American Eden by Victoria Johnson

American Eden

by

Victorian Johnson

      Originally, I checked out this book on my kindle app from the State Library of Ohio.  But I did not get it completed by the time it returned and there was a waiting list before I could get it again.  I was enjoying the book so much that I bought it.  I rarely purchase books anymore as normally I can get through them in the allowed time from the library.  But I have had a busy month or so.  I finished the book this past week and found it to be a fascinating story about very interesting subjects.  It is a biography of David Hosack, who was a botanist and a physician early in the 1800s.  He wanted to discover and utilize the many plants here in the United States that were yet to be discovered and he wanted to do so to further the field of medicine  and save lives.  He also wanted to bring to the United States the medicinal plants from other countries so that medicine did not have to be imported.  He was poorly supported by others and used much of his own money to work toward his goals.  His perseverance in spite of serious set backs was very admirable.  He also rubbed shoulders with many much more famous men such as Hamilton, Jefferson, Burr and others.  He was, in fact, the physician of both the Hamilton family and the Burr family.   And not only did he work tirelessly on his medicinal plant goals,  he kept up a medical practice,  he taught medical students, he founded places like almshouses and hospitals, and he was a founding member at organizations such as historical societies.   I enjoyed this non fiction book very much and highly recommend it.  It is one of my favorite books that I have read this year.  Please click on the author's name and book title above to follow the links for more information and enjoy the video that follows.