Opium for the Masses: Harvesting Nature's Best Pain Medication

Nice little gem of a book but it only devoted,it turned out, about half a page or a few small paragraphs to the actual subject of how to grow poppies.No joke.And what little info there, was very scant and poor.The initial reason that had prompted me to buy the book was indeed after my own unsuccessful attempts to grow poppies. So the title does'nt make any sense and it's certainly NOT a practical guide. However it does offer alot of interesting curios and gems of knowledge on the subject of opium in many disparate fields from scientific to historical. It is not a book to take too seriously but it was very informative and i learnt a lot of stuff i previously didn't know about. On a practical level it does tell you how to slit the popppies, make poppy tea and advises youu buy' hens and chicks' variety at florists as the right ones to buy but almost next to nothing on actual cultivation.Opiate addicts or the simply curious will find it all interesting including the lovely snippets of chemistry and potted history and the like.Recommend. Enjoyable read.5/5

I wonder if Mr. Black's review isn't biased and subjective, since he is allegedly the one who narc'd on Mr. Hogshire and got him arrested- over an argument about religion!By posting a negative review here Mr. Black, aren't you adding insult to injury?Can't we all act like grown-ups and simply agree to disagree?

I must say thtat this book is very iformative and cotains all the infomation needed in the cultivation and manufacture of OPIUM. Even goes into further detail as to where seeds can be purchased, as well as ideas on strengthening you opium for sheer perfection. But i also must say that this is in no way a practical guide to insure you the decent and grandeur pleasures that this beautiful concoction has to offer. Such phrases such as "YEN" and the withdrawal symptoms leaves little to the notion of ever wanting to try this drug. I must say-- very scary but then again far from sugar coated.

The title of this little book says it all. Opium has been a staple of folk remedies and recereational drug use since before the first stone in the Pyramids at Giza was laid. Taken as a tea, or eaten, opium is less dangerous than coffee. The effects are mild, and pleasant. The propaganda of the last 75 years is nothing short of criminal. Hogshire's approach to his subject is two-fold. First, he presents a history of the venerable Papaver Somniferum. Then he shows the reader how to obtain opium containing poppies and extract the drug from them. Provided you exercise some common sense and discretion, the potential for running afoul of the law is virtually nil. A truly valuable primer on the use of the oldest of tonics and medicines, and tonic in itself for what it does in setting the record straight about this supposed "hard" drug. Even if you have no intention of using opium, this is a must read for anyone interested in contemporary drug-policy, and why it has so miserably failed.

A very informative and easy to read study of Opium. If you have any interest in this subject, this is the BEST book to read. I have found no other books that even come close in comparison.