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Thursday, January 7, 2010

Book Review

from Preppernation – Preparedness, Survival, Homesteading, Alternative ... by Prepper
Book Review

Book Review


Well, we have another book review today… You can see from the title that it’s sticking with the whole frugal living theme that I consistently preach here. It’s really not as much about just being frugal so much as it is just being conscience of were our money is going. I have always worked hard and had money in my pocket, always will if I have anything to say about it. It’s easy to miss those vicious little drags on our prosperity if we aren’t keeping track. I’ve found time and again that the it’s the little things that add up to the BIG things quickly.

With this in mind, I bring you the “Living Well on Practically Nothing” guide. This book is from the nether regions of my book shelf. It was copyright in 1992 and published by an old favorite, Paladin Press. Knowing that this too is an older book, you can see that my interest in leading a sustainable life has been surging through my veins for many years.

The author, Edward H. Romney, had been working in the corporate world for many years prior to making this move to volunteer simplicity. He is famous for quotes about poverty being a state of being rather than an economic condition. He spends an entire chapter explaining how to reduce your income without losing your self respect. It’s interesting the way he describes how our peers view of us is often tied to our economic state. Sad, but I think pretty true. I would even have to say that I ‘m guilty of drawing conclusions based off of how things look at the surface, far to often…

As I re-read these books to find those that are worth sharing with all of you, I’m reminded of how they have each impacted my life, or not… Some I don’t even remember the content in the book and others like this one come right back as if I had read it only months ago.

I particularly liked the chapter on repairing items rather than replacing them. The author writes about the many examples from his own life. Things that he learned from his grandparents and many things that he has discovered on his own as he has led a life of volunteer simplicity.

I think that this book is very good at getting the old wheels turning on ways that we could all cut back and or even do without. Written from the man that is actually doing this stuff to this day. I however, won’t go to the lengths he has and will continue my luxuries for as long as possible. I don’t personally like to sit in a cold room and just add additional layers of clothing to stay warm… It’s not that I don’t agree with him theoretically, I just would make these type of cuts as a last resort rather than to shave another 10 bucks off the electric bill.

This book is a real toolbox of information that will spin off new perspectives for each of your own specific situations. What will work for one of us won’t even apply to someone else but when we see what others are willing to take on, I whole heartedly believe it empowers us to go further in our own pursuits… The following is a quote from the conclusion of this book that spoke to me –


“People are not just reactive creatures responding to stimuli. They also create and control their environment. There is poverty, but the real poverty, as Martin Flavin points out, is poverty of soul. There is a message in this book beyond hardware and technique, and that message is for people to reach out and take hold and rise up and build and grow and create for themselves a better life. By doing so, it encourages others to do likewise, and that builds a better world.”


Most of the actual information in the book is still viable even though it was written in the 90’s. There are things surrounding personal computers and the like that just don’t apply anymore but if you’re willing to over look these details, you’ll still enjoy reading about the efforts that the author and his family have made to live cheaply.

In this particular economic time of history that we find ourselves living in now, it seemed that this book might be timely for many of us. I think that we should all be exercising our minds on ways to streamline our lifestyles and make ourselves as self sufficient and reliant as possible!

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Prepper

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