When I first began learning survival strategies in the early 90’s, it was for recreational use in the event I was stuck in the woods on a hunting trip. As a result, the few books I had were focused on the basics; building shelter, staying warm, finding your way out the woods, etc… Basic as my skills were, I’ve had to implement them on more than one occasion.

Now almost two decades later, I’m no longer studying survival tactics for finding my way out of the woods; I’m looking at possible long-term survival scenarios. As a result the basic survival books of the past are not comprehensive enough in their scope for long-term survival. Other types of books must be studied to make a modern survivalist. Below is a list of subjects, with a brief description, that any serious survivalist should become acquainted with.

Edible and Medicinal Plants

One of the greatest assets available to modern survivalists is the growing list of books and articles written about edible and medicinal plants in your local ecosystem. When my wife and I began collecting books on this subject, I was astonished at not only the variety but also the availability of dozens of healthy plants and fruits within our area. Now on our trips to the woods, we now have fun with our children seeking out new sources of food that were previously unknown to us. Should we ever be forced to survive in the woods, whether short or long term, I am confident we would have a well balanced diet available.

Local Wildlife and Their Habits

Everybody takes for granted that virtually every wild place in America has the same basic host of animals; deer, rabbits, squirrels, coyote and a variety of birds. Despite this rudimentary knowledge, few people take the time to better understand the habits or diet of these animals. Aside from this, some areas of this country have poisonous and or dangerous animals that can pose a serious threat to the your survival strategies. Therefore, I highly recommend finding books that will acquaint you with the variety of animals and their habits in your local area.

An example I give my children is this. If you were limited on your supply of ammo and trying to eke it out in the woods, what would you do in a show down with a large predator, such as a cougar? Instead of wasting precious ammo, it would pay to know how to thwart the predator from attacking and scare it away for good.

Hunting and Fishing Skills

Coupled with learning about the animals within your local area, is the idea of how to capture or kill any of these animals for food. By this I don’t mean just sitting in a tree and waiting for a deer to pass by. A well rounded hunting or fishing book, should teach you the essentials of trapping small animals, making fish traps, spear fishing, taking large animals and last but not least how to properly prepare a meal in the field.

Stories About Mountain Men of the Past

Many would be surprised to learn that mountain men of the past lived primarily on small animals, from squirrel to the occasional weasel. They realized that having to much meat can go to waste, and draw unwanted scavengers to their campsite. Aside from this, the toughness of these men of lore gave root to many a tall tale. I’ve admired many of these old timers having to survive on limited food, cold coffee, often in the least favorable weather conditions imaginable.

Food and Seed Storage

One of the subjects I’ve recently begin researching is storage for food and seed. Within this arena is the idea of dry food bunkers, root cellars, keeping your seeds dry and keeping animals out of your food. While this subject requires more resources than many survivalists may have access to in times of emergency, pre-planned preparation is the rule of thumb for this subject.

Homesteading

The idea of homesteading almost died soon after people began leaving the farm last century. However, homesteading began increasing in popularity in the 70’s, with it slowly building steam until now it is a popular subject again, as more and more people desire to leave the confines of the city and live a rural agrarian lifestyle. In the event of long-term survival scenarios, the information gleaned from the many wonderful resources on this subject is invaluable. Most of the popular books have information about various cabin building techniques, electricity production, drilling water wells, gardening, animal husbandry, making clothes and a plethora of other homesteading subjects.

Health and Well Being

While this subject alone is one of the most complex to wrestle, it is essential for survivalists in mid to long-term situations. Occasionally this subject is tackled in the books about wild food gathering, but often time’s additional resources are necessary. A sampling of topics that should be considered is; daily nutritional needs, how to ward off illness, how to treat sickness, how to treat wounds and what foods are highest in vitamins.

While there are undoubtedly more topics that could be added to any survivalist’s library, this list is a good start. The next question is where to find such resources? I have purchased some books online or at bookstores brand new. However much of my library has been found at garage sales, library book sales, used book stores and thrift stores. It is a joyful experience to find a handful of great survival resources for only a few dollars.

My suggestion is to start of simple, get only a few basic books pertaining to each of these subjects, then from there dive in deeper with more complex resources as time and finances permit. Your time in educating yourself in these subjects will not be in vain; you’ll be surprised at how often you will find yourself applying what you’ve learned to your life.

By Justin Cottrell

This story is very well written and very easy to read. Rawles is an amazing writer and one of the premier Survivalists in our country. His blog www.survivorblog.com is an excellent source of information of survival techniques and ideas. It was also the inspiration for creating this website. Do yourself a favor and get this book!