The Homesteading Handbook- Review and Giveaway*CLOSED*

When I got these books from Skyhorse Publishing, I chose to read The Homesteading Handbook first because it intrigued me the most. Now that I have read through it I have to say that I am both impressed and not impressed at the same time. Is that possible? Here are my pros and cons of the book....The Pros: (isn't it better to start off with the good news?)
- This book covers nearly everything. Seriously. I was AMAZED at how many topics it covered. We're talking, gardening, canning, drying, freezing, edible wild plants, all types of poultry, beekeeping, goats, sheep, llamas, building doghouses, birdhouses, poultry houses, fences, bridges, workshops, smokehouses, root cellars, small barns, using alternate forms of energy in the form of hydro power, solar power, wind energy, making things like candles and soap, knitting, pottery, herbal medicine and first aid. PHEW!! Did you get through all that? Really there is a lot covered in this book.
- The photos in the book are great. Nice shots with great color!
- The section on "Edible Wild Plants and Mushrooms" was a fantastic addition. I haven't seen a homesteading book yet that included it. Along with pictures, descriptions, locations and "edible parts and preparing" notes.
- I was also impressed with the canning section. Lots of great information. It's like a canning book inside of a homesteading book.

-Llamas. Most books don't even mention them. If you're an avid knitter, how great would it be to spin your own yarn?
- Cheesmaking! While there are only a couple recipes in the book, they are all that I would need to start off...mozzarella, cheddar, the book even has instructions on making a simple cheese press.

The Cons:
- Because the book covers so many topics in only 268 pages, each topic is covered very briefly. If you're looking into raising honeybees then this book is not going to be sufficient, even though it has a section on them. The section on turkeys talks about having a male and female to have offspring but fails to mention that only certain breeds of turkeys can reproduce without "help." If you're looking for a book on a certain topic like raising goats, building barns or even gardening, a specialized book would better suit your needs.
- There is not one thing in this book on cows!?? Whether for milk or meat.
- There is nothing in this book on wild game or hunting. Elk, deer, jackrabbits, etc. Really going "back to basics" would certainly include obtaining meat from other sources than the grocery store.
- There is nothing on rabbits. My new love of rabbit meat, their ease of butchering and raising has got me wishing that this book covered them.

All in all, the book is far from perfect....but most homesteading books are. They may cover one topic very well (in the case of this book, I'd say it's canning) and leave much to be desired on others. If you're into canning, building smokehouses and would like a general knowledge on most farm things, then this book would certainly work for you!

I'll be giving away one copy of this book to one reader. If you'd like to enter the giveaway here's what you need to do for one or more entries:
1. Leave a comment telling me what homesteading skill you'd most like to learn
2. Post this giveaway on your Facebook page and then leave another comment letting me know that you did
3. Blog about this giveaway (it can be as simple as, "Look! Here's a giveaway!" with a link) and then leave another comment letting me know that you did

The giveaway will close on July 31st at 7pm (PST) The winner will be announced during the first week of August. Please make sure that you leave a way for me to contact you, or make sure that you are checking back during that first week to see if you've won! I'll also announce the winner on my FB page.
Happy entering!