About this title: Inspired by a short, bizarre newspaper article, journalist Susan Orlean embarks on an amusing two-year journey to understand a passionate, yet somehow principled crook and one of his ephemeral obsessions--wild orchids. Her profile of John Laroche was the basis for the critically acclaimed film, ADAPTATION (2003), directed by Spike Jonze, and starring Nicholas Cage and (as Susan Orlean) Meryl Streep. A New York Times Notable Book for 1999.
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Description: Very Good. Trade Paperback. Ballantine Books, 2000. Very Good Book. Moderate wear to book and spine. Aside from a small stain to page edges, overall a clean and tight copy. Media mail packed in protective bubble lined shipping bags, Priority in a Flat Rate Envelope. Shipped quickly. Prompt response to questions. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Date Published: 2000-01-04
ISBN-13:9780449003718ISBN:044900371X
Description: Good. G+, different cover art, light wear and a small crease to cover noted, pages slightly agetoned, interior clean, binding tight. read more
Description: New. 1565116895 BRAND NEW AUDIO! ABRIDGED. Never played. Still factory sealed. Excellent condition. Shipped w/delivery confirmation... read more
"I'd give it three and a half stars if I could, but I can't, and it's really not quite a four-star book. I think the gap where that half star is missing is basically just my expectations: I've wanted to read this book since Adaptation came out when I was about 15, which is odd since at the time I really had no idea what a Charlie Kaufman movie was, or what the New Yorker was, either. Anyhoo, I was expecting something much more fast-paced and less subjective--more like Eric Schlosser's writing in REEFER MADNESS, or the way Michael Pollan writes about tulips in THE BOTANY OF DESIRE. It was still a great read, and unlike in some books I think that the extreme subjectivity actually serves the narrative very well, but I did find myself slogging through it a bit at times."
"I adore this book. It's one of my favorites, not just because it's about two of my favorite things - plants and Florida - and not just because it's by one of my favorite writers, and not just because Charlie Kaufman made it into a totally kick-ass movie.
I adore it because it's so charming, because of sentences like "I suppose I do have one unembarrassing passion: I want to know what it feels like to be passionate about something," because Orlean writes about her human subjects with a bit of "Can you believe this craziness?" without losing sight of the fact that she is actually writing about humans, and because she has this gift for uncovering those odd little tidbits of information that make the world seem like a magical place where anything is possible.
This is one of those books that, while purporting to be about one thing - the world of orchid fanciers - is really about another thing - obsession. The book takes the idea that the best way to see the universe is through a microscope, and wraps it up in an entertaining package. She also tells the stories using a tactic that another favorite writer of mine, Joan Didion, uses, where she herself is a character in the book, not just as a narrator but a participant, and it gives you, as an outsider in the story, a way to view things as if you were there yourself. Yet you don't get the feeling she's casting judgement on anyone; you just get to see things the way she saw them and feel the things she felt.
Of course, the book might also hold a special place with me because it talks so much about Florida, a state whose history and culture can only be described as "bizarre." (I hate that word almost as much as I hate the word "unique" but really, there is no other way to describe it.) This state attracts people who are looking to realize some sort of dream or other, or who are looking to reinvent themselves, or who are just trying to escape their pasts, and so you end up with a bunch of people all trying to create some new existence on a piece of land that is constantly in flux. It's a tumultuous, chaotic state, where people are free to extend their personalities to the limit, whether its through Christianity or vulgar materialism or alcoholism or whatever. The only thing predictable about Florida is that, if something crazy happens, it's probably happening here. So I love reading about Florida - nonfiction and fiction alike - for these reasons, and I think few have captured that essential quirkiness of the state better than Orlean did with this book."
"This book is the semi-rambling story of John Laroche, a shady characters that was arrested for stealing endangered orchid species from protected Florida swamplands. The book goes off on many tangents; some are interesting, some aren't.
The orchid industry is ridiculous. Wait, I can go a step back: orchids themself are ridiculous. The plants have many strange shapes and sizes, their reproduction involves pseudobulbs, it takes years before a new plant flowers, many of them are extremely fragile and can only live in small areas of wildland. On the plus side, vanilla beans come from orchids, so they've got that going for them.
Back to the orchid industry: people spend thousands of dollars for a single plant. Many people dedicate themselves -- most of their free time and money -- to raising orchids. Smuggling rings and early intercontinental exploration trips are based on finding new or rare orchids. People lie, cheat, and steal to find good examples of these flowers. Flowers!
Laroche himself is an interesting character: obsessive, antisocial, smart and stupid all at once. This book is ostensibly about him, but it mostly uses him as an excuse to investigate orchid society -- especially Floridian orchid society -- in detail.
Overalll, the book was worth reading, but it would have been a lot more enjoyable if it was more focused. Laroche himself isn't enough to sustain a book like this (although it probably made for a good magazine story, which is what the seed of this book started off as), but he's still put forth as the center. The author talks quite a bit about her involvement with orchids and Laroche, and that takes away from the really interesting parts."
"So, now i want to buy an orchid, a pretty one. Maybe two. I enjoyed this book very much, though I found it tedious at times when author Susan Orlean steered off course, dealing more with the history -- albeit sometimes intriguing -- of the Seminoles -- than that of the orchids and their often-addicted lovers. I learned much in reading this book and would recommend it to other plant and non-fiction lovers.This is the only book I've ever read where I honestly believe photographs would have been good even though I realize they limit the imagination. The book also could have used a plant glossary, especially for the neophyte orchid and bromeliad admirers among us. It's a great book, though, and it left me wondering -- what my John Laroche be enamored with these days -- turtles, mirrors, computer porn or perhaps orchids once again? .... If you liked this book, you'll probably also like Miles Harvey's "Island of Lost Maps.""
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