Utah Wildflowers: Field Guide to the Northern and Central Mountains and Valleys

This is an excellent introduction to the native flowers of Utah. The authors present a hundred high quality photos of Utah wild flowers. Each picture has a small informative blurb (about 100 words) about each flower. The photography is the main value of the book. The authors captures the beauty of the flowers. Unfortunately, the book does not give enough information identifying plants. As mentioned in the first review, many pictures do not show the leaves. Although the author captures the beauty of the subject, the reader may find it hard to use the book for identifying plants.I would put this book at the top of the list for people wanting to get started learning about the native plants in Utah. I also feel that native plant entusiasts will enjoy the high quality photos. It would make a great gift for any one who enjoys walking in the Utah mountains. However, if you are looking for a primary reference for native plants, I fear that you will be disappointed.

If you live along the Wasatch Front and hike the many canyons of the Wasatch then this is the book for you. The Photographs are beautiful and show the flowers well, the text is interesting and tells of past uses of the plants by indians and settlers, and the book is small enough to carry with you on every hike. "Utah Wildflowers" does show many of the common flowers you may find in bloom during the late spring and summer months. If however you are looking for a comprehensive guide with field "identification" capabilities then I would look elsewhere. With only 102 flowers covered, little or no pictures of leaves, and little said of similar species, habitat or identification difficulties I cannot recommend this guide.