Sweet as Sin Sweet as Sin Sweet as Sin: The Unwrapped Story of How Candy Became America’s Pleasure is a 2016 nonfiction book written by Susan Benjamin. It focuses on the history of candy and its importance in American culture. The book details the history of the birth of sweets from the harvesting of the marshmallow plant in ancient Egypt to the mass-produced candy innovations of the twentieth century. The book also covers the history of chocolate, botanical sweets, and candied nuts. Benjamin describes these candy stories as rich and deep, from a national, political, and human rights level. The "Washington Independent" wrote:
Verbena officinalis plant" or "wild hyssop". The common name "blue vervain" is also sometimes used, but also refers to "V. hastata". And of course, being the only member of its genus in much of its range, it is also simply known as "the vervain" locally. The common names of "V. officinalis" in many Central and Eastern European languages often associate it with iron, for example: Common vervain was scientifically described by Carl Linnaeus his 1753 "Species Plantarum". The scientific name references the Ancient Roman term "verbena", used for any sacrificial herb considered very powerful (as described e.g. by Pliny the Elder). "Officinalis",