If you’ve ever looked around your suburban home and thought, "There has to be a better way," you’re not alone. For many families, including mine, the idea of becoming more self-reliant sounds appealing, but figuring out how to begin can feel like standing at the foot of a mountain. That’s exactly how I felt over 30 years ago, when I first picked up The Encyclopedia of Country Living: The Original Manual for Living Off The Land and Doing it Yourself by Carla Emery.
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Since then, this hefty self-reliance book has been my go-to resource for everything from baking bread to raising backyard animals. And now, with the 50th Anniversary Edition, this timeless classic has been refreshed to help people like you take those first steps towards self-sufficiency.
📚 In this post, you’ll learn why this book has stood the test of time, how it helped me start my homestead journey (before I even lived off grid), and the practical ways it can help you do the same.
📚 Ready to trade overwhelm for action? Grab the 50th Anniversary Edition of The Encyclopedia of Country Living and start your self-reliance journey with one trusted guide.
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Feeling the Pull Toward a Simpler, Self-Reliant Life
Twelve years ago, I was a suburban mom tired of traffic, endless errands, and living a life that didn’t reflect my family’s values. Sound familiar?
Maybe, like me, you want to grow your own food, learn to bake from scratch, or even raise a few chickens. But you’re overwhelmed, unsure where to begin. If that sounds like you, keep reading. It isn’t too late to start.
You don’t need to pop a for-sale sign on your lawn and start looking for homestead land right this minute. Many families start small.
Plant a backyard garden with a few tomato plants. Bake a batch of homemade bread. Or build a DIY compost bin.
These small steps just might spark something bigger. In our case, it led to a move across the country to start our off grid homesteading adventure. But it may seem tricky knowing where to start and what to do to become more self-reliant. And that’s where a book like The Encyclopedia of Country Living becomes so valuable.
🌱 Dreaming of growing food, raising chickens, or finally mastering sourdough? This isn’t just a book—it’s the starter kit for your new life.
Order the 50th Anniversary Edition now.
Why This Book Is a Great Starting Point
When Carla Emery first began writing this book in the 1970s, her goal was clear. She wanted to create a resource for people who didn’t grow up on a farm but wanted to learn how to live more self-sufficiently.
Carla was onto something. The not-so-little book has now sold over 1,000,000 copies.
Unlike Pinterest boards or blog posts that only scratch the surface, this book offers depth. It’s not flashy. It’s not trendy. But it is thorough, practical, and real.
When I first got the book, I studied he section on canning and preserving. This helped me learn how to make jam from the everbearing raspberries growing in my tiny suburban backyard.
After that, I moved on to the gardening section to learn the basics of growing our own food. Next was the section on herbs and flavorings, especially foraging for wild greens.
Once we moved off the grid, I actually went right back to Chapter 1 of the Encyclopedia of Country Living, which is titled Oddments.
This is my teenage daughter’s favorite chapter. With sections on giving birth by yourself, caring for your dead, Dutch oven baking, quilting and candlemaking, she reads it like a novel, curled up in a hammock on our back deck looking down at our lake. And I’m good with that. So much practical knowledge that I’m happy for my kids to learn.
And when she heads out to her first university residence or city high-rise apartment, I’ll be sure to send a copy with her. The simple truth is that you don’t need to have all the answers before you start your self-reliance and homesteading journey. You don’t even need to live in the country.
What You’ll Learn From The Encyclopedia of Country Living
This book meets you where you are, whether you’re in a suburban backyard or a cabin off the grid. It gives you step-by-step, practical advice, often with diagrams, on how to get started on your first (or next) hands-on project.
🐓 Thinking about raising backyard chickens, gardening, or canning your own food? This is more than just an interesting read.
This is your roadmap to a simpler, more intentional life.
Start Small with Simple Skills
Thirty years in, I’m still learning new self-sufficiency skills. And though I now have a brand new copy of this classic beginner homesteading book, I still remember thumbing through the old edition at my kitchen table in southern Ontario.
Back then, I wasn’t even thinking about living off grid, and especially not in the Northwest Territories in Canada’s subarctic. I was a suburban mom with two little boys and a dream of a simpler life. This book showed me how to start a homestead long before I had land, a garden, or any animals.
The book walked me through making my first sourdough starter. I began baking bread from scratch. Soon, I set up a pantry that included canning basics.
These simple wins built my confidence, and it was a good thing, too. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that tattered book would become a daily reference manual when I ended up homesteading off the grid in the remote northern wilderness.
If you’re looking for off-grid living resources that don’t assume you already have 20 acres and a barn, this book is your best bet. It meets you exactly where you are, whether that’s a downtown apartment or a remote cabin, and gently guides you forward.
Grow a Garden (Even in a Suburban Backyard)
Other than all the homestead kitchen activities, getting started gardening is another great country living and self-reliance activity covered in depth in this book. You’ll find guidance on starting seeds indoors and composting kitchen scraps.
You’ll learn how to plan garden layouts that work in small spaces. Whether you have a raised bed or a few containers on a balcony, the information is accessible and beginner-friendly.
Beginner's Guides to Raising Animals
After we had been in our off grid home for several years, we decided it was time to get chickens. Where to begin? I didn’t have a clue.
Yes, we did have internet, and I looked up information on raising backyard chickens online. But at that time, the internet in the subarctic was expensive and unreliable. So I pulled out my copy of Carla Emery’s book again.
It had exactly what I needed: step-by-step advice for caring for chickens, turkeys, rabbits, and goats. It covered feeding, housing, and what to expect that first year, not to mention all sorts of info on off grid living resources. My youngest children and I learned so much.
As I eventually started this site and connected with other homestead bloggers, The Encyclopedia of Country Living was mentioned time and again as a must-have for new and more experienced homesteaders alike. And curling up with the book in the long, dark winter evenings in our remote home helped me feel like I wasn’t alone.
🍞 I baked my first bread and planted my first garden thanks to this book, and I still use it 30 years later. If you’re serious about starting your self-reliant journey, this is the one resource you’ll turn to again and again.
Grab your copy now.
Not Just for Off Grid Living
Before I continue, I just want to remind you of something. You don’t actually need a farm, a rural homestead, or a woodlot to benefit from this book.
Heck, you don’t even need to live in the country. It’s just as useful as a resource on homesteading for suburban families trying to live more intentionally as it is for country folk.
You can take one idea at a time and see what fits your life. From learning how to pickle onions to understanding basic first aid, The Encyclopedia of Country Living supports a practical, grounded lifestyle wherever you are.
🚪Forget about needing an actual homestead to get started homesteading. All you need is a plan. The 50th Anniversary spiral-bound edition of The Encyclopedia of Country Living launches in August 2025.
Preorder it today and make your first real move toward the self-sufficient life you’ve been dreaming about.
What’s New in the 50th Anniversary Edition
Although I’ve referred to this book for many years, now was a good time to write about it because a new anniversary edition just came out. The 50th Anniversary Edition includes updated tools and techniques for modern homesteaders.
You’ll find more illustrations and easier-to-follow guides, especially in the sections on gardening and food preservation. Yet it still maintains the heart of Carla Emery’s work: empowering everyday people to live with greater self-reliance.
A Trusted Resource You’ll Return to Again and Again
I can’t count the number of times I’ve reached for this book over the years. Even after all this time, as I hone my self-sufficiency skills, I still find myself flipping through its pages. It’s a quiet mentor on your shelf, ready whenever you need it.
Many homesteaders (and homestead bloggers) I know still keep their copies close by. It’s a companion for this lifestyle. Whether you’re starting seeds for the first time or tackling a new project like soap-making or dehydrating food, it’s there.
Take the First Step
You don’t need a perfect plan—just the right guide to help you learn the basics of how to start a homestead. The spiral-bound 50th Anniversary Edition of The Encyclopedia of Country Living is set to release in August 2025, and it’s the most user-friendly version yet.
If you’re ready to take your first step toward a more self-reliant life, this is the place to start. Preorder now before the spiral-bound issue sells out. This version is the easiest one to actually use in your kitchen.
