Customer Reviews

Let's Get Primitive: The Urban Girl's Guide to Camping

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Perfect guide for a city girl who wants to try to brave the great outdoors. Don't be fooled by its cute design, its not only great looking it is full of real information and tips to get you ready and through your trip. Hip and smart, just like the girls it is written for!

i picked up this book and had trouble putting it down. it is hysterical, informative, inspirational & just a simple great read. reading this book makes me want to run out & buy a tent right now - and buy a bunch of copies for my friends to convince them to join me for a primitive adventure.

it's nice to know that girls can still be girls out in the woods (i can bring my kiehl's lip balm!) and that camping can involve good wine, good cheese, good friends, and some pretty great memories.

A book that makes camping sound like an adventure for
even the most citified folks. A hip writing style and great
details about how to protect your food from bears,
and the value of duct tape keeps you reading and wanting more.
Some descriptive passages make you laugh out loud.

I finished reading this book while on a weekend camping trip with my husband. We camp quite a bit but I am always looking for ways to improve my skills. This book is low on skill improvement but high on motivation. It has a "you-can-do-this," girlfriend-to-girlfriend, POV, just the nudge needed by someone who may be curious but hesitant about getting into the great outdoors.
The information given on basics, such as getting a tent, a sleeping bag, and food planning, seem reasonable for someone just starting out. There are many good, insightful ideas for planning one's first camping trip and, with technical details left out, planning a trip seems much less daunting than it often does with other camping guides. I also found her lists of items to pack very complete and intelligent (and if you want to bring face powder along, well, hey, why the heck not?).
I did spend several unsettling chapters trying to figure out what exactly the GLOK was that the author kept referring to - it stands for the Glorious Ladies Of Kentucky, the women with whom she shared her adult camping experiences, and is on the note on page 10.
My husband and I appreciated her kind remarks about Boy Scouts. I liked her idea of taking a "Book of Questions"-style book camping for conversation starters.
We still chuckle over the idea of packing a favorite SKIRT to go camping! LOL!! I guess that's the only reason I didn't go all the way with five stars. On the other hand, camping, hiking and backpacking are three different things and, if the idea is to get a newbie out into nature, and that newbie wants to wear a skirt at camp, who am I to say no?
My handbook for all things camping is currently Backpacker Magazine and/or one of the Boy Scout handbooks, but I would recommend this book to any adult woman who wants to try camping but is hesitant. Camping can seriously help you get rid of stress and it's important for people to appreciate the environment. This book will not prepare you for the Appalachian Trail (see Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods) but you should be able to get to the nearest State/National Park and have an enjoyable weekend. As the author suggests, this book can change you from a "city kitty" into nature's wildcat, easily, joyfully, and have you wondering why you waited so long!

I purchased a copy of this book for my wife. Being a traditional city girl, she was quite skeptical of there being any fun from backpacking and camping out in the woods. After reading this book she was more than game to give it a try and we've been able to go several times using various tips, hints and recipes from the book.

I haven't read the entire book myself but I've read a few chapters here and there and the author does a great job to get beginners excited AND well prepared for a trip. There's even tons of goodies for veteran backpackers too!

Loved the book so much we purchased a second copy to give to a friend who now comes along on our backpacking excursions.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I bought it because I was planning a camping trip and it was a lot of help. I used almost all the food recipes which I found delish, especially the chili lime roasted corn on the cob! Yum! The only thing I can say that was slightly negative is that Ms. Menicucci's examples and tips are for people who backpack camp. Hiking into the wilderness and setting up camp where ever. I'm more of the drive up to my campsite and pitch my tent at a camp site with a number kind of person. So some of her tips and advice were not really relevant to my excursion.

However, for those girls (and guys!) who are really in to roughing it, this book offers loads of helpful ideas and great EASY recipes and fun ways to pass the time.

Very much enjoyed this introductory to camping from the female perspective. It covered all of the areas that I was nervous about or had questions on. Funny, easy read.

Things I love about this book:

The author makes camping seem fun and easy - which it is!

You don't feel like a loser for not spending a bazillion dollars on camping equipment. It's okay to go camping "ghetto-style" - or in my case "non-profit style"!

The author has some really fun ideas in here - like awarding badges after a camping trip.

If you take everything in this book to heart, you will be equipped for your very first (or maybe your very first SUCCESSFUL) camping trip.

You don't have to be a newbie camper or a city girl to find something useful about this book. I'm an experienced camper who hates city-life, but this is one of my favorite gifts from last year.

If this book does nothing else for you, it will make you laugh!

Very inspiring, and always funny. I can't believe the recipes that are commonplace in this book--very helpful guide for a somewhat more experienced chick-camper!

I got this as a gift for a family member that we want to go camping with us. It's a great beginners guide for all things camping related.