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Books & skills

Books are forever

No power, no internet, no information. A shelf of good books works in every emergency, and it never needs charging.

Why books?
Phones die, the internet goes down, and the video you saved won't load. A book you can open by candlelight is the most dependable prep you can own. Start with the first three, then add one a month.
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The Encyclopedia of Country Living

The do-it-yourself bible

Gardening, butchering, baking bread, raising animals, canning and more. If you only own one book, make it this one.

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Back to Basics

Traditional skills, with pictures

Building, food preserving, soap and candle making, and homestead projects, shown step by step.

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Where There Is No Doctor

Medical care with no help coming

Written for villages far from hospitals. Clear drawings, real treatments. A must for every prepper shelf.

The Survival Medicine Handbook

When help is not on the way

Wounds, infections, dental problems and long-term care, from a doctor and a nurse who prep.

Where There Is No Dentist

Teeth and gums

A toothache can take a strong person out of action. This book shows what you can do.

SAS Survival Handbook

Fits in a go-bag

Shelter, fire, water, navigation and first aid in a small, tough book.

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

Canning and preserving

400 tested recipes. Safe canning is about following tested recipes, and this is the standard.

Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs

Your herbal starter

33 common herbs and how to use them. It's the book I tell every beginner to buy.

The Prepper's Blueprint

A plan, step by step

Walks you through prepping one layer at a time, for any kind of emergency.

Mini Farming

Food from a small yard

Grow most of a family's food on a quarter acre, with real numbers.

All New Square Foot Gardening

Small-space gardening

Grow a lot of food in raised beds, even on a patio.

A wild plants field guide for your region

Foraging

Pick one written for your part of the country. Never eat a plant you can't identify 100%.

ARRL Ham Radio License Manual

Talk when phones are down

Everything you need to pass the entry-level ham radio test.

A paper road atlas

Navigation

When GPS and phones are down, a paper map gets you home. Keep one in every car.

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Make your own prep binder too

Print my free printables, your family plan and your medicine list, and keep them in a binder with your books. Add printouts of anything you'd look up online in an emergency.

Skills

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