A Guide to Collective Edible and Tasty Mushrooms
by Alexander Schwab
4 stars
A helpful beginner’s guide to foraging and identifying mushrooms. Schwab provides information on how to confidently identify a mushroom based on specific characteristics. Because of this, Schwab does not give information on lookalikes, focusing on positively identifying the mushroom in front of you against the characteristic requirements and therefore eliminating lookalikes in the process.
The book covers 20+ common mushrooms and how to identify them. It is broken down into sections with mushrooms with gills, tubes, ridges, spines, and the oddballs that don’t fit those categories. There is also a short section of basic tree identification and the mushrooms common around them, as well as some basics on handling, storing, and cooking your finds.
Each entry contains multiple full-color photos of the mushroom and an explanation of key features. There is also a Positive ID Checklist for each, perfect for referencing in the field or at home after a foraging trip. These contain a checklist of features that must be present for identification, information on size, season, and habitat, and a helpful color bar for gauging cap and/or gill color.
The book gives a nice starting place for beginners on some common mushrooms that are easy to identify. Great for honing your mushroom identification skills.