Synopsis

Anyone who wants to learn basic living skills—the kind employed by our forefathers—and adapt them for a better life in the twenty-first century need look no further than this eminently useful, full-color guide. Countless readers have turned to Back to Basics for inspiration and instruction, escaping to an era before power saws and fast food restaurants and rediscovering the pleasures and challenges of a healthier, greener, and more self-sufficient lifestyle.

Now newly updated, the hundreds of projects, step-by-step sequences, photographs, charts, and illustrations in Back to Basics will help you dye your own wool with plant pigments, graft trees, raise chickens, craft a hutch table with hand tools, and make treats such as blueberry peach jam and cheddar cheese. The truly ambitious will find instructions on how to build a log cabin or an adobe brick homestead. More than just practical advice, this is also a book for dreamers—even if you live in a city apartment you will find your imagination sparked, and there's no reason why you can't, for example, make a loom and weave a rag rug. Complete with tips for old-fashioned fun (square dancing calls, homemade toys, and kayaking tips), this may be the most thorough book on voluntary simplicity available.

Karen Ellis - Library Journal

This encyclopedic book covers various aspects of old-fashioned country living, from barn raising to animal husbandry. Originally published in 1981, with a second edition in 1997, this iteration boasts new photos and lots of homey advice. However, the text has not been updated since the first edition, ignoring many important changes and improvements-e.g., the discussion of herbal remedies has nothing about drug interactions, and the first-aid section is dangerously out-of-date. Many of the illustrations, too, are dated and unattractive. While this might have been a fantastic book 27 years ago, it is now a liability and should not be on any library shelf. Instead, try John Seymour's The Self-Sufficient Life and How To Live It.

Biography

Abigail R. Gehring is the editor of Back to Basics, Homesteading, and Self-Sufficiency, and author of Odd Jobs
and Dangerous Jobs. She’s practiced living self-sufficiently since her childhood in Vermont, being home-schooled, home-canning jams and jellies, and enjoying natural crafts. She lives in New York City and Windham, Vermont.