The Chopra Center Herbal Handbook by Deepak Chopra and David Simon: I'll be honest...I put Deepak Chopra on the same level as the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi...which is a money grubbing Easterner that is smart enough to dupe us Westerners into believing the mystical magical stuff they pander. This book, though, is valuable because of the encyclopedic section on herbs and their potential uses. He also give precautions about herb usage, which is something hard to find in other herb books.
Readers Digest Herbs by Lesley Bremness: This is a great reference book for herbs and how to use them. The color pictures makes this indispensable, in addition to the directions and recipes for using herbs and the growing recommendations on each herb.
The Doctors Book of Home Remedies from the Editiors of Prevention Magazine Health Books: This is another encyclopedic volume, organized by illness, that offers simpler home remedies for each malady. Some are obvious, like asthmatics should stay out of smoky rooms, but others are things I had never heard, such as switching to butter milk to help with lactose intolerance or using fresh beer instead of mousse in your hair.
The Complete Outdoorsmans's Guide to Edible Wild Plants by Berndt Berglund and Clare Bolsby: This book is a collection of recipes using wild plants found in various parts of the country. The recipes are organized by plant and before each set, there is some information about identifying different plants and how to store and use them. Since the plant pictures are just pen and ink drawings, it is a little hard to identify them (which can be dangerous) but there are directions for making acorn flour, so the book definitely has its upside. I think I would want another resource with more reliable pictures before I would start scavenging the woods, but the recipes in here look awesome to use.
The Complete Woodsman's Guide by Anthony Acerrano: This book is much like a wilderness survival manual. It isn't so much intended for permanent homesteads, but more for backpackers and people who may need to be in the wilderness for extended periods. There is some information on firemaking, cooking, reading the weather, knot tying and other skills that would benefit just about anyone.
Deerskins into Buckskins by Matt Richards: This is a beginning to end instruction guide on not only how to tan deerskins, but also how to make all the tools you need to do it. Sewing instructions are also included. This book is great for all its pictures and explanations.
The illustrated Hassle-Free Make Your Own Clothes Book by Sharon Rosenberg and Joan Wiener: This book cracks me up. It is written by two hippies (aren't most homesteading/back to the land books) and is copyright 1971. The clothes designs are definitely dated and some of the prose is hilarious, but it takes a lot of mystery out of sewing clothes for people like me who have trouble using patterns. I made the Joseph costume for our church's live nativity using this book. My husband would like me to make him a Joseph costume to wear around the house (maybe if I make it in woodland camo print, it wouldn't look like such hippie garb). Does anyone know what AC-DC clothes are?!?
The Vegetable Gardener's Bible by Edward C. Smith: This was our first book on vegetable gardening and this guy really has some good ideas about gardening in it. He is all about organic methods and though I think he takes it to the extreme, there are certain tips we've picked up that work well for us. If you were going to buy one book on vegetable gardening, I would think this would be it.
Incredible Vegetables from Self-Watering Containers by Edward C. Smith: This is another book by Mr. Smith that focuses on vegetable gardening using containers. We have tried this on and off for a few years now (there are awesome directions online for making your own self-watering containers for really cheap!) and there are certain things that grow better in containers than others. I'll never try growing eggplant in the ground again. They just don't compare to eggplant grown in a container. Cherry tomatoes do really well in containers too. For people who come to me wanting to start vegetable gardening for the first time, I suggest making some containers and starting there. It is best to get yourself hooked on growing stuff without worrying about weeds and hoeing. Then move on to the bigger garden.
Toymaking with Children by Freya Jaffke: This is somewhat misnamed because I'm not sure most of these toys could be made by children or even with them helping (I think it is translated from German, so this may be why). This is a resource for making simple Waldorf toys. A lot of the directions require wood carving or knitting knowledge, but a fair number of the projects could be made without it. There is definitely a Waldorf slant to the writings, but it is a good resource regardless.
Soapmaking for Fun and Profit by Maria Given Nerius: The first part of this book has directions on how to make all kinds of soaps, mostly melt and pour, handmilled and lye soap. The second half of this book is about starting a craft business and a lots of the nuts and bolts involved there. It is an excellent resource on either account.
Smart Soapmaking by Anne L. Watson: This is strictly about making lye soap and it involves her own method, which uses a stick blender. Since you know I haven't made lye soap yet, it should be obvious that I haven't tested her methods, but they come very highly recommended from reviewers on amazon.com. Hopefully in a few weeks, I'll be able to report back on her methods.
Handy Farm Devices and How to Make Them by Rolfe Cobleigh: This is a reprint of a book written in 1909 that gives directions, some thorough, some cursory, about making farm implements yourself. As much as I would love to use the hawk trap for trapping the hawks that bug our chickens, that is now a federal offense. I may try other things and I'm sure I'll blog about them.
There will probably be one more homesteading book post because I know there are various books around the house that I haven't written about. At least this gets these books out of my office!!!
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