Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This is a wonderful book. Roses are my favorite flower, and I was so pleased to learn more about the flower with this book Rosa by Peter E Kukielski and Charles Phillips.

lovely writing! i didn’t connect with the topics as much as i would have hoped but it was still a great reading experience! the cover is also beautiful!

This is a glorious book. full of lovely illustrations, clear and well written information and a real treat. I love roses, I'm always looking to learn more about them and this book is a real find for someone like me. Highly recommended to anyone who wants a lovely book to dip in and out of, to find out the history of the rose and to see examples of the most beautiful examples.

This is a deep dive into roses. This book does a nice job explaining various aspects of the plant, its meaning and significance, anyone who likes to know more about flowers will enjoy this.

What a lovely book! The photos and illustrations are gorgeous- how could they not be, given the subject matter! The information, though, is the real star here. Now, if you're looking for a book that's strictly botanical information about the plants that encompass the rose family, you may be disappointed (though there is plenty of that here); the authors have also provided a rich history of roses, from prehistoric fossils showing roses have been around for millions of years, to roses in folklore, myths, and legends, their symbolism in religion and art, and more. A fascinating book, sure to please any rose lover!

#Rosa #NetGalley

This book was certainly gorgeous, that is for sure. I loved all the beautiful photos and vintage illustrations. The design is also well done, which adds to its overall visual appeal. Which I think it quite important in a book of this type. It is written in an interesting and engaging way. Sometimes these types of books can get "textbook" in their writing, but this was not the case here. I especially loved all the information about the "rose" in ancient times and cultures.

This would definitely make a perfect gift for an avid gardener! 👍🌹👍

This book was received as an ARC from Yale University Press in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I am a lover of roses but I never knew that there were so many. I could not get over the abundance of colors roses can have to them and the shapes of some of them were pretty fascinating to look at (huge props to the photographer). We have a lot of patrons with green thumbs and are horticulture enthusiasts and they will definitely appreciate what this book has to offer. The beautiful photographs and layout of the book will definitely attract their attention for sure and with all of the different facts and information presented in the book, you'll definitely learn something new each time you read it.

We will consider adding this title to our SB Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

This book contains so much information about roses. This book fascinated me since roses are one of my favorite flowers. It contains so much information including the history, the varieties and so forth. This book would be perfect for any person who wants to know more about this flower. The book also contain illustrations and photos throughout.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is very interesting and thorough. I am nothing more than a rose admirer and I found this book interesting. At times it seemed a little dry, but that was because the content did not interest me. The author starts the book at the beginning of time and works his way through ancient and modern history, tracing the rose. He includes references, quotes, artwork, and artifacts to explain and elaborate on the history of the rose. Some stories were very interesting and little "tidbits" of information are sprinkled throughout. There were many moments in history that are influenced by the rose and I never put those pieces together. Now I feel like I can. The book was very informative and well organized. I would recommend it to any flower enthusiast or for a beautiful and conversation-starter book to have on hand.

Thank you to NetGalley and Yale University Press for the chance to read a digital copy of this beautiful book!

This book is so visually luscious that even the table of contents is beautiful. All kinds of images--color photographs, botanical illustrations, paintings, maps, and more--adorn these pages. It starts with an overview of the three classes of roses--wild or "species" roses, and then cultivated roses either "old" or "modern" divided by the year 1867, when "La France" was developed by developed by crossing a Hybrid and Tea Rose. We then spend the rest of the book touring the rose throughout history, from rose fossils to the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast, visiting China, Rome, Notre Dame cathedral, Shakespeare, the Ottoman empire, and the Underground Railroad in between. Though the prose is not exactly the point of a book like this, it still contains many fun tidbits about roses used for both murder (Roman emperors) and miracles (Saint Casilda). And come on, 5 stars just for the section header "Alexander, the Great Admirer of Roses."

I had a delightful time reading this book and I immediately purchased it as a Valentine's Day present for my family, as they love flowers of all kinds and I know both the scientists and the history lovers will enjoy the detail in these pages. I have never been much on buying bouquets for holidays so I think this book is the perfect Valentine's Day rose for the person in your life who can come back to this beautiful book again and again.

Before starting this book, I didn't know much about roses, but I wanted to learn. That's exactly what I did with Rosa!

The reader learns a good amount of information about many different aspects of roses: their history, their significance in different cultures and at different times, their place and use in literature and art in general but also in religion, be it christianism or islam, why they were used, how they were used, their evolution, the myriad of rose varieties, and so on! It seemed complete and I was delighted by it!
I loved that the sections were divided chronologically: we get to discover the rose from its beginning to now. I had a hard time with the first parts because it can be quite technical, the authors can use specialised vocabulary. But I was fascinated by certains aspects, and I adored the fact that this book is illustrated. We get to see the roses the authors are writing about.

To conclude, Rosa made me want to read more about flowers in general, and to start a garden of my own!

"We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorns have roses." Alphonse Karr. Wonderful outlook and a wonderful book!

The photography and illustrations are beguiling and resplendent with beauty and the wealth of information is absolutely glorious. The writing style is lovely, too; instructive yet not textbookish. As a master gardener and traveler I have had the opportunity to visit many, many rose gardens, rose windows and frescoes, many of which are included here which transported me in a nanosecond. Oh, how I appreciate that!

Roses are featured in ancient history through the Middle Ages to the Victorian era to current times and play a part in romance, religion, legends and cultures. The focus here is mainly on history rather than modern times but there are a few sections on the latter, too.

You will read about their appearance on fossils, Greek writings, Alexander the Great's wide knowledge of roses, roses' use as currency, smothering by petals at ancient banquets, political and romantic symbolism, how rose water and oil was and is created (lovely to cook with rose water!), scent, colour and healing properties and stupendous botanical illustrations. Additionally, there is a section on planting them for our future and to hold memories dear. The poetry woven throughout is a beautiful inclusion. There is so much more as well.

Anyone with a passion for roses and their history or those who wish to learn more about them in general, this inspiring book definitely has something for you. I cannot recommend it enough. If this book doesn't capture your spirit, nothing will. How wonderful that such information has been preserved in words and art for us to enjoy.

My sincere thank you to Yale University Press and NetGalley.

This title might serve as an excellent gift for both avid gardeners, keen readers and historians amongst us.
Beautifully illustrated, factually accurate, engaging and very well written.

Rosa is a beautifully illustrated and very well written study of the history and uses of the "queen of the flowers". Due out 16th Feb 2021 from Yale University Press, it's 256 pages and will be available in hardcover format.

Almost everyone loves roses. They have been prized throughout history for their beautiful color, scents, medicinal and food uses, for their blossoms, and their usefulness in the garden plantings.This book is information dense and beautifully illustrated survey of the history and uses of plants in the rose family.

The information is logically arranged and accessible. The introduction gives a review of the plants in the rose family, including fruits, trees, and shrubs. The following chapters cover history, migration (by humans), through the middle ages and into the modern era. Throughout, the book is gorgeously illustrated and photographed with color photos on every page. The book also includes valuable links and bibliography resources for further reading as well as an index.

Five stars. This would be a superlative choice for public library, gardening groups, for gifting to a gardening friend, or for the gardener's own home library.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

In ‘Rosa’ Kukielski & Phillips provide a beautifully laid out volume covering the history and cultural impact of the Rose in incredible detail.

They start with an overview of different types of Roses and how they were cultivated, then cover the plant throughout history, across different religions, in media and as perfume. I was impressed by the wide scope covered in the book: many authors focus too heavily on one particular geographic area but this was not the case at all.

I enjoy Botany but had never considered the Rose might have had such a wide an deep impact on human history. I would recommend this book to any lovers of Roses or Botanical History, you’ll be sure to learn much more than you could ever imagine!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing e with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Roses are my favourite flower and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed learning more about them over the last four years when we moved to our new home. It was with this enthusiasm that I started “Rosa” by Peter E. Kukielski and his coauthor, Charles Phillips. There are stunning photos and illustrations of roses and certainly a lot of facts about them too. However, I found the book to be too detailed on what felt like rabbit holes such as quite a bit of information on Robbie Burns because he wrote a poem describing someone like a rose or a historical review of the “war of the roses” in England. I’d hoped for more rose plant information, directly related to it’s history and formation as a bush and into different flower styles. This was a short section at the beginning. It also spent far too many pages for me on Greek and Roman history.

It is well-written, so I recommend you read the contents and decide it appeals to you before picking it up. For me, it was a three out of five enJOYment scale.

If you are at all interested in plant history, then this is the book for you! Why not start with the most famous flower of them all: the rose! Roses have a long, long, long history, from the ancient world to the modern day, used in art, food, medicine, literature...everything. Rose oil in perfume, rose petals as decor, the rose as the symbol of a dynasty (Tudor rose, anyone?) as a religious symbol, roses as a symbol of love/romance/etc. etc. etc. etc. Roses, man. Rosa contains literally everything you've ever wanted to know about roses, including the fact that blue roses don't actually exist (my dreams: crushed) but that green roses do exist (my dreams: alive again!). So if you want a fun deep dive into a very, very specific topic, give this book a go.

Magnificent! We are taken on a beautiful journey of the origin, legend, history and different interpretations of the rose, all nicely intertwined with its cultural, social, medicinal, literal, artistic, and religions aspects.

Beautifully illustrated book that covers just about every aspect of the rose throughout history. The origins of the rose in trade and the influence of the China roses in Greek and Roman gardens discusses their influence and their uses in gardens, perfumes, oils and symbolism. Chapters on their role in art and literature focuses on the Greek writer Homer as well as nods to Epicurious, Herodtus, and Sappho. Most interesting is a chapter about the excavation of the temple of Knossos on the island of Crete and discovery of the Blue Bird fresco, the earliest known rose painting. Roses used in excess in the parties and banquets of Nero is also quite interesting. The chapters are brief but beautifully illustrated with stunning images from art. The book also touches on the use of roses in politics, religion and literature.