and Now" would be the Cliff Notes. And were you to rely upon them come examination time, you would be failed for having a trite and simplistic understanding of the weighty tome you had been asked to master. This is essentially a series of photos of Boston neighborhoods and vistas taken way back then ... followed by photos of the same neighborhoods and vistas taken now. Get it? Then ... and Now! Photo pairs are accompanied by fortune-cookie length observations that only a primate would find edifying. True Bostonians will find this book every bit as delightful as Game Six of the 1986 World Series.

Average customer rating:

Now and Then
Robert B. Parker
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Hard-Boiled | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Mystery & Thriller Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0399154418
Release Date: 2007-10-23

Book Description

When a simple case turns into a treacherous and politically charged investigation, Spenser faces his most difficult challenge yet-keeping his cool while his beloved Susan Silverman is in danger.

Spenser knows something's amiss the moment Dennis Doherty walks into his office. The guy's aggressive yet wary, in the way men frightened for their marriages always are. So when Doherty asks Spenser to investigate his wife Jordan's abnormal behavior, Spenser agrees. A job's a job, after all.

Not surprisingly, Spenser catches Jordan with another man, tells Dennis what he's found out, and considers the case closed. But a couple of days later, all hell breaks loose, and three people are dead. This isn't just a marital affair gone bad. Spenser is in the middle of hornet's nest of trouble, and he's got to get out of it without getting stung. With Hawk watching his back, and gun-for-hire Vinnie Morris providing extra cover, Spenser delves into a complicated and far-reaching operation: Jordan's former lover, Perry Alderson, is the leader of a group that helps sponsor terrorists. But Perry doesn't like Spenser poking around his business, so he decides to get to Spenser through Susan. The Boston P.I. will use all his connections both above and below the law to uncover the truth behind Perry's antigovernment organization. But what Alderson doesn't realize is that Spenser will stop at absolutely nothing to keep Susan out of harm's way; nothing will keep him from the woman he loves.

Boston Then and Now: 59 Boston Sites Photographed in the Past and Present

Average customer rating:

Yes, Virginia, there really was a Boston before the Big Dig
Far out of date!

Boston Then and Now: 59 Boston Sites Photographed in the Past and Present
Peter Vanderwarker
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Reference | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Photo Essays | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0486243125

Book Description

Dramatic juxtaposition of old and new photographs reveals architectural richness of Boston. 59 side-by-side views document city's growth between 1850 and 1980. Here are narrow streets surrounded by skyscrapers and building facades that range from early Federal styles to the latest examples of the Modern Movement. Captions.

Customer Reviews:

Yes, Virginia, there really was a Boston before the Big Dig.......2003-05-01

I'm not so certain that a book like this should be judged solely on its age. If anything, it now serves the same purpose as the original round of pictures did when it was first published.

This is a very different Boston from the modern one, you see -- Boston of 1980-82 was a crime-ridden, economically crunched failure of a city that had suffered the indignity of its historical places being ripped out for poorly-thought-out highway projects. A chronically depressed waterfront had been converted first to parking lots, then to high-rise apartment and office space; an architecturally conservative but rich city had disappeared under haphazardly built skyscrapers and prematurely decaying public works. And yet it still provides a view of places that in some ways haven't changed at all over the years, like Park Street, or places like Boylston St. near the Common that have changed profoundly yet are still very recognizable.

It's not as good a book as its successor, Cityscapes of Boston, as it has a tendency to avoid some things that were too weird (the Borders bookstore on School and Washington where I used to work -- used to be the Five Cent Savings Bank) or too blighted, and shots of some notorious Boston events like the Great Molasses Flood are missing, but it's still a very interesting book. I do hope Vanderwarker and Campbell have a third book in the works to cover Boston during and after the Big Dig, but get this one and Cityscapes together anyway before your next walk around Boston.

Far out of date!.......1998-09-02

Unfortunately, being published in 1983, "Boston, Then and Now" should be titled "Boston, Then and THEN". It has been almost 20 years since the "now" photos were taken and Boston has changed greatly in that period. I would love to see a reissue of this book with updated photos. Right now, it makes little sense to purchase a book so out of date.

Average customer rating:

South Boston

South Boston (MA) (Then & Now)
Anthony Mitchell Sammarco
Manufacturer: Arcadia Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 0738539481
Release Date: 2006-10-09

Book Description

South Boston, once a part of Dorchester, was annexed to the city of Boston in 1804. Previously known as a tight-knit community of Polish, Lithuanian, and Irish Americans, South Boston has seen tremendous growth and unprecedented change in the last decade.

Customer Reviews:

South Boston .......2006-08-27

8/26/2006 I still Have not received my book. Two books ordered on 7/23/2006 .One arrived promptly, still waitng for the second.

Average customer rating:

Very interesting!

West Roxbury (Then & Now)
Anthony Mitchell Sammarco
Manufacturer: Arcadia Publishing (SC)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 0738512478

Book Description

Once a part of Roxbury, West Roxbury was originally known as Westerly. Located six miles from Roxburyís town center at Meeting House Hill, which was settled by Puritans in 1630, Westerly was composed of farms and large estates. In 1840, Brook Farm, a transcendental community striving to live and commune with nature, brought fame to the hamlet. In 1851, after years of agitation headed by the Honorable Arthur Austin, West Roxbury officially separated from Roxbury and became an independent town. Meanwhile, the Boston and Providence Railroad, with various depots, such as Bellevue, Highland, West Roxbury, and Spring Street, launched a building boom that continued unabated well into the twentieth century. New streets and houses soon fragmented the farms and large estates. West Roxbury chronicles the development of this desirable and well-regarded Boston neighborhood through vintage images from the collection of the West Roxbury Historical Society and modern photographs taken by Charlie Rosenberg. ÝÝ

Customer Reviews:

Very interesting!.......1999-09-28

Having been born and raised in West Roxbury, Massachusetts, I found this book quite interesting. It's fun to look at the historic pictures of what my neighborhood looked like when it was just a town.

It also explains how West Roxbury got that name. Many people mistakenly believe that West Roxbury is the western side of Roxbury, but it is not. West Roxbury is separated from Roxbury by Jamaica Plain and Roslindale, and borders Dedham, Newton, Brookline, and Roslindale. This book explains that back in the 17th century, Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, and West Roxbury were all Roxbury. To make a long story short, they were eventually divided up into different neighborhoods. Today's modern West Roxbury is actually at the western tip of what used to be Roxbury in the 17th century. This explains why the oldest school in the country, Roxbury Latin (which is located in West Roxbury), has that name.

Book Description

Once referred to as the ìSuburb Superb,î Roslindale was at one time part of the town of West Roxbury, which had been set off from Roxbury in 1851. The rapid development of Roslindale, which was annexed to the city of Boston in 1874 and was then known as the South Street District, was largely due to the Boston and Providence Railroad and the streetcars that connected the area to Forest Hills Station. By the twentieth century, Roslindale had developed as a distinctive neighborhood that attracted residents of all walks of life, with dells and valleys reminiscent of Roslin, Scotland, from which it received its name. Roslindale chronicles the growth of this neighborhood from the birth of photography through today by combining vintage images with modern photographs of Roslindale Square, Washington Street, and noteworthy buildings and businesses. ÝÝ

Average customer rating:

very interesting for t hose interested in Boston

Boston's South End (MA) (Then & Now)
Anthony Mitchell Sammarco
Manufacturer: Arcadia Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 073853949X
Release Date: 2006-03-29

Book Description

BostonÂ's South End, built on mostly man-made land, had become the cityÂ's premier neighborhood by the 1850s and featured many parks embellished with cast-iron fountains and distinctive fences. Over the next century, the South End became a thriving melting pot of ethnicities, races, and religions. BostonÂ's South End shows how this areaÂ's brick row houses, lush green parks, upscale restaurants, and Boston Center for the Arts have made the South End both an attractive destination and a popular residential area.

Customer Reviews:

very interesting for t hose interested in Boston.......2003-07-19

This book has 128 pages, with almost every page covered by two black & white photographs with a short caption. Chapters are: The Early South End, Places of Worship, Schools, Hospitals, Temples of Fun, Transportation, The 20th Century, The Library, and Business & Industry.

The picture captions are interesting and credit their source. The book may have benefited from more text, but it is chock full of great photoographs that bring this interesting neighborhod to life. Volumes on the Back Bay and the North End are interesting also.

Average customer rating:

Boston's North End (Images of America)

Boston's North End (Then and Now)
Anthony Mitchell Sammarco
Manufacturer: Arcadia Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
General | State & Local | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Boston's North End: Images and Recollections of an Italian-American Neighborhood

Boston's Back Bay in the Victorian Era (MA) (Images of America)

ASIN: 0738555037
Release Date: 2007-11-05

Book Description

Since BostonÂ's settlement in 1630, the North End has developed from a neighborhood of residences and artisan shops. Known for the nationally important Paul Revere House, which is the oldest standing building in Boston, and the Old North Church, the North End is a destination for tourists.

Customer Reviews:

Boston's North End (Images of America).......2006-11-10

The pictures in this book are excellent. I very much enjoyed the book. I have been doing genealogy on my family and my husband's Boston Irish family. It gave me a good idea of what things were like back then.

Average customer rating:

BOSTON: Then and Now
Elizabeth McNulty
Manufacturer: Thunder Bay Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000RMHE50

Then and Now in Education 1845 to 1923: A Message of Encouragement from the Past to the Present (American Education: Its Men, Ideas, and Institutions. Series II)

Average customer rating:

Then and Now in Education 1845 to 1923: A Message of Encouragement from the Past to the Present (American Education: Its Men, Ideas, and Institutions. Series II)
Otis W. Caldwell , and S. A. Courtis
Manufacturer: Ayer Co Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books