Author of How to Prep When You’re Broke and Bloom Where You’re Planted online course
We’ve all got books like Jim Cobb’s Prepper’s Long-Term Survival Guide and Dr. Arthur T. Bradley’s Handbook to Practical Disasters. Both of these are incredible resources and I strongly recommend that everyone have them on their preparedness bookshelf.
But after you’ve read fifty-seven pale imitations, you’re probably ready for books that are a little more specialized. I have a list of books that focus on just one aspect of preparedness, self-reliance, and survival. (Yes, a couple of them are mine!)
This list is in no particular order.
Storing Food
We all know that building a pantry and storing our food supply properly is essential. The following books are specifically related to putting back food for difficult times.
- Prepper’s Pantry (by me!)
- The Prepper’s Ultimate Food Storage Guide (4 books in one big flexi-bound volume)
- A Year Without The Grocery Store (an excellent book focused on creating a one-year pantry)
- The Ball Book of Canning and Preserving (a classic for a reason!)
- The Prepper’s Canning Guide (by me, written with preppers in mind)
- Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits and Vegetables (useful even if you don’t have an actual root cellar)
- A Guide to Canning, Freezing, Curing & Smoking Meat, Fish & Game (a must-have to preserve meat both before and after things go sideways)
- The Complete Guide to Smoking and Salt Curing: How to Preserve Meat, Fish, and Game (same topic, different author)
- Basic Butchering of Livestock and Game (you need to have this on hand whether or not you are experienced)
Medical knowledge
Would you know what to do if someone in your family suffered a medical emergency and there was no way to go to a hospital? What about if a loved one got sick? It’s incredibly important to have these books on hand for reference.
- The Survival Medicine Handbook (another classic for a reason)
- Prepper’s Natural Medicine (an herbal guide to making medicine when the pharmacy isn’t available)
- Emergency War Surgery (I really don’t want ever to use this one, but if I need it, I have it)
- Where There Is No Doctor (the most widely used health care manual in the world)
- Where There Is No Dentist (untreated dental problems can actually be fatal, not to mention incredibly painful)
Growing food
This is an important facet of preparedness that some folks don’t consider. Eventually your stockpile will run out, and you’ll definitely want fresh produce after a year of canned and freeze-dried goods. These books can help you garden and homestead in your own backyard.
- The Complete Gardener (this is the book I turn to the most!)
- Straw Bale Gardens (by the guy who pioneered the method)
- Mini Farming: Self-Reliance on 1/4 Acre (excellent for city and suburbia dwellers)
- The Backyard Homestead (one of my favorites)
- Secret Garden of Survival (this is the original guide to a camouflaged permaculture food forest)
- Companion Gardening for Beginners (this will help you plan out your gardens efficiently)
- The Vegetable Garden Pest Handbook (if you’re having problems in the garden, this guide will help you identify and solve them)
- Soil Science for Beginners (get all the dirt on your dirt)
- Farming the Woods (it’s similar to Secret Garden of Survival but not geared toward preppers)
- Secret Greenhouse of Survival (by the author who specializes in hidden food)
Self-reliant skills
It’s important to have the general skills to sustain your family. These books can help you in nearly any setting.
- The Encyclopedia of Country Living (if you only get ONE specialty book, it needs to be this one -it’s huge and has everything in it)
- Back to Basics: A Complete Guide to Traditional Skills (dye wool, build a cabin, make cheese – it’s all in there)
- The Bushcraft Boxed Set (this is three books essential for the outdoorsy type: Advanced Bushcraft;The Bushcraft Field Guide to Trapping, Gathering, & Cooking in the Wild; Bushcraft First Aid )
- Beekeeping for Beginners (learn about raising bees for honey and pollination)
- Make, Sew, and Mend (a fantastic guide to keeping your clothes in good repair and making new ones)
- Living Off the Grid (how to create a self-reliant power supply)
- The Backyard Homestead Building Projects (chicken coops, root cellars, and water catchment, just to name a few things)
- The Woodland Homestead (self-reliance in a forested environment)
- The Prepper’s Water Survival Guide (by me – obtain, treat, and store water)
- Prepper’s Home Defense (this is an essential guide to securing your home and family)
- The Prepper’s Guide to Post-Disaster Communications (this is a simplified guide to ham radio)
What are your favorite books?
Obviously, this isn’t a comprehensive list of every niche book out there, but it’s a fantastic start. Do you have other books you’d add to this? Include the author’s name, if possible, and let us know about your favorites in the comments section.
About Daisy
Daisy Luther is a coffee-swigging, adventure-seeking, globe-trotting blogger. She is the founder and publisher of three websites. 1) The Organic Prepper, which is about current events, preparedness, self-reliance, and the pursuit of liberty; 2) The Frugalite, a website with thrifty tips and solutions to help people get a handle on their personal finances without feeling deprived; and 3) PreppersDailyNews.com, an aggregate site where you can find links to all the most important news for those who wish to be prepared. Her work is widely republished across alternative media and she has appeared in many interviews.
Daisy is the best-selling author of 5 traditionally published books, 12 self-published books, and runs a small digital publishing company with PDF guides, printables, and courses at SelfRelianceand Survival.com You can find her on Facebook, Pinterest, Gab, MeWe, Parler, Instagram, and Twitter.
One Response
I was delighted to find one day a book about sausage making. This was part of how our ancestors preserved meat before refrigerators. There are loads of niche books like that, and if you have some and your neighbors have others, there is a basis for trade in grid down or The Mark or other SHTF situations.