Unkle_John
07-31-2009, 07:30 AM
As many of you may (or may not) know, my father passed away back in the end of September. Well I was over at Mom's helping move some stuff and clean around the place for her when I came across a book Dad had bought back in '81. It was put out by Reader's Digest back in the '70's and was printed a second time when Dad bought his copy.
I put it with my stuff, because Mom didn't want it, so I could read it later or take it home. Oh man, this book is full of stuff that's perfect to know for a Homesteader or farm/ranch owner.
From the Back Cover
"Open the book at any page and there's something of interest." -Chicago Sun-Times
"...it would be an asset to anyone's personal library at home. We recommend it highly." -Kansas City Times
"It is a superb reference book, better than any number of those that pretend to teach you survival skills by concentrating on just a few crafts." -Survival Tomorrow
"This is really an encyclopedia and, like a good encyclopedia, the narrative is clear and complete, the illustrations are plentiful and the whole thing is thoroughly indexed. You can spend a fortune on a library of neo-pioneer books or you can buy BACK TO BASICS." -Times & World News, Roanoke, VA
"If you're going to go back to the good old days you'll need something the good old days didn't have...an instruction manual." -Cincinnati Enquirer
REVIEW
156 of 158 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A traditional skills primer., October 31, 1999
By GENE GERUE "Author, Find Your Ideal Country Home" (Zanoni, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Back to Basics: How to Learn and Enjoy Traditional American Skills (Second Edition) (Hardcover)
A primer on self-reliance and rural skills, this is a large-format book of 456 pages lavishly illustrated with photographs and drawings, about half in full color. Here are 57 subjects, many with subsets, as in gardening, which includes information on soil, cultivation methods, making and using a greenhouse, and specific information on many veggies, herbs, fruits. Some presentations are simplistic, like telling you how to find and evaluate a farm or can produce in only four pages. Building and using a smokehouse gets one page. Using dairy products butters ten pages. Woodworking and furniture making nail down thirty pages. Build and decorate a house and the chairs, tables, beds to furnish it. Build a springhouse, a dam, a well, a water system. Grow vegetables, fruits, grains. Raise bees, fish, chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, hogs, sheep, goats, cows, horses. Make cheese, maple syrup, beer, wine, bread, soap, candles, baskets. Cook with wood. Spin yarn, use natural dyes, make cloth, quilts, rugs, hammocks. Learn tanning and leather work, tinsmithing, blacksmithing, toolmaking. Celebrate harvest and holidays with traditional decorations, recipes, toys, games, dances. Learn camping, hiking, fishing, canoeing, snowshoeing, skiing. Whew! This book will keep you happily occupied for several decades.
You can look into this book (over 75 five stars!) on Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Back-Basics-Complete-Traditional-Skills/dp/1602392331/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1249051705&sr=8-2) (which is in it's third printing).
I recommend looking for it at used bookstores or garage sales as well. They would make a great addition to someone's library, especially if they have the Foxfire series. But no matter what the critics say, this book get's my seal of approval.
I put it with my stuff, because Mom didn't want it, so I could read it later or take it home. Oh man, this book is full of stuff that's perfect to know for a Homesteader or farm/ranch owner.
From the Back Cover
"Open the book at any page and there's something of interest." -Chicago Sun-Times
"...it would be an asset to anyone's personal library at home. We recommend it highly." -Kansas City Times
"It is a superb reference book, better than any number of those that pretend to teach you survival skills by concentrating on just a few crafts." -Survival Tomorrow
"This is really an encyclopedia and, like a good encyclopedia, the narrative is clear and complete, the illustrations are plentiful and the whole thing is thoroughly indexed. You can spend a fortune on a library of neo-pioneer books or you can buy BACK TO BASICS." -Times & World News, Roanoke, VA
"If you're going to go back to the good old days you'll need something the good old days didn't have...an instruction manual." -Cincinnati Enquirer
REVIEW
156 of 158 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A traditional skills primer., October 31, 1999
By GENE GERUE "Author, Find Your Ideal Country Home" (Zanoni, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Back to Basics: How to Learn and Enjoy Traditional American Skills (Second Edition) (Hardcover)
A primer on self-reliance and rural skills, this is a large-format book of 456 pages lavishly illustrated with photographs and drawings, about half in full color. Here are 57 subjects, many with subsets, as in gardening, which includes information on soil, cultivation methods, making and using a greenhouse, and specific information on many veggies, herbs, fruits. Some presentations are simplistic, like telling you how to find and evaluate a farm or can produce in only four pages. Building and using a smokehouse gets one page. Using dairy products butters ten pages. Woodworking and furniture making nail down thirty pages. Build and decorate a house and the chairs, tables, beds to furnish it. Build a springhouse, a dam, a well, a water system. Grow vegetables, fruits, grains. Raise bees, fish, chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, hogs, sheep, goats, cows, horses. Make cheese, maple syrup, beer, wine, bread, soap, candles, baskets. Cook with wood. Spin yarn, use natural dyes, make cloth, quilts, rugs, hammocks. Learn tanning and leather work, tinsmithing, blacksmithing, toolmaking. Celebrate harvest and holidays with traditional decorations, recipes, toys, games, dances. Learn camping, hiking, fishing, canoeing, snowshoeing, skiing. Whew! This book will keep you happily occupied for several decades.
You can look into this book (over 75 five stars!) on Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Back-Basics-Complete-Traditional-Skills/dp/1602392331/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1249051705&sr=8-2) (which is in it's third printing).
I recommend looking for it at used bookstores or garage sales as well. They would make a great addition to someone's library, especially if they have the Foxfire series. But no matter what the critics say, this book get's my seal of approval.