This is one dense book. Information on the botany, ethnobotany, physiology, ethnology, history, and ritual use of peyote among various native tribes. Contains a large bibliography of books, papers and studies on peyote from the 1930s to the present. This is definitely not a quick read…but a very good resource/reference book.
CSP Entheogen Chrestomathy Entry
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This well known guide to growing poppies and extracting opium presents useful information in a format and style accessible to just about everyone. I’m disappointed that there’s no footnotes or references, though there is a brief bibliography. Useful as a basic source of information about opium and poppies, but doesn’t go into great depth in any particular area. [ read more ]
A good book for helping answer those persistent myths and misunderstandings about marijuana. The book is organized into chapters each based on a particular myth. Various forms of the myth at the beginning of the chapter are answered by a quick answer and then the rest of the chapter is devoted to providing explanations, evidence, references, technical data and charts ... [ read more ]
Dense. A lot of information packed into this one. A bit more one sided than I’d like to see from a book of this type…for example it claims that no physical withdrawal symptoms exist for marihuana. Last revised in 1977, but otherwise it’s an extremely well researched, well referenced, informative book. Not a quick read.
CSP Entheogen Chrestomathy Entry
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A good cultural marker of what was going on in San Francisco in the late ‘60s. Perhaps not quite as good as the hype about it suggests. [ read more ]
This well meaning book provides good basic information about a select group of “designer drugs” including china white (fentanyl), crack, mdma, MPTP, crystal meth, and PCP. It has interesting and diverse quotes from interviews with a wide range of characters including experienced users, police, chemists, physicians and researchers. The chosen audience is those outside the entheogen communities… with an angle ... [ read more ]
This is a poorly written book with a completely one sided point of view. Unable to see past their own preconceptions, the authors define all use as abuse or misuse and consistently give information of questionable accuracy. Its only saving grace (which earned it the 1 star) is its list of herbal alternatives. This is the first time I’ve ever seen someone argue against the use of opium or cannabis and then turn to recommend poppies, datura and wormwood as useful herbal alternatives. Good for a chuckle but that’s about it. [ read more ]
We didn’t provide a rating of this series at the top of the page. It doesn’t really fit easily into a 1-5 scale. It’s a classic. In many ways, this is one of the best series we’ve ever read. In other ways, it’s a series of cheap romance novels. Highly Recommended. [ read more ]
This small book has page long sections covering the basic cultivation parameters for dozens of home growable hallucinogens; from poppies to daturas, kava kava to morning glories, san pedro to syrina rue. The basic sections are Cultivation and Propagation, and Harvesting for each plant. The descriptions are useful, but not detailed enough to suffice as your only souce for growing ... [ read more ]
An excellent, though rather dense resource for those interested in the chemistry of drugs. See our chemistry section for examples of Merck Index drug entries. [ read more ]