Book Review: Green This!

I recently heard about Deirdre Imus' book Green This! Volume One. Greening You Cleaning and rushed over to Amazon to purchase it. I've been looking for a good cleaner recipe book to have on hand for reference and I assumed, like many others, that it would have lots of recipes for home made cleaners. The reviews on Amazon were very mixed from one star to five, so I decided to check it out at the library instead.

First things first, this is not a recipe book. It's even better! In Green This!, Imus explains why one should green her cleaning. She discussed the dangers of our old school cleaners, how they affect our health - from itchy eyes and allergies to cancer and autism. The first part of the book is a really excellent read for anyone, but especially for those who have heard that their current cleaning products are dangerous, but don't know exactly why.

The second part of Green This! is the "how to" part. Before diving into what to use where, Imus gives a quick rundown on label reading and even on the plastics codes. She discusses things like HEPA filters, rock-salt lamps and de/humidifiers and how they can assist in keeping your air clean, then finally delves into the cleaning supplies she recommends. They're pretty typical things - lemon juice, vinegar, baking soda, microfiber mop, rags, etc.

The rest of section two takes you step-by-step through the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living areas and laundry room in nice detail. For example, in the bathroom, she takes you through each element (toilet, sink, counter tops, mirror, bath, shower, shower door and curtain, drains, and so on). With each element she talks about what commercial cleaners normally do for it, what nasty chemicals are in them, and a natural alternative to use.

Imus may not give precise recipes (i.e.: 1 cup of vinegar, 2 cups of water, 3 drops of lemongrass oil...) but she does tell you what to use and leaves it up to your preference, needs and common sense.

Section three of the book is about resources. Imus lists the major green cleaner manufacturers like Seventh Generation, Bi-O-Kleen and, of course, her own Imus GTC product line (which she does NOT push throughout the book) and where to get them. Finally she provides a glossary of terms and chemicals for quick reference as well as a list of other places you can go for information like the EPA and CDC websites, among others.

Green This! is a great read for those who don't know exactly why they should green their cleaning, but know that it's important. But it's also an excellent reference book for those of us who are looking for some guidance and additional knowledge and information. It was filled with tips that I really needed - like unclogging a drain - and tips I didn't know I needed - like how I should NOT be using my vinegar cleaner on my marble counter tops....oops. If you need exact recipes, this is not the resource you're looking for (but I think you should still read the book anyway!).

This one is definitely going on my Amazon wish list! (Used, of course.) ;)

Be sure to check out other good book reviews over at The Blogging Bookworm.