The The New Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency: The Classic Guide for Realists and Dreamers

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Alternative Energy Secrets by Stephen Chastain ~ I know the title sounds horrible and spammy, but this is by far the best book on alternative energy technology I’ve found to date. Seriously, hands down the best. Later on, if you’d like, you can dive into aging cheese and more complex recipes, but that’s always optional.

In the US, operating HAM radio requires a license, which just ensures you understand the basic principles of how it works before you get on the air. These books cover the basics, as well as how to pass the test. I grew up in southern California, raised by parents who are honestly more than a little disturbed by our lifestyle. Beyond books, I’d also recommend a number of courses by the Herbal Academy, and I’ve taken almost all of them. I have the textbook book set from their Intermediate Herbal Course and it’s really quite handy.Wild food and foraging guides are often really regionally specific, as plants vary from place to place. My favorites are actually more generalist foraging books, that cover plants with wide ranges so they’re applicable across most the US. The Boreal Herbalby Beverley Gray ~ A great guide for wild foraged herbal remedies if you live in Northern laditudes. Just about everything listed grows locally here in Vermont, and it’s one of my favorite guides. Not that helpful if you live in the south though. Beyond these specific fermentation guide books, I’d also recommend any of the cookbooks by Olia Hercules. She’s a Ukrainian author and though she writes about Ukrainian cooking, that’s something you just can’t do without covering a lot of home fermentation recipes (and other food preservation topics). Whole Grain Breads by Peter Reinhart ~ The best guide on making 100% whole wheat bread taste amazing. Again, as with the Breadbakers Apprentice, most of the recipes involve multi day ferments, but that’s really essential to high quality whole grain breads.

It also helps us understand which areas of the world are most vulnerable regarding essential goods or service shortages. While the world has been growing increasingly more connected through trade, we still have many countries that are self-sufficient in their own personal resources.Far from Paradise - the story of man's impact on the environment (1986). London: BBC Publications. (with Herbert Girardet) Betsy Matheson keeps it simple and practical, as you can easily follow along with the process of new DIY projects like building greenhouses, garden beds, root cellars, solar systems, rainwater irrigation systems, and beehives.