This book is an in depth "how-to" of outdoor primitive skills.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Browse our Bookshelf Favorites store for big savings on popular fiction, nonfiction, children's books, and more. |
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
Review
"--the best.---Only book I have reviewed that actually work." -- Keith Burges, Outdoor writer and book reviewer, Australia
"I have bought all eight of the previous volumes in your series, and use them regularly in teaching prehistoric/aboriginal technology..." -- Prof. John S., Dept. of Anthropology Harvard University
"This is without doubt the best training guide for real primitive living skills" -- Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly
"I have bought all eight of the previous volumes in your series, and use them regularly in teaching prehistoric/aboriginal technology..." -- Prof. John S., Dept. of Anthropology Harvard University
"This is without doubt the best training guide for real primitive living skills" -- Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly
From the Author
We have spent a considerable portion of our lives in the learning of these skills, and some seven years writing them up. We well remember the physical pains that one goes through when applying some of these skills and the frustration that comes with not successfully completing them. All the little tips left out of other how-to's that we were attempting to learn from. Well, we put them here for you. This book will teach you how to accomplish these skills whether you want to learn them or not.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images? |
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
220 of 224 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Hands down this is the best survival book anywhere. The difference between this book and the majority of survival skills books is that most books will talk about why you should make a waterproof shelter and discuss the building of a waterproof shelter, but they won't tell you EXACTLY HOW to build it. If you read this book, you will be able to tan buckskin, construct baskets, make primitive pots, make effective and simple bows, make cordage, construct semi-permanent shelters, flintknapp basic tools, start fires from natural materials and much more.
This book is not about "surviving," rather it's about "thriving" in a wilderness situation. The McPhersons have written the best and easiest to read book you can find anywhere.
We liked this book so much we made it the book of the month at RFS Online for August 1999.
166 of 168 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book is an excellent beginners guide for the inexperienced outdoorsman.
The book contains 10 well developed chapters that will get you well on your way to being able to "live off the land." The topics covered in this book are as follows: tanning deer skins, making fire, cordage, making a bow and arrows, making traps, meat preservation, primitive cooking methods, field dressing and butchering a deer, container making (baskets and pottery), making tools, and making shelters.
Most of these topics are covered in amazing detail with plenty of photographs. The McPhersons do an excellent job of explaining the topics so that even people with no outdoor experience could perform the task almost immediately. The only exception I found was the chapter on making baskets. Even though I read the chapter several times, I do not feel I could not weave a basket (in all do fairness, it may be easier when I actually attempt the task).
I can not stress enough how easy this book makes a seemingly impossible task for people who lack the basic knowledge of wilderness survival skills. The McPhersons don't just give you the instructions, they also explain the physics or logic behind what they are writing about. I recommend this book to anyone who needs/wants a firm foundation in basic survival skills.
158 of 160 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've studied, practiced, and taught wilderness survival on and off for around ten years, now. I've read an enormous amount of material on the subject of survival; some of it is quite good (Brown Jr., Wiseman, Davenport, among others), some of it is at best mediocre (e.g., FM 21-76).
However, this work by the McPhersons is in a class all by itself; it's simply outstanding. Unlike the majority of other books on survival, this book is filled with actual photographs, rather than drawings and illustrations. For instance, John Wiseman's "SAS Survival Handbook" is filled with an extraordinary amount of good information, but without actual photographs, the reader is never really "connected" to the skills being communicated. Of course, one must actually have real, hands-on experience in order to *truly* connect to the skills and practices being communicated, but the fact remains that good photographs are vastly superior to the average drawings found in survival handbooks, and as such will better prepare the reader for the actual event.
Although the information is not as far reaching in the same sense as something like Wiseman's Survival Handbook, it is far superior in the way it covers the limited amount of subjects that it does tackle. And those subjects are absolutely essential - thus they deserve the high degree of focus they receive to the exclusion of other lesser important skills. This book shows you the basic skills necessary to survive and to thrive - and it shows those skills with remarkable clarity. Sure, the grammar in this book is terrible, and the McPhersons are obviously not cultured in the traditional sense, but they know *this* subject, and that's what's important here.
I might complain at this point about a previous reviewer. J. Fusco's April 8th (single star) review is quite off base. He writes: "If this is your first survival book and you are looking to learn the basics of survival then I feel this is not the book."
I beg to differ. If I knew that the dearest person to me in all the world was about to get dropped into the middle of a North American wilderness, this is the FIRST book I would give to her. I've never seen its equal as far as explaining the basics of survival.
There are a few things I would have liked to see in this book that were not covered, yet are quite important. For instance, collection and treatment of water is a very important skill (think giardiasis), yet it received no attention here. In all fairness, though, this is by no means an insurmountable exclusion to anyone with half a brain. Almost everyone knows that boiling water renders it safe for drinking, so if one merely applies the skills learned from the sections on fire-making and various containers, the problem becomes a virtual non-issue (with a few rare exceptions, granted).
Also, the section on shelters, while good as far as it goes, leaves something to be desired. I would have liked to see a simpler, cold-weather type shelter that could be put up in a very short amount of time while still providing maximum protection from the elements. For example, Tom Brown Jr.'s "Debris Hut" (Tom Brown's Field Guide to Wilderness Survival, p. 30ff.) is excellent in this regard. I have personally survived sub-freezing temperatures in such a shelter with very little insulation except that provided in nature. The McPherson's book would have benefited greatly by including a shelter like the debris hut.
All in all, the small scruples I have with this book in no way detract from my estimation of its greatness, and my five-star rating is given without hesitation. Highly Recommended.
However, this work by the McPhersons is in a class all by itself; it's simply outstanding. Unlike the majority of other books on survival, this book is filled with actual photographs, rather than drawings and illustrations. For instance, John Wiseman's "SAS Survival Handbook" is filled with an extraordinary amount of good information, but without actual photographs, the reader is never really "connected" to the skills being communicated. Of course, one must actually have real, hands-on experience in order to *truly* connect to the skills and practices being communicated, but the fact remains that good photographs are vastly superior to the average drawings found in survival handbooks, and as such will better prepare the reader for the actual event.
Although the information is not as far reaching in the same sense as something like Wiseman's Survival Handbook, it is far superior in the way it covers the limited amount of subjects that it does tackle. And those subjects are absolutely essential - thus they deserve the high degree of focus they receive to the exclusion of other lesser important skills. This book shows you the basic skills necessary to survive and to thrive - and it shows those skills with remarkable clarity. Sure, the grammar in this book is terrible, and the McPhersons are obviously not cultured in the traditional sense, but they know *this* subject, and that's what's important here.
I might complain at this point about a previous reviewer. J. Fusco's April 8th (single star) review is quite off base. He writes: "If this is your first survival book and you are looking to learn the basics of survival then I feel this is not the book."
I beg to differ. If I knew that the dearest person to me in all the world was about to get dropped into the middle of a North American wilderness, this is the FIRST book I would give to her. I've never seen its equal as far as explaining the basics of survival.
There are a few things I would have liked to see in this book that were not covered, yet are quite important. For instance, collection and treatment of water is a very important skill (think giardiasis), yet it received no attention here. In all fairness, though, this is by no means an insurmountable exclusion to anyone with half a brain. Almost everyone knows that boiling water renders it safe for drinking, so if one merely applies the skills learned from the sections on fire-making and various containers, the problem becomes a virtual non-issue (with a few rare exceptions, granted).
Also, the section on shelters, while good as far as it goes, leaves something to be desired. I would have liked to see a simpler, cold-weather type shelter that could be put up in a very short amount of time while still providing maximum protection from the elements. For example, Tom Brown Jr.'s "Debris Hut" (Tom Brown's Field Guide to Wilderness Survival, p. 30ff.) is excellent in this regard. I have personally survived sub-freezing temperatures in such a shelter with very little insulation except that provided in nature. The McPherson's book would have benefited greatly by including a shelter like the debris hut.
All in all, the small scruples I have with this book in no way detract from my estimation of its greatness, and my five-star rating is given without hesitation. Highly Recommended.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing
After reviewing the book several times the writing is just terrible. I wish I spent my money on another wilderness guide.
Published 13 days ago by Anon
5.0 out of 5 stars
great
This book is one of the more detailed, on the subject. OK, it's not an encyclopedia, or a survival manual- it's a book of skills, to practice, for wilderness living. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Laura
5.0 out of 5 stars
He loves it
This item was a gift, and he loves it. Sorry, but I don't have anything more to say about it.
Published 1 month ago by Calendula Bishop
5.0 out of 5 stars
GREAT BUY!
GREAT BUY! GREAT BUY, WELL WORTH THE MONEY SPENT! durable and will last forever! This is something you can hand down to your kids or grand kids, but teach them to use it first of... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Col. Benjamin C. Miles
5.0 out of 5 stars
review
great book. i recommend getting it. lots of usefull information. click on the picture and you can look at whats in each chapter. Read more
Published 3 months ago by David Doherty
5.0 out of 5 stars
For the primitive wilderness enthusiast
I've read the army survival manuals, the wild edible peterson field guides, and fox fire library. . . etc: all great books. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jonathan McClure
5.0 out of 5 stars
Must Have
This is one of the best books I have read on survival. A copy of this book and the Army Survival Manual will be just about all the books you will need on survival.
Published 4 months ago by SEABEE
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intersting read
This was an interesting read as it looks back to the way things where done before tec. For those that are interested in the old ways must simply take a look at this one
Published 4 months ago by Sezza
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good book, crummy pictures.
The book itself is great but the grainy black and white photographs are next to usless. Some crisp colored pictures might increase the cost but their value would more than... Read more
Published 5 months ago by William E. Reed III
5.0 out of 5 stars
Only genuine encyclopedia of primitive survival skills in town
This book is encyclopedic in nature. It shows you EVERYTHING with robust detail and helpful pictures. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Brian Rose
Citations (learn more)
3
books
cite this book:
- 98.6 Degrees: The Art of Keeping Your Ass Alive by Cody Lundin in Front Matter
- Practicing Primitive: A Handbook of Aboriginal Skills by Steven Watts in Front Matter
- How to Survive Anywhere: A Guide for Urban, Suburban, Rural, and Wilderness Environments by Christopher Nyerges on page 214
Books on Related Topics
(learn more)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Listmania!
So You'd Like to...
|
|
