Modern Pioneering by Georgia Pellegrini promises recipes, survival skills and gardening tips, and it delivers on those promises. However, I had certain expectations for this book and I’m not sure they were met. This collection of recipes, projects and tips is like holding Pinterest in your hands, which is not a bad thing but can be a bit overwhelming. (Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the book from the publisher through the Blogging for Books program.)
The book is full of beautiful pictures and scrumptious-sounding recipes. But I felt like the author has an advantage over most of us in that she was raised to think this way so eating edible flowers or cooking with dandelion greens is nothing to her. For me, it would take some getting used to. Also, while learning how to eat from your backyard sounds frugal, some of the recipes include ingredients that are anything but frugal. Somewhat mixed messages.
However, I found a lot of useful tips for container gardening and what to grow for different spaces and ease of growing. For a beginner, which I totally am, it’s a good resource, especially for gardening. Some of the other projects, however, sound fun and interesting but would require time and energy that some of us don’t have. (Make your own paper, anyone? It’ll only take days and require the use of a blender and your bathtub and dedicated space in your house.)
Overall, I’m glad for this book as a guide, and I will refer to it as I develop my homesteading skills, but I wouldn’t consider it a necessity for everyone at every stage of life.
For more about the book, click here.
To learn about the author, click here.