In this exploration of three powerful plants, author Michael Pollan takes the reader on a journey through the world of mind-altering substances that grow in the ground. Focusing on opium, caffeine, and mescaline, Pollan shows the reader how our arbitrary our society's relationship to drugs can be. While pouring hot water through black tea leaves produces a drink with caffeine that is widely considered to be socially acceptable, making tea from poppy flowers produces a drink with opium in it that is illegal in most parts of the world, unless of course it has been synthesized in a lab and sold by a pharmaceutical company. By exploring the human urge to alter our consciousness, Pollan uncovers fascinating aspects of our history and relationship to plants, and produces a fascinating read in the process. A compelling book from an insightful writer. (Short Discount)