Category: Book, Movie, and Web Reviews

Book Review: The Area Intelligence Handbook

There are just a few times in the past decade that I’ve opened a book and felt an immediate connection with its author. That is what happened when I began reading The Area Intelligence Handbook, by Mike Shelby. I suppose that a better title for the book would be: The Area Intelligence Handbook For Survivalists, because that is how the book is geared. This 249-page trade paperback is not just a generic manual on Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield (IPB) for folks in the Military Intelligence (MI) arena. Rather, it is truly tailored for preparedness-minded private citizens, in anticipation of …


Bardin & Marsee Waterproof Bible, by Thomas Christianson

Field gear is often subject to a wide variety of weather conditions. Like the Persian mounted couriers made famous by Herodotus, field gear may face snow, rain, heat, and gloom of night among other challenges. Wildly varying weather conditions can be a special challenge to books in general, and Bibles in particular. That is what makes the Bardin & Marsee Waterproof Bible so interesting for outdoors-folk who carry a Bible as a part of their gear. The Waterproof Bible is printed on a synthetic paper made from plastic resins and inorganic fillers. You can read it in a rainstorm or …


Comfort for the Burned and Wounded, by C.J.

Editor’s Introductory Note: The following is a eview and summary of a book by John W. Keim. This article is intended for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice. Get any patient with severe burns to a hospital emergency room, immediately. If you have an interest in herbal medicine or just want to be prepared if modern medical care is not available in the future, I recommend reading this wonderfully informative book that I discovered a few years ago. The book is titled “Comfort for the Burned and Wounded”, by John W. Keim. Mr. Keim is not …


Books, Reviews, and Censorship, by M.M.

As a historian and self-confessed bibliophile, I despise censorship of any kind by anyone at any time. If you disagree with an author, the simple course of action is to not purchase their work(s). With the Internet, books are easier to come by today than in any other time in human history. You can shop in thousands of bookstores and never leave home. Click some buttons and the book is en route to your mailbox and will arrive in a few days. An easy way to access the internet is via your so-called smartphone. What a wonderful tool. You can …


Review of Joe Dolio’s Tactical Wisdom, by Jack Lawson

Editor’s Introductory Note: This review was authored by Jack Lawson, author of the two-volume The Civil Defense Manual. Rarely does a book or series of books catch my attention like the Tactical Wisdom series. It could have been authored by my alter ego. The author, Joe Dolio, has created what I consider a must-read companion to my  Civil Defense Manual. His book “Tactical Wisdom TW-01 Baseline Training Manual” has almost every procedure in it that my book has… presented in a concise and superb manner. He also has a great writing style. The man clearly must be a genius, if …


Survival Retreats & Relocation: A Book Review by John Brew

My #1 Son recived permission to republish the following review of a book that we co-authored: Survival Retreats & Relocation. John Brew (brewbooks) is a SurvivalBlog reader, and left this review on Amazon: “Survival Retreats & Relocation” [by Jonathan E. Rawles and James Wesley, Rawles] uses a systems engineering approach to provide the reader a process and framework for acquiring and thriving a survival retreat. Let me start this review by stating the authors view survival through a politically and religiously conservative American lens. If that causes you offense, no need to read further, this book isn’t for you. That …


Durable Trades: A Book Review by T.M. in Arkansas

If you are looking for a change of career you will find this book of interest, especially if you are migrating from a city. There are plenty of good ways to support you, your family, and fulfill you personal work satisfaction. Durable Trades: Family-Centered Economies That Have Stood the Test of Time by Rory Groves is published by Front Porch Republic Books in Eugene, Oregon. The book is copyrighted 2020 by the author with 293 pages and is available at your favorite book dealer. The author, a computer scientist now living with his family on a farm in Minnesota is …


Review: Cambridge University Press KJV Large Print Bible, by The Novice

I have heard it said that preppers should stockpile beans, bullets, band-aids, and Bibles. Beans, bullets and band-aids are easy to understand: in a disaster, we may need something to eat, something to defend ourselves with, and something to provide for our own medical care. But why Bibles? In Mark 8:36, Jesus said, “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” The best stockpile of tools and supplies, even when well utilized in the most effective possible manner, cannot prevent someone from being eternally lost. In 2 Timothy 3:15, …


Movie Reviews: Two for the Price of One, by Large Marge

I visit elderly shut-ins around Eugene, Oregon. Yesterday, one of our regulars got on her trailer-court facebook dealy-bobber to invite a bunch of geezers to her trailer for spectating at televisionprogramming on her new big-screen television set. We watched a couple ‘presentations’: a) RICHARD JEWELL directed by Mister Clint Eastwood hisownself, and b) SEASPIRACY financed by hollywood darling Leonardo DiCaprio. This semi-review is in two parts: a) is for the flicks, and b) is for the audience ‘participation’. And here we go… a) Anybody over the age of twenty-five probably remembers the terrorist attack at the 1996 Olympic Games in …


Movie Review: Mr. Jones, by Large Marge

I visit elderly shut-ins.  Yesterday, instead of us puttering in her garden, one old gal that I visit insisted we spectate at television programming. She wanted to watch a 2019 movie from Poland called Mr. Jones. Although filmed in Poland and crewed by Poles, this award-winning movie is in English. Sub-titles are available for hard-of-hearing folks. The script, acting, costumes, sets, and production values are equal or better than anything from ‘major Hollywood* studios’. Based on historical events, I strongly recommend it, and yet… I hesitate to recommend it. Although well-made, several minutes of this were very difficult for me …


Book Bomb Day For The Ultimate Prepper’s Survival Guide!

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[UPDATED] Hooray! Today is the much-awaited Book Bomb Day for my latest nonfiction book, The Ultimate Prepper’s Survival Guide. My sincere thanks for waiting until today to place your order. Hopefully, with this big one-day surge of orders, it will push it into Amazon’s Top 100 (overall, in books) by this afternoon. We’re also hoping to make it onto the New York Times Bestsellers list, this weekend. Amazon Sales Rank Updates: Sunday, October 18th, 5 PM, Pacific Time:  #13,007 in Books Monday, October 19th, 8 PM, Pacific Time:  #7,685 in Books Tuesday, October 20th, 4:30 AM, Pacific Time: #6,058 in Books …


A Rawles Book Pre-Release Announcement

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I’m pleased to make this book pre-release announcement: Survival Retreats and Relocation is now available for pre-order. This illustrated book is a greatly expanded and completely updated edition of my 2006 book, “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation.” The book’s primary author is my son Jonathan Rawles. Since 2009, Jonathan has operated SurvivalRealty.com. The following is excerpted from the book ordering web page : Why You Need This Book Families and individuals across the country are seeking refuge from the Covid panic and social disintegration. The remote work revolution coupled with the massive economic flux has driven thousands to finally to …


Thoughts on Survival at Rosh Hashana, by Ze’ev

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Editor’s Introductory Note:  This essay describes a SurvivalBlog reader’s thoughts on the nature of survival and the meme of survivalism, from the perspective of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana. This was celebrated just one week ago. Rosh Hashana is a holiday, but a serious one. It is a time of introspection and renewal of faith.  L’Shana Tovah Tiketevu!  – JWR — What does it mean to ‘survive?. There are different levels of survival for human beings. And even those ‘levels’ are subtle–based on how we perceive notions of survival. For more than 15 years I’ve oscillated between binges of …


Rhubarb: Four Book Reviews, by S.A.

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When I was a child in elementary school, I always felt cheated when the cafeteria served rhubarb pie masquerading as cherry pie for dessert. Long time gardeners know all about rhubarb, but I’ve encountered a fair number of young people who tell me that they’ve never tasted rhubarb. However, from a survival perspective, rhubarb is a perennial worth considering. You could grow it in a a front yard flowerbed and it’s doubtful the homeowner’s association (HOA) would recognize it. It’s easy to grow, nutritious, stealthy, forgiving (last year I transplanted plants from one bed to another in early Texas summer, …


The Unraveling: A Book Review, by S.A.

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Spoilers Alert: I don’t believe this review gives the story away, but if you don’t like any details in advance, then you might not want to read this. The Unraveling, Book 1 of the Bound to Survive Series by Charley Hogwood 324 pages Kindle $5.99 First, who names their baby Tempest? Even in this day and age of last names being used as first names (for example, Smith, Parker, Jackson, Davis for little girls or little boys) and the revival of old-timey girl names (Donna, Ruth, Hazel, Myrtle), “Tempest” seems over the top, unless maybe you are a Shakespeare scholar. …