Saturday, April 25, 2015

Exploring the Nature of... Four Fields.

In this book, Tim Dee tells the story of four green fields spread around the world: their grasses, their hedges, their birds, their skies, and both their natural and human histories. These four fields—walkable, mappable, man-made, mowable, knowable, but also secretive, mysterious, wild, contested, and changing—play central roles in the sweeping panorama of world history and in the lives of individuals.

In Dee’s telling, a field is never just a setting for great battles or natural disasters, though it is often this as well. A field is the oldest and simplest and truest measure of what a man needs in life, especially when looked at, contemplated, worked in, lived with, and written about.

by Tim Dee
Counterpoint, 2015
The Nature Pages
Nature Writing and Natural Histories
Book Notes Wild

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Farm and Garden Picks: The Illustrated Guide to Cows

Keeping cattle as a smallholder can be a rewarding enterprise, supplying you with food and milk and helping with the management of grassland on your property. This delightfully illustrated and informative book is ideal for anyone interested in keeping a cow or two, who would like to choose the best breed for their circumstances.

The Illustrated Guide to Cows by Celia Lewis covers the 58 most familiar breeds of cattle in Europe and North America.

How to Choose Them, How to Keep Them
by Celia Lewis
Bloomsbury USA, 2014

Animal Husbandry Books
Husbandry
Outrider Reading Group

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

A New Guide To... Artisanal Foods.

Artisanal foods are making a comeback as more and more people seek to stock their pantries, and their bellies, with handcrafted or locally grown and made foods. Specialty markets and sections at grocery stores are catering to this new desire for the special, the unique, the carefully made foods.

This book colorfully details the landscape of the newest wave of the artisanal food revolution by looking at four foods that whet our appetites for specialty.

Pickles, Cheese, Chocolate, Spirits, and the Return of Artisanal Foods
by Suzanne Cope
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2014

Outrider Reading Group
Guidebooks and How-to Titles
Specialty Foods
Farm Kitchen


Sunday, January 25, 2015

Book Stall Review: The Five Seasons

This is a self-help guide to achieving an enlightened, enjoyable life by establishing balance with nature in your mind, body and spirit. Based on the idea that each season has its own unique natural energy, it offers holistic techniques for balancing your emotions, creativity, productivity, decision making and more.

The holistic and non-pharmaceutical techniques, are familiar: using music, meditation and breathing exercises, positive thinking, walking outside.

Tap Into Nature's Secrets for Health, Happiness, and Harmony
by Joseph Cardillo
New Page Books, 2013

continued in The Book Stall

Reviews Archive
Outrider Reading Group
How To Do It Books

Monday, December 15, 2014

Book Stall Review: Mrs. Wheelbarrow's Practical Pantry


Preserving the foods of summer to enjoy in winter saves a household money, especially during the cold months when the fresh pickings are slim and local produce almost impossible to find. There's also the advantage of knowing where your food came from and how it was prepared; and there's the satisfaction of doing it yourself, taking control of your food supply.

This book explains four types of preserving: water-bath canning, pressure canning, curing meats and making cheese. A separate chapter is devoted to each type of preservation and the instructions are organized seasonally, from spring to winter, and from the easiest to the most difficult. Dozens of canning, smoking, curing and cheesemaking recipes are complemented by "bonus recipes" that make use of what's been preserved.

Recipes and Techniques for Year-Round Preserving
by Cathy Barrow
W. W. Norton & Company, 2014

continued in The Book Stall

Reviews Archive
Cookbooks
Outrider Reading Group

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Good Old Books: Ski Touring


This timely panoramic introduction to the joys of ski touring enhances the overall winter recreation prospect for downhill skiers and beckons to the fireside winter "sportsman" to leave the nest and join the flock. All the dos and don'ts that can make a saunter on skis out into the winter wonderland an exhilarating and memorable experience are authoritatively and sometimes humorously set forth.

Chapter One sets the scene, and the ensuing chapters consecutively cover the essentials of the planning stage, paraphernalia, basic skiing techniques, safety and first aid, and the setting up of a winter camp if an overnight tour is planned.

An Introductory Guide
by William E. Osgood and Leslie J. Hurley
Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1969
Book List
Guidebooks and How-to Titles
Book Search

Monday, December 1, 2014

Book Stall Review: Wild Rice Goose.


A hundred years ago, the kitchens of the Upper Midwest swelled with fresh-caught fish and locally harvested game. The woods were thick with deer and cottontails, the lakes were rich in whitefish and other wildfoods.

Changes in culture and population altered  that scene, but today's Midwesterners have retained and revived their appreciation of venison and other wild game. Wildfoods are back in many eateries as well as home kitchens. Game farms and commercial fisheries are making these delicacies more accessible to appreciative palates.

A sportsman and forager as well as a writer, author John Motoviloff conducts wildfoods cooking workshops throughout the region. In this volume, he shares his knowledge of how to harvest and prepare the wildfoods of his homeland.

and Other Dishes of the Upper Midwest
by John G. Motoviloff
University of Wisconsin Press, 2014
continued in The Book Stall

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Kitchen Supply
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