"Proving that gardens are far more than peaceful respites from the outside world, Defiant Gardens is a thought-provoking analysis of why people build and work in gardens. Helphand portrays the dramatic range of circumstances in which people have created gardens - as a means of nourishment, as a pursuit of beauty, and as an expression of hope. Informative and inspirational, this history of gardens during wartime documents how gardens have humanized landscapes and experience, even under the most dire conditions."--Jacket.