I really hadn't known much about nettles except for what I had heard in folktales (remember the princess who had to make nettle sweaters for her brothers?), but I was pleasantly surprised to learn so much about nettles. I enjoyed the illustrations immensely and I found this book to be laid out in a useful way that made finding information easy to do. I plan to purchase this book in the future and gift to family members. 4.5/5

Super cool and powerful. I loved learning about the power of nettle leaf! The recipes were cool and I’d never seen anything like that.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nettle Power was a really fabulous book that made me appreciate nettles more. My husband loves nettles and preaches their positivity, but I wasn't convinced until I read this book. I do appreciate their versatility, and their healing properties. I will definitely appreciate them more, even if they sting me when I mow the lawn.

A really comprehensive overview of the power of the nettle plant. I learnt a lot and the formatting is beautiful.

I did feel, by the end, that the author uses nettles as 'a hammer for all problems' but the title and cover don't mislead you into thinking you will find anything different!

Nettle Power by Brigitte Mars did not disappoint with the background of nettle history, uses, remedies, cautions, and recipes. This was more of a comprehensive guide than I thought it would be in a good way. Appreciate the effort put into this to break apart so many concepts into digestible portions to retain. If you're looking at how nettle can help your wellness journey this book is wonderful to support your journey.

-Background on Nettle
-How to grow and harvest Nettle
-Medicinal Properties
-Making and using Nettle Medicine
-Cosmetic Uses
-Ways to cook with Nettle

There is a lot of information that I think only adds to the value of looking back on this book. I did take my time with this book as I wanted to absorb the information and come back to it which I appreciate. This would be wonderful to have on hand in your home or kitchen. The recipes for medicinal and cooking were very simple to follow along with. Appreciate the graphics as well - the little touches are great.

Big thanks to Netgalley, Brigitte Mars, and Storey Publishing for the ARC.

A book all about nettles. I love nettles but u fortunatelly I didn't enjoy this book that much. It was very dry and almost boring and a bit all over the place.
There was a lot of claims thrown around, some of them that even as a student herbalist have never heard before. As another reviewer commented, the references are all quite old, from ths 1990s and 2000s. It would be nice to include some recent research to back up some of the claims the author made.
I also did not like the writing style. It felt a bit like a draft or a student writing a herbal monograph with as much information stuffed in.

This is a wonderful and thorough book written by an experienced herbalist. It shares the history, characteristics and uses of nettle along with an extensive set of recipes. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in edible or medicinal wild plants.

Thank you for letting me view an ARC of this book. The artwork was absolutely beautiful! This is a nice reference for recipes, health and holistic uses for nettle. I've been a fan of this plant for a while now, and I really appreciate this book showcasing it's benefits!

We love nettles. I have two heaping baking sheets of them in my kitchen right now, and they’re something we forage a ton of every spring especially. I mostly use them in tinctures and teas for healing because of their incredible health benefits, and I also crumble dried nettles into soups, casseroles and even meatballs. My daughter’s favorite smoothie when she was little was fresh nettles with frozen pineapple, water and a banana. So most of the information in this fun book wasn’t new to me, but I really enjoyed it. It was an excellent reminder of how incredibly beneficial nettles are, and I loved the variety of recipes at the end. I would have liked some photos and nutritional information for the recipes but I understand that this isn’t that kind of book. The illustrations are colorful and fun, and I’m looking forward to trying some of the recipes this week.

I read a temporary digital copy of this book for review.

I like this book. It does need some editing though. The resources provided to back up the authors claims are mostly from the 1990's. I'd like to see newer sources and more sources that are not other authors books. I'd like to see some clinical studies and double blind tests. This would add more validity to the claims. As it stands now, the book comes across as a bit shady with questionable claims.

Including quotes from long dead philosophers, poets, herbalists, artists and like is not convincing to me. I'm not saying they are wrong, but I'm not saying they are right either. On the topic of those who have come long before us, the author also provides some historical information regarding nettles. The history she provides about nettles is enjoyable, but not necessarily factual.

I also would like to see more recipes for topical treatments.

The food recipes are mostly unusable to me as they tend to include ingredients I no longer consume in order to manage my Endometriosis. However, I understand that I'm the minority in this area and I believe that most folks will find a great many of these recipes highly enjoyable.

The author even provides basic guidance on using nettle as a dye plant. Being a natural grower and one who dyes natural fibers with plant based dyes, I'm more than pleased that this is included in her book.

If you've never made your own tincture, Brigitte Mars shows you just how easy it is. You have the option of using either an alcohol base or glycerine. Personally, I prefer to use organic glycerine as I find organic alcohol tinctures rather nasty, but I can choke them down. Glycerine is naturally sweet and is wonderful if making tinctures for kids or if you need to avoid alcohol.

Final note:
I'm not a huge fan of the childish artwork. Some of it I like. It's mostly the artwork of the people I find off putting. That aside, at least one full color photo of an actual nettle plant would be great for those looking to forage. How fun would it be to have a full color photo of a nettle plant as a centerfold?

In summary, I plan to add this informative book to my shelves, hopefully when it comes out.

A really fascinating and informative read. I have a lot of nettle growing in my garden and I'm blown away by how useful it actually is! The book is accessible and packed with incredible content without feeling overwhelmed.

All the information you need to know about nettles. How to cultivate and grow them, the different varieties, how they can help health and ailments and also a collection of receipes.

I had no idea there were so many uses for nettles! I found this book contained many easy recipes to use nettles. I would recommend this book, especially to a forager who uses naturally collected foods from the environment, whether for culinary or medicinal uses. I would like to add a copy to my personal library!

The photos and history are nice. I do not see any evidence based primary sources for the health claims that are made in this book. Misinformation about health claims is rampant in this book and presents a danger to the public.

e-Arc Provided by Netgalley and Storey Publishing, thank you.

First of all, beautiful book, colourful with lots of images, it's nice to look at, and enhances the experience.
The content of the book is split between the History and uses of nettle, how to store use as dye, etc, and a second part with recipes.
I found it inspiring and educative, it made me want to try some of the tips, I might just go out to get some nettle soon !
This is a fast read, if you're lightly curious about nettle, it's worth a read, but don't expect to read about the taxonomy of the plant, this is not a science book.

Overall fun read !

Absolutely delightful! Accessible, inviting writing paired with playful and colourful illustrations throughout makes this book both informative and joyful to read. I have some experience in herbalism, foraging, and gardening, but still learned helpful new information on wildcrafting with nettle.

This is a gorgeous book. Visually stunning! The art in it is so captivating, the colors, the repetition of shapes, I absolutely love it!

I learned a lot about folk remedies and medicinal uses around nettle. I think this is an incredibly useful book and will definitely be implementing some of what I learned. Delicious recipes, medicines, tea, tinctures, all great stuff. Nettle really does seem to be a heal all, and the other interesting facts about other herbs and how they combine with nettle to help the body. I'm definitely upping my nettle consumption now!

I did have some confusing moments at the beginning when the author stated that common nettle is not native to the Americas, and then immediately followed that up with Indigenous uses of nettle from the Americas. It was later cleared up- there are over 50 species of nettle! But maybe some of that confusion could have been avoided in the first place.

I would definitely recommend this book for anyone in my job, as teaching about the adaptations of nettle and nettle tea is part of our curriculum. And to anyone who appreciates really gorgeous graphic design. I’m excited to see the finished book when it comes out in August.

This was a really interesting book, and I enjoyed reading the recipes. I feel like I am uncertain about some of the other suggestions, and actually really felt uncomfortable about the suggestion to use stinging nettle on your skin to reduce the appearance/development of cellulite. Please recognize that we can have health at any size and cellulite is not shameful.

Nettle Power is a quick read and yet so very informative and enjoyable!

Before this book, all I knew about nettles, was that dock leaves really do not help the stings when you fall in a patch of nettles in shorts and tee. (Because you did not watch where you were going) Also, that it is used for a very earthy tasting tea. Now we have my very basic knowledge (and painful experience) of nettles out of the way, on to the book review!

First impressions, a well laid out and aesthetically pleasing book with lovely illustrations. The mix between traditional and modern illustration reflects historical and modern uses of the plant so I do hope the design remains

We're taken through the nettle's botanical information and a lovely quote by Victor Hugo. The nick names had me chuckling I must say! Also interesting were the names for nettles in different languages

Now, I would never have thought that a nettle sting could have health benefits, by eckers the memories of that itch each time I was running through the woods prevails to this day! Even when it rained you were not safe from them! The book explains how the nettle stings, and after a number of times, encourages urtication, which can relieve inflammation.

The book continues through remedies for stings, the history and folklore, growing, foraging, harvesting and preserving.

This is a lovely book and an eye opener!

Thank you to Negalley, Brigitte Mars and Storey Publishing for the ARC of this delightfully informative book. My Review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

What a beautiful tribute to an amazing plant!

I have been interested in the use of nettles for years, and this book is a wonderful introduction and deep dive into this plant. It grows wild on my farm, so I have a ready source of it, but I don't feel I'm using it as much as I could. Reading this book has reminded me how great fresh nettles are as an early spring foraged food source (and there are lots of great vegetarian recipes to try in this book) and as a dried tea.

In addition to culinary uses, Brigitte Mars provides lots of information about the plant, its history and traditional uses, medicinal uses, and fun facts. The book is full of gorgeous bright illustrations as well.

I recommend it for anyone interested in herbalism, foraging, and general plant knowledge!

Thank you to Netgalley and Storey publishing for the advance read e-copy. I plan to add the hard cover to my shelves when it comes out!