Fly Agaric

Fly agaric is one of the world's most recognizable mushrooms-and one of the most misunderstood.

This book follows Amanita muscaria from its underground partnership with forest trees to the laboratory, historical travel accounts, Indigenous cultures, and modern folklore.

What do we actually know about muscimol and ibotenic acid? What did early sources really say about the Koryaks, shamanism, trade, and historical forms of preparation? Is there evidence connecting fly agaric with berserkers, reindeer, or Santa Claus? And where is the boundary between documented history, scientific hypothesis, personal experience, and myth?

Written in clear and accessible language, Fly Agaric: Between Myth and Science explores:

• the biology and variable chemistry of Amanita muscaria
• muscimol, ibotenic acid, and their effects on the nervous system
• poisoning, medical treatment, and environmental contaminants
• Siberian and Koryak history examined against original sources
• shamanism, trade, reindeer, berserkers, soma, and Santa Claus
• user experiences, online marketing, and medical claims
• the difference between evidence, hypothesis, and anecdote

Miles Spore presents a source-critical investigation of a mushroom that has never been merely a mushroom-without turning historical practices into instructions or presenting uncertain methods as safe.