The Australian Self-Sufficiency Handbook By John Steele

The Australian Self-Sufficiency Handbook, (Viking, 1992), edited by Keith and Irene Smith and Allan Gray, is getting old enough now to start to have yellowing pages, just like me. My copy was given to me, and my ex-wife, by her parents. The inside cover reads: “Merry Christmas John and Sue. What’s more “self-sufficient” than your very own copy?” I think the meaning here is that I was always borrowing their copy, so they got me one. But, soon after that the magic of divorce, the loss of my business, and I began the path of self-discovery that I am now on.

But, enough back story to the book. This is a large format book with easy to read double columns. It is intended for city people who have had enough and seek an alternative life. The book says that they aim to supply “new ways to survive hard economic times,” and that is directly relevant to us for today. The focus is upon, do it yourself, beginning with building your own dwelling. This does not need to be a modern style European house, but could be anything from Aboriginal shelters, like Gunyahs (rough lean-to wind breaks), to all types of tents, to log cabins. There is a section on mud brick homes too, which are not as difficult to construct as one may first think. There is stone as well, going up the skill level. All can have passive solar design, using orientation to the sun, ventilation windbreaks and shade instead of air-conditioning and central heating, to cut way down on power usage, however the place is powered. The book even has a discussion of the Mongolian yurt, a tent-like structure that can survive the violent winds of Central Asian, where most tents would be blown away. There is not enough information about how to build one, but there are books on this, some going back to the 1970s which may be hard to get now. But, for the interested:

https://www.instructables.com/Build-yourself-a-portable-home---a-mongolian-yurt/

Apart from informative material about crops and livestock, covered in detail are water tanks, how to concrete them and how to put down a hand-dug well, and putting down a bore. I was also interested to see details on the hydraulic ram pump, including a construction diagram, and a waterwheel pump.

Again, this is another well worthwhile addition to the library of those who may intend to leave the city and go back to the land, jam-packed with useful ideas, to get the rural spirits roaming.