A Reading List for Self-Reliance: The Smart, Practical Survival Library

Top book recommendations to be prepared for any emergency

(Courtesy of publishers)

I once read a true story of a crew of rescuers searching for a lost hiker. After hours of searching, they finally found the man’s body, leaning against a tree, surrounded by the contents of his well-equipped backpack. He had everything he needed to survive, yet must have lacked the skills to use them for his survival.

Likewise, your home library may be filled with survival manuals of all kinds, but which of those will be most user-friendly and practical should you ever need that knowledge in a crisis?

Browse through Amazon, and you’ll find thousands of books on every survival and prepping topic known. I know because I have that type of library! Over the years, though, only a dozen or so books stand out as worthy of reading and containing reliable knowledge anyone can use. So along with my nonfiction recommendations, I’ve also included three additional books that demonstrate through historic examples how important it is to have the skills, supplies, and knowledge to survive in extreme situations.

Top Survival Books

’The Backyard Homestead: Produce All the Food You Need on Just a Quarter Acre' edited by Carleen Madigan

Homesteading has become a trendy buzzword across the internet, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic as more and more people moved away from urban centers and toward more self-reliant lifestyles. This attractively designed book contains simple instructions, illustrations, tips, and charts to make it easier to find ways to create your own small homestead to grow food, raise small livestock, and tackle numerous projects, including homemade cider and pickling.

‘Beginner’s Guide to Canning: 90 Easy Recipes to Can, Savor, and Gift’ by Diane Devereaux

Storing food for emergencies goes hand in hand with learning how to preserve food for long-term storage. Canning has become increasingly popular again over the past decade, and in this handy guide, Diane Devereaux, known as “The Canning Diva,” teaches the basics of both water bath and pressure canning along with some of her signature canning recipes.

‘Food Storage for Self-Sufficiency and Survival: The Essential Guide for Family Preparedness’ by Angela Paskett

Food storage involves far more than canned food and beans. In this book, Paskett takes a deep dive into the science and art of creating a food storage system for your family that will remain nutritious and flavorful for decades. There’s no need to plan on bland meals of rice and beans with her instructions for family-pleasing meals that are food-storage friendly. Included are practical tips for keeping all that food organized, which is no easy matter!

‘Herbal Medic: A Green Beret’s Guide to Emergency Medical Preparedness and Natural First Aid’ by Sam Coffman

One way to create self-reliance in your life is to learn about herbal medicine for everyday ailments. In this book, Sam Coffman has compiled an in-depth guide that combines his knowledge and training as a Special Forces medic with decades of working with herbs as medicine. This book features dozens of charts and illustrations that take the mystery out of herbalism. Learn which herbal remedies to use for various ailments and injuries in this easy-to-use reference book.

‘The Survival Medicine Handbook: The Essential Guide for When Help is NOT on the Way’ by Joseph Alton and Amy Alton

A medical emergency can happen anywhere and often does—miles from a hospital or doctor. This nearly 700-page manual is written and illustrated for the person without a medical background who wants to be ready in case a loved one needs help. Learn what supplies you’ll need and how to use them, along with dozens of medical scenarios, from respiratory issues to dental emergencies, treating burns and minor wounds, and much more.

‘Survival Mom: How to Prepare Your Family for Everyday Disasters and Worst-Case Scenarios’ by Lisa Bedford

Authored by yours truly, this family survival manual was written by a mom, specifically for moms. It’s a comprehensive survival guide that provides instructions for managing such mundane things as dirty laundry during a power outage and keeping the kids occupied and calm during a traffic jam. In addition, learn how to put together a survival pantry of family-favorite meals, maintain situational awareness and security at home and when out and about, how to purify water, and where and how to pinch pennies to extend the family budget.

‘The Ultimate Situational Survival Guide: Self-Reliance Strategies for a Dangerous World’ by Robert Richardson

As founder of the OffGrid Survival website, Robert Richardson has written the common man’s guide to recognizing, preparing for, and surviving many of the dangers that confront us today. One of the most helpful features of this practical manual is its focus on individual situational awareness, which, on its own, can make the difference between life and death. In addition, learn about natural disaster survival and similar emergencies, how to prepare for job loss, economic threats, and how to prep on a budget.

Historic Survivors

‘A Fortunate Life’ by A.B. Facey

In “A Fortunate Life,” Australian author A.B. Facey tells the story of his difficult upbringing in the outback of Australia, marked by poverty, physical suffering, and separation from family. At just 8 years old, Facey had to get a job to support himself and provide income for his family. The young boy encounters a range of employers, some kind and some cruel.

In addition to his struggles as a child and then as a young man, Facey also experienced the horrors of war, serving in the trenches during the battle of Gallipoli and losing his son, Barney, in World War II.

This autobiography is told in such a matter-of-fact way, without bitterness or complaining, that it’s heartwarming, inspiring, and hard to put down.

’The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey’ by Candice Millard

Most people know of Theodore Roosevelt as America’s 26th president, but few know about his exploits as an adventurer and explorer. In this book by Candice Millard, the reader follows Roosevelt’s footsteps as he recovers from losing the presidential election of 1912 and then decides to tackle an even bigger challenge.

The River of Doubt, now known as the Rio Roosevelt, was uncharted, flowing through the deepest parts of the Amazon. The Roosevelt expedition was the first time non-Amazonian natives had traversed the river, and the odds were high against their safe return.

Almost immediately, the team runs into unimaginable difficulties, including a 900-mile trek to get to the river itself, a quartermaster who unwisely packs such luxury foods as wine and olive oil, starvation, disease, and the loss of numerous expedition members. Roosevelt himself nearly dies when an injury became infected. The author’s meticulous research and details provide a richly illustrative background to the adventure itself.

‘The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl’ by Timothy Egan

The Great American Dust Bowl is overshadowed in most people’s memory by the Great Depression. Yet in terms of human misery, the Dust Bowl region compounded unimaginable hardship alongside devastating financial losses.

Due to drought and poor farming practices, from 1931 to 1939, massive dust storms, at times reaching more than a mile into the sky, were a daily occurrence. These storms could last for hours, and in some cases, dust was carried from this region and found as far away as New York City and Washington, D.C. Egan puts a human face on this environmental devastation by including the true stories of people who lived and endured through it, along with enough background information to help us understand the political and economic policies that exacerbated this disaster.

It’s a fascinating and sometimes disturbing read, reminding us of the incredible hardships our grandparents and great-grandparents endured.