Books & Gifts

For more than 50 years, this homesteading classic is the essential book of basic skills and country wisdom for living off the land, being prepared, and doing it yourself. Keep your family healthy, safe, and independent--no matter what's going on in the world. From homesteaders to urban farmers, and everyone in between, there is a desire for a simpler way of life: a healthier, greener, more self-sustaining, and holistic approach that allows you to survive and thrive--even in uncertain times. With its origins in the back-to-the-land movement of the late 1960s, Carla Emery's landmark book has grown into a comprehensive guide to living a self-sustaining lifestyle.

Broken down into four essential sections, Sustenance, Warmth, Orientation and Safety, this useful manual reveals time-tested outdoor skills, including how to catch game without a gun, what plants to eat (full-color illustrations of these make identification simple), how to build a warm shelter, make clothing, protect yourself and signal for help.

Dimensions: 1.1" H x 9.2" L x 5.5" W
Hardcover
Weight: 1.2 lbs
320 pages
Written by Bradford Angier
Publisher: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers

Sarah Owens is a horticulturalist, baker and a cook with an insatiable curiosity for global food traditions. Her reverence for plants fuels her passion for bringing out their best flavors in the kitchen. In Heirloom she presents ingredient-focused cooking and bread baking that emphasizes sourcing quality ingredients and relies on traditional techniques that extend the use of in-season produce and fresh food.
Organized into two parts, you'll discover the building blocks for inspired food. Part One explores traditional preservation techniques from fermenting and pickling to dehydrating, working with sourdough, and making broth, butter, yogurt, and whey. Part Two becomes a full expression of ingredients and techniques: recipes that are nourishing, flavorful, and satisfying. With recipes that layer flavors in rich and unique ways and that reflect the seasons, the dishes here are comforting, surprising, and give a feeling of abundance. Heirloom is a personal book that shares Owens' unique perspectives and stories on food.

Dimensions: 1.2" H x 10.1" L x 8.1" W
Paperback
Weight: 2.65 lbs
352 pages
Written by Sarah Owens, Ngoc Minh Ngo (photographer)
Publisher: Roost Books

The latest Scandinavian publishing phenomenon is not a Stieg Larsson-like thriller; it's a book about chopping, stacking, and burning wood that has sold more than 200,000 copies in Norway and Sweden and has been a fixture on the bestseller lists there for more than a year. Norwegian Wood provides useful advice on the rustic hows and whys of taking care of your heating needs, but it's also a thoughtful attempt to understand man's age-old predilection for stacking wood and passion for open fires. An intriguing window into the exoticism of Scandinavian culture, the book also features enough inherently interesting facts and anecdotes and inspired prose to make it universally appealing. The U.S. edition is a fully updated version of the Norwegian original, and includes an appendix of U.S.-based resources and contacts.

Dimensions: 0.9" H x 9.4" L x 6.5" W
Hardcover
Weight: 1.15 lbs
192 pages
Written by Lars Mytting
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams

Going Off the Grid: The How-To Book of Simple Living and Happiness contains step-by-step instructions for creating your self-sustaining refuge in the untamed wild or the blacktop jungle. Through Collins' methods, you'll identify and purge unnecessary stressors from your everyday life. You'll also learn the basics of off-the-grid living from home construction to energy alternatives, from sewage disposal to internet access.

Dimensions: 0.41" H x 8.5" L x 5.5" W
Hardcover
Weight: .51 lbs
192 pages
Written by Gary Collins
Publisher: Second Nature Publishing

Cities everywhere are graced with charming but little-known, off-the-beaten-track gardens and green spaces, offering urbanites in the know a chance to immerse themselves in nature. These often small, well-kept secrets are not as grand as those on the tourist trail but are equally delightful and rewarding to visit, if you know where to find them

Dimensions: 0.9" H x 9.1" L x 7.2" W 
Hardcover
Weight: 175 lbs
240 pages
Written by Foster Hungtington
Publisher: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers

This beautifully illustrated handbook will show you how to mend jeans, socks, sweaters, down jackets, and leggings and other common repairs. Mending Life encourages us to cherish our things by repairing them rather than discarding them. Filled with heartfelt stories that celebrate a sustainable, intentional lifestyle, it also encourages us to change our consumption habits so that with small mends here and there, we extend the life of our garments and other household items. Encouraging readers interested in slow fashion and craft core, this handbook is for beginners but also offers more advanced techniques to those with some experience in mending.

Dimensions: 0.9" H x 8.4" L x 7.4" W
Hardcover
Weight: 1.5lbs
224 pages
Author: Nina Montenegro, Sonya Montenegro
Publisher: Sasquatch Books

Buchanan-Smith's Axe Handbook is a trusted resource for anyone looking to reconnect with handcraft and the outdoors. Beautifully designed and lavishly illustrated, this handbook will inspire readers to rediscover the great outdoors.

Dimensions: 1.1" H x 9.1" L x 6.2" W
Hardcover
Weight: 1.7 lbs
240 pages
Written by Peter Buchanan-Smith, Ross McCammon, Nick Zdon, Michael Getz
Publisher: Abrams Image

Looking for a faster, easier, and engaging way to identify plants? Related plants have similar characteristics, and they often have similar uses. Rather than learning new plants one-at-a-time, it is possible to learn them by the hundreds, based on plant family patterns
Each family of related plants has unique patterns for identification. Learn to recognize these patterns, and discover them again and again in the plants you encounter. It is possible to instantly recognize a plant never before seen, and in many cases, to know its edible or medicinal properties on the spot-even before you have identified it down to the species!

Dimensions: 0.6" H x 10.9" L x 8.5" W
Paperback
Weight: 1.5 lbs
235 pages
Author: Thomas Elpel
Publisher: HOPS Press

People can transform their RV, van, cabin, boat or tiny homes using these off-grid solar systems. This book is written by an electrical engineer who specializes in solar power design and reviewed by a licensed electrician. It's written for beginners to understand how an off-grid solar power system works and how to build one.

Dimensions: 0.61" H x 9.0" L x 6.0" W
Paperback
Weight: .86 lbs
290 pages
Written by Nick Seghers
Publisher: Independently Published

The latest in a successful line of "bibles," following The Beekeeper's Bible and the The Botanical Bible, this new volume has the broadest appeal yet. An elegant aesthetic is paired with practical tips on identifying, attracting, and caring for backyard birds, as well as crafting bird-friendly gardens and bird houses. With additional sections focused on everything from the bird life cycle to bird behavior, symbolism, and meaning in art, this authoritative book is brimming with engaging answers to all of your birdwatching questions.

Dimensions: 1.5" H x 9.8" L x 7.6" W
Hardcover
Weight: 3.85 lbs
416 pages
Written by Paul Sterry, Christopher Perrins, Sonya Patel Ellis, Dominic Couzens
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams

The Beekeeper's Bible is as much an ultimate guide to the practical essentials of beekeeping as it is a beautiful almanac to be read from cover to cover. Part history book, part handbook, and part cookbook, this illustrated tome covers every facet of the ancient hobby of beekeeping, from how to manage hives safely to harvesting one's own honey, and ideas for how to use honey and beeswax. Detailed instructions for making candles, furniture polish, beauty products, and nearly 100 honey-themed recipes are included. Fully illustrated with how-to photography and unique etchings, any backyard enthusiast or gardener can confidently dive into beekeeping with this book in hand (or daydream about harvesting their own honey while relaxing in the comfort of an armchair).

Dimensions: 1.6" H x 9.7" L x 7.5" W
Hardcover
Weight: 3.85lbs
416 pages
Author: Richard Jones, Sharon Sweeney-Lynch
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams