by George Nash & Jane Waterman
Taunton Press, $24.95, 410 pages
Homesteading in the 21st Century is a do-it-yourself book by husband and wife co-authors George Nash and Jane Waterman. In their book, George, a writer, and Jane, a doctor, share the advice they have gleaned from years of homesteading. It is a difficult and sometimes costly endeavor for beginners, but as the couple puts it, “the goal of homesteading is to live deep, not wide” (10).
Nash and Waterman’s book provides the reader with a background on animals, gardens/orchards, and, of course, the homestead—from choosing a location to knowing what to look out for if purchasing a fixer-upper. The advice provided in this book is also backed up with helpful diagrams and pictures as well as personal anecdotes and humorous or insightful quotes that make it an enjoyable, as well as informative, read.
This book is not only for readers with a plot of land in a rural area. Nash and Waterman adapt sections of each chapter to demonstrate how both suburban and urban dwellers can make changes to their living spaces and become more sustainable and self-sufficient themselves! Homesteading in the 21st Century is highly recommended to any person seeking a more sustainable or self-sufficient lifestyle.
Emily Davis