More Chicken Soup and Other Folk Remedies

Picking up where they left off with Chicken Soup & Other Folk Remedies, the Wilens have included in this book some of the more esoteric healing substances to be found at health-food stores and herb farms, even furriers and sand pits. (They write, for example, that yucca is good for arthritis and flaxseed for constipation.) A wide range of common and not-so-common ailments are addressed, including asthma and back pain, body odor and gallbladder disorders, hair, weight and sleep problems. The authors' style is folksy, and they emphasize that they are merely reporting on practices, not endorsing them. All in all, this makes for an intriguing collectionand the worst thing the remedies will do is nothing. (November)