Instructional Resources - encyclopedias, tomes and guides of essential knowledge

Our Thoughts:

We purchased this book decades ago, and it has provided us with many years of enjoyment. Even all these years later we can still thumb through it and find new details that catch our eyes, or re-learn the details we’ve forgotten. 

The breadth of the material covers so many ‘Homesteading’ type topics that its impossible to summarize them all here, so we won’t try, but suffice it to say that the breadth is extensive. Some might nitpick that it lacks depth on certain topics, which is a valid observation, but that’s not the intent of this encyclopedia. We feel that this resource goes into sufficient detail for each topic to serve as a good foundation to either begin experimenting on your own, or enough information to learn which topics you need to dive into more thoroughly before you begin experimenting. 

Highly recommended for a new’ish prepper or homesteader, or those considering taking the plunge. Still valuable to veterans of prepping and homesteading since nobody can be an expert at everything. 

Our Thoughts:

This is a Must Read for anyone who is preparing for difficult times, regardless of whether or not they live in an Urban environment or not. 

Disaster Fiction - stories we hope never come true

Our Thoughts:

Forstchen sets off to prove a point in this book, and he does so with riveting intensity and page-turning brutality.

The point he is making is the potential violent consequences of our continued and ludicrous lack of protection for our most innocent treasures, our children.

He describes a completely plausible and terrible attack on America by our enemies, where our enemies take advantage of our political division and stalemate on topics like school security and border security.
Unfortunately, the people who most need to read this story would never do so and the lesson won’t be learned by those who are too terrified of the concept of violence to remove their head from the sand.
This book is a fast read. It’s almost impossible to put down. It is graphic and not for the feint of heart, but it will certainly steel your resolve.

Overview:

Schlichter’s The Attack is written as a compilation of a series of interviews and eye-witness reports to the incidents that occurred over a three day period (aka. ‘The Attack’). The subjects of the interviews were diverse and the accounts were personal and well-written, but this style certainly gave the book a more Documentarian feel than the typical fiction novel.

 

Our Take:

For me, the documentarian style resulted in less attachment to the general story, and since the novel didn’t stay with any particular set of protagonists for more than a handful of pages their individual stories didn’t grip the same way as with more typical stories.

Somewhere just past the 2/3 point of the book, I became somewhat saturated with the revolving door of eye witnesses, and I lost interest in the rest of the accounts. Don’t get me wrong, each mini story was different enough to be worth having their own account described, but my mind kept waiting for something to grip on to and care about.

I will say that I particularly enjoyed the chapters penned from the antagonists’ view (HAMAS and ANTIFA in particular). I found that those chapters stood out more to me by triggering negative and defensive feelings in me more strongly than the ‘good guy’ chapters.

I did enjoy how not everyone is a hero, many are just lucky or had quick enough feet to escape.

 

Overall:

Although not written in a style that grasped my full attention to the end, this book was well-written and certainly covers a topic that is very current.

General Fiction

Overview:

A light science fiction story of a man sent behind enemy lines in order to sow dissent, and disrupt and distract the agencies of the enemy state. 
 
The good:
A well-written and entertaining story. An easy read about familiar topics that we preppers consider and study, but composed with a not-so-heavy tone and served as a lift for me in between other books and manuals of more critical or emotional subjects.
 
The less-good:
A bit of a dated story, at least in terms of the policing and surveillance technology at the disposal of the antagonists. Although this is science fiction novel and relies on some technological magic as well as interstellar travel, it was written before our modern concept of the surveillance state and before the rise of security/doorbell cameras, body cams, AI facial recognition, and ever-listening cell phones…. this is really ok though, as long as one doesn’t expect that the same recipe could be used today.
 
The bad:
Nothing really.
A good, fun story.
 
Overall recommendation:
I recommend this novel on the basis of a fun weekend read.
Even if the technological perspective hasn’t aged well, the basic philosophy of distraction and disruption is still valid and is worth immersing oneself into that mindset in this light science fiction adventure.

Zombie - stories we really hope never come true

Our Thoughts:

This is an exciting novel of apocalyptic fiction with a strong military undertone. It is an easy page turner and it never lost my attention for lack of excitement or interesting detail. There was no serious effort to invest the reader into the personalities of the protagonists, but it wasn’t necessary and I didn’t miss the character development, I enjoyed the story for its straightforward ability to tell an action-packed and suspenseful story of survival. 
 
I particularly enjoyed the plausibility of the infection, the infected weren’t undead and reanimated corpses, they were just ravaged by a disease which made them go mad with RAGE.
 
Also, and who could ask for a better backdrop than NYC for a ground level view of armeghedon . Character development wasn’t extensive, but this story was about the story and the action and not the protagonists within it.
 
 

Publications - a section devoted to informative magazines and periodicals

Our Thoughts:

Backwoods Home and Self Reliance magazines are both great periodicals for those who enjoy homesteading, the simple ways, and traditional values. 
 
They have great articles on animal husbandry as well as techniques for successful vegetable gardening, recipes for normal people, and other topics including firearms safety and the virtues of freedom. 

Nonfiction / Historical

1. Book Reviews

  • Fiction – Societal Collapse, Terrorism, Dystopia
  • Fiction – Science Fiction (asteroids), Zombies
  • Non-Fiction – Historical Accounts
  • Instructional – Homesteading, Home Brewing, Canning
  • Instructional – Informational Resources (Medical, Communications, Navigation) 


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