Distilling generations of life experience and superstition into one handy volume, a word to the wise is packed with a wealth of time-honoured advice that still holds good today.
 
Have you ever wondered why a red sky at night is a shepherd's delight? If breaking a mirror will really bring you seven years of bad luck? Why the old adage not to open the oven door while a cake is cooking is absolutely necessary? Or whether carrots will indeed help you to see in the dark?
 
Here Ruth Binney provides the answers, bringing together a fascinating variety of traditional sayings and superstitions to explain whether they still work today - and why. From health tips and kitchen tricks to gardening know-how and even predicting the weather, this collection provides a unique and fascinating storehouse of accumulated wisdom.