Last week's Book Review Monday was in response to a reader question: "My daughter and her husband have purchased small acreage and are beginning their homestead journey. Both are city kids with no gardening or farm experience. Can you recommend a good book for beginners? Thanks."
We recommended several books, but decided to space out additional recommendations since we didn't want to overwhelm people. But needless to say, we have an extensive library of homesteading books.
Which is why I found it so funny when one reader commented as follows: "Another good reference is the old 'Back to Basics' book by Readers Digest, it's been republished since by another place, but full of good info."
I found this funny because this was one of the books we'd pulled out to review, then put back on the shelf until this week. But this reader is correct: "Back to Basics" is a phenomenal book. I've owned this copy since the 1980s.
It's kind of the "Ball Blue Book of Canning" of homesteading books: Beautifully illustrated and thorough, but not as intimidatingly comprehensive as Carla Emery's "Encyclopedia of Country Living."
Reader's Digest no longer prints this book, but it's now available in another format. The contents are identical.
Here is the Table of Contents (in my older copy):
See? Just beautiful.
Highly recommended.
Our next suggested reference is a new addition to our homesteading library, although it was published in 2011. This was a book we picked up at a tiny spot on the map called Silver Star, Montana at a place called Granny's Country Store. At the time we stopped in, Granny was out, and her son (whose name we regrettably missed) was packing up a significant portion of the inventory to attend a show, but the book selection in the store was still excellent.
One of the books we purchased is called "Homesteading in the 21st Century: How One Family Created a More Sustainable, Self-Sufficient, and Satisfying Life" by George Nash and Jane Waterman.
This couple has an impressive background in hippie living (interpret that as you will), but unquestionably their book is highly informative and reflects an imposing range of skills.
I would recommend this book without hesitation to beginning homesteaders.
Don's book recommendation is a practical manual called "How to Build Animal Housing: 60 Plans for Coops, Hutches, Barns, Sheds, Pens, Nestboxes, Feeders, Stanchions, and Much More" by Carol Ekarius.
Don's observations: "I own a lot of books about building construction, including those books dedicated to farm and ranch construction (I'll post more of these if you want). Some are just picture books for ideas, and others require that you understand construction at a more advanced level. This book fits well in between those extremes. It makes understanding the basics easy: Simple to complex foundations, small projects (from hutches to pens), all the way up to milking barns and stables. It also provides instructions on layout, air flow, simple electrical systems, and a lot more."
"Every homestead need outbuildings. This book will be a big help in deciding what you want."
(Obligatory disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, if you purchase through those links, I earn a small commission.)
Happy reading!
Great selections of reference books. Thank you
ReplyDeleteA word of caution on the "Back to Basics" book,
the print on the new version is so small it's almost unreadable without a magnifying glass, and yes I'm a bit older, but none the less.
So for now it sits on the shelf collecting dust.
Love this series!! Thanks so much for doing it.
ReplyDeleteSJ now in California
Excellent choices..... and by the by.. Jane Waterman delivered our first child, a home birth, Jane was/is a certified midwife.. It was a great experience and Jane was terrific.
ReplyDeleteI was the one who made the comment last time about the Back to Basics book. I have both the older version and the 3rd edition of the newer one, which it appears they are now on the 4th edition, but both are sold on Amazon. The print in both my old one and newer 3rd edition are identical in size (both are the identical size book too), maybe in the newest edition the print is smaller as it appears it is more normal book shaped. The only thing different from the older book is the fact that in the little sections where they interview people or feature little stories, they leave out the pictures that go with those in the newer books, I assume it's because the pictures would look too dated for a newer book. Not related to homesteading but I also love the other books in the Readers Digest series from back then, they were kind of the "Idiot's Guide" books of the day. There are ones on Crafts and Hobbies, Gardening, Sewing, Needlepoint, Repairs, etc.
ReplyDeleteMy other favorites for homesteading are probably not available anymore but they are: Living on a Few Acres: Yearbook of Agriculture 1978. And: Homesteading: How to Find New Independence on the Land, by Gene Logsdon.
And one book that I think is an important one to have, not related to homesteading, but for outdoor survival is: Outdoor Survival Skills by Larry Dean Olsen. I don't know if you have that one in your own collection. But it is a fantastic book that goes into all sorts of survival skills with pictures.