Acknowledgements

Writing is necessarily a solitary occupation; this year especially so. And yet the making of a book relies on the support and hard work of so many others, and I am glad to be able to thank those who have indefatigably provided it. First, Mark Hutchinson who, on reading a piece I had written for my website on asparagus, told me it was the beginning of a book. As always (even if that actual piece didn’t find its way into the preceding pages) he turned out to be right. My sister Horatia brilliantly supplied the title, for which I am enduringly grateful.