Foxfire Book reviews

Discussion in 'Survival Reading Room' started by WestPointMAG, Apr 14, 2009.


  1. WestPointMAG

    WestPointMAG Monkey++

    This thread will review the Foxfire book series. Having all of the Foxfire books reviewed will be helpful for those wishing to purchase Foxfire books. Some of the Foxfire books will be more useful in the PAW then others so if a prepper in one a budget the reviews will help them stretch there prep dollars. By being able to read what information each book covers prior to purchasing any you will be able to send your money more wisely.
    Those wishing to Wright reviews of the Fox fire books should call the ones that you are going to review now. As the reviews are written I will copy and repost the here given credit to the writer of the review. That way all of the reviews will be grouped to gather and not interrupted by discussion. Feel free to discuss the Foxfire books in this thread. If anyone would like to review any of the books you may do so and I will list it with the review giving you credit for your review.
    I have Foxfire # 3,6,7&8 and can review those.


     
  2. tacmotusn

    tacmotusn RIP 1/13/21

    I have Foxfire books one thru 10. There is better, more detailed, DIY info out there for anything covered in the Foxfire series. My wallet was fat, or so I thought when I purchased all of them (one at a time, new, full price, as they came out). I must have been drinking some bad cool-ade. jmho
    .
    If you can pick them up for a buck each, I would say, "Go for it!" Otherwise save your money, beg borrow or steal them for a quick read and an outline of things to glean more info on. Then move on.
     
  3. Falcon15

    Falcon15 Falco Peregrinus

    Agreed. I happened across the Foxfire book 5 - and while it is an important collection of folklore, the step by-step directions are a bit on the slim side as far as details.
     
  4. Equilibrium

    Equilibrium Monkey++

    Don't buy them. I did... it was a mistake for me. They're very dated.
     
  5. Bison_Forge

    Bison_Forge Aspiring Knifemaker

    The books are definitely not survival books by a long shot, but I really enjoyed them for the historical value that they have. Very educational from that standpoint, but not something that I would necessarily want/need in a survival, or SHTF situation. Check out Back To Basics for better instructions on most of the things mentioned in the Foxfire books. Back to Basics Book
     
  6. oth47

    oth47 Monkey+

    I have all the Foxfire books..as someone said,they are good for getting ideas for more research.They make a fine addition to my extensive library of diy,survival,homesteading type material.I also have a 2 foot stack of Countryside and BWH magazines.The Foxfire books are well worth what they cost,I think,just for the historical info they have,but a lot of said info I already had in my head just from growing up poor.No one book can give you all the knowledge you need..
     
  7. CATO

    CATO Monkey+++

    I agree with the above: if you can get them at a yard sale, do it, otherwise, spend your money on Emery's Encyclopedia of Country Living and then some type of military survival guide (SAS eg). This will cover your bases from skinning/tanning hides to planting crops to escape/evasion.

    I've read a bunch of these military-type guides and they all have similar info. I think they're a little dry to read.

    I have found one that is more interesting reading: Hawke's Green Beret Survival Manual (hardback). The writing isn't in govt.-ese or too referency. It's as if he were giving you one-on-one instruction.

    Another good set is Stackpole books _____ Wisdom series. Survival wisdom, Country living Wisdom, etc. Good books, but they're not convenient...paperback and very large. They might not stand up well over time and you really need a big, flat table to read them.
     
  8. Equilibrium

    Equilibrium Monkey++

    The Encyclopedia of Country Living I looked at was mostly all recipes. Is that the book you're talking about or is there another one out there? Maybe I screwed up and didn't flip through enough of the book after I found the recipes? The SAS book we just bought based on recommendations here.
     
  9. CATO

    CATO Monkey+++

    You're referring to the 'Old Fashion Recipe Book,' written by the same person. That wasn't what I was referencing:

    Amazon.com: The Encyclopedia of Country Living (9781570615535): Carla Emery: Books
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 26, 2015
  10. Wild Trapper

    Wild Trapper Pirate Biker

    The value in the Foxfire books is not in the DIY information. It is in getting into the mind of the old folks and how they did things to survive. Full of folklore that may or may not have any application in a modern society. I don't have them all and won't be purchasing any that I don't have. I enjoyed reading them for the historical value, it was like going back into the head of my own grandparents, whose brains I used to pick by the hour, until their patience about wore out with me.

    Still in all there is much information in them for the real observant to glean a knowledge of how to survive and do things the old way. So much is actually left out in the written word in these books. Remember, that high school students actually did a lot of the foot work in gathering the research material for these books. Sure they had editors that did the final publishing, but so much was dependent on folks whose memory may even be somewhat in question. I for instance was shown by my grandfather how to make and do many things the old way. Some of that info was based on the "That's just the way we do things", attitude and forgets that something "We always did things" was flawed.

    I have also visited the Foxfire store in north Georgia on at least two occasions. If you are ever down that way, do stop in, it is a very interesting place. Give yourself a couple hours to walk around and see the work they have done at trying to restore something of the old ways. You'll also want a little time in the actual store itself. Maybe I just like the history of it all. Don't buy the books expecting to find answers to building a modern survival farm/homestead, you will be disappointed.
     
  11. Equilibrium

    Equilibrium Monkey++

    Guit_fishN> thank you. Looks like I got my hands on the wrong book. I'll check it out next time I'm near Barns & Noble. This type of book would be of interest to me.
     
  12. Bison_Forge

    Bison_Forge Aspiring Knifemaker

    Is the Foxfire store as cool as it sounds? I have family that lives near there, and they say that it is pretty neat if you go when they are having demonstrations.
     
  13. Wild Trapper

    Wild Trapper Pirate Biker

    The Firefox store was mostly just a store when I visited, but plenty of different books on sale. Not just the Firefox books, all kinds related mostly to early history, etc. The other activities like demonstrations, I didn't hang around for, just touring the old restored buildings is a page out of history.
     
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