| Book Reviews |
Going Green - Book Reviews
Better Off, Flipping the Switch on Technology by: Eric Brende
The story of a married couple who decide to go off the grid for a year. The live in a community based on
Amish society and learn to farm, cook and essentially live without modern convienences. Another good
book. My mom liked it too.
Botany in a Day: The Patterns Method of Plant Identification
Thomas J. Elpel's Herbal Field Guide to Plant Families of North America
Botany in a Day has gained a nationwide audience almost exclusively by word-of-mouth. It is now used as a
text and recommended by herbal and wilderness schools across North America. Instead of presenting
individual plants, Botany in a Day unveils the patterns of identification and uses among related plants,
giving readers simple tools to rapidly unlock the mysteries of the new species they encounter throughout
the continent.
Now you can cut years off the process of learning about plants. Learn how related plants have similar
features for identification. Discover how they often have similar properties and similar uses. Tom¹s book
takes you beyond the details towards a greater understanding of the patterns among plants. Most plant
books cover only one or two hundred species. Botany in a Day includes more than 100 plant families and
over 700 genera‹-applicable to many thousands of species.
A Field Guide To Buying Organic by: Luddene Perry and Dan Schultz
A great guidebook if you are just starting to go organic. Details what organic exactly is and is not. Different
chapters on types of food and how they are grown. Also includes why the cost difference between
conventional and organic.
The Gardener's A-Z Guide to Growing Organic Food by: Tanya L.K. Denckla
If you have any interest in growing your own organic food, this is the book for you. Varieties of fruits,
vegetables, herbs, and nuts are described in detail. Also includes organic ideas to help control pests and
diseases.
The Golden Spruce, A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed by: John Vaillant.
A very educational and heart pulling book. First you are educated on the history British Columbia's Queen
Charlotte Islands, and the native inhabitants. I personally didn't even know these islands existed. The
history continues with logging in the Northeast and the story then becomes that of one logger turned
environmentalist. Great Book!
The Lazy Environmentalist by: Josh Dorfman
What a great book. Anything you could possibly have questions on, this book gives you information as well
as websites to lead you directly to the products you are looking for.
Examples of Chapters include: Clothing, Travel, Cars, Real Estate, Construction, Energy Alternatives,
Furniture, Children, Cleaning, Gardening, Investing and Education.
At the end of each chapter gives you pages of companies that are eco-friendly, descriptions and contact info.
If you are planning on trying to go green, even in the slightest, then this is the first book I would suggest.
Living Homes: Integrated Design and Construction
by Thomas J. Elpel
5th Edition, January 2005
The house of your Dreams does not have to be expensive. The key is all in the planning. How much a
house costs, how it looks, how comfortable it is, how energy-efficient it is--all these things occur
on paper before you pick up even one tool. A little extra time in the planning process can save you tens of
thousands of dollars in construction and maintenance. That is time well spent!
See also: Slipform Stone Masonry on DVD
Living Homes takes you through the planning process to design an energy and resource efficient home that
won't break the bank. Then, from the footings on up to the roof, author Thomas J. Elpel guides you
through the nuts and bolts of construction for slipform stone masonry, tilt-up stone walls, log home
construction, building with strawbales, making your own "terra tile" floors, windows & doors, solar water
systems, masonry heaters, framing, plumbing, greywater, septic systems, swamp filters, painting and more!
The fifth edition includes fifteen pages of new material covering concrete-fly ash countertops, the latest
stone masonry tips, plus revised and expanded tips and techniques throughout the book. Living
Homes is 233 pages, including an incredible 300+ drawings and grayscale photos.
Environmental Note: Everything but the cover is printed with soy ink on 100% post-consumer recycled
paper, bleached without chlorine. $1.00 from every book sold is donated to 3Rivers Park to help purchase
habitat for people and wildlife in the Missouri Headwaters watershed in southwest Montana.
The New Ecological Home: A Complete Guide to Green Building Options by: Daniel D. Chiras
Thinking of building a green home or just update yours, then this is a very good guide. Describes a variety
of options, even things as simple as a deck vs. patio, which is the best placement for an energy efficient
home and ways to landscape.
Roadmap to Reality
Consciousness, Worldviews, and the Blossoming of Human Spirit
by Thomas J. Elpel
Illustrated by Bonnie Andrich
What if our entire experience of reality were based on an assumption that could be proven false? In
Roadmap to Reality, Thomas J. Elpel tests the assumption that we are a sentient (self-aware) species, and
finds evidence suggesting otherwise. Like automatons, we copy beliefs and behaviors from generation to
generation without consciously evaluating why we do what we do. We absorb a definition of reality and act
on it, without ever questioning the source of that definition. In short, we don't act; we react.
Roadmap to Reality is the quest to unravel the illusions to discover what reality really is. The journey follows
the link between technology and thought, showing how hunter-gatherer, agricultural, industrial, and
informational societies define reality in predictable ways. In essence, production technology dictates how
we perceive cause and effect, how we solve problems, and how we approach parenting and governing.
Roadmap to Reality sequentially follows simple ideas and commonsense logic to reveal how
consciousness and worldviews evolve in layers over time.
Roadmap to Reality enables the reader to step outside of ordinary reality to obtain a fresh perspective on
culture, government, prosperity, sustainability, and meaning. The quest takes the reader to the ends of the
universe with a casual writing style, peeling back the layers of consciousness to discover the reality beyond.
Roadmap to Reality will change your perspective of history and world events, and it will change you,
enabling you to let go of preconceived notions about the nature of reality to discover a more holistic, more
satisfying life experience. ISBN: 978-1-892784-29-2. May 2008. 260 Pages. Lavishly illustrated by Bonnie
Andrich. Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Cost: $30.
Where Mountains are Nameless: Passion and Politics in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by: Jonathan
Waterman
A true story about a man who makes his home away from home in the ANWAR area. Detailed descriptions
of all types of wildlife and scenery. A deep friendship that develops with a couple who were on a mission to
save the land. Descriptions of how oil might change ANWAR as it has other areas, focusing mainly on
wildlife. A beautiful story.
Better Off, Flipping the Switch on Technology by: Eric Brende
The story of a married couple who decide to go off the grid for a year. The live in a community based on
Amish society and learn to farm, cook and essentially live without modern convienences. Another good
book. My mom liked it too.
Botany in a Day: The Patterns Method of Plant Identification
Thomas J. Elpel's Herbal Field Guide to Plant Families of North America
Botany in a Day has gained a nationwide audience almost exclusively by word-of-mouth. It is now used as a
text and recommended by herbal and wilderness schools across North America. Instead of presenting
individual plants, Botany in a Day unveils the patterns of identification and uses among related plants,
giving readers simple tools to rapidly unlock the mysteries of the new species they encounter throughout
the continent.
Now you can cut years off the process of learning about plants. Learn how related plants have similar
features for identification. Discover how they often have similar properties and similar uses. Tom¹s book
takes you beyond the details towards a greater understanding of the patterns among plants. Most plant
books cover only one or two hundred species. Botany in a Day includes more than 100 plant families and
over 700 genera‹-applicable to many thousands of species.
A Field Guide To Buying Organic by: Luddene Perry and Dan Schultz
A great guidebook if you are just starting to go organic. Details what organic exactly is and is not. Different
chapters on types of food and how they are grown. Also includes why the cost difference between
conventional and organic.
The Gardener's A-Z Guide to Growing Organic Food by: Tanya L.K. Denckla
If you have any interest in growing your own organic food, this is the book for you. Varieties of fruits,
vegetables, herbs, and nuts are described in detail. Also includes organic ideas to help control pests and
diseases.
The Golden Spruce, A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed by: John Vaillant.
A very educational and heart pulling book. First you are educated on the history British Columbia's Queen
Charlotte Islands, and the native inhabitants. I personally didn't even know these islands existed. The
history continues with logging in the Northeast and the story then becomes that of one logger turned
environmentalist. Great Book!
The Lazy Environmentalist by: Josh Dorfman
What a great book. Anything you could possibly have questions on, this book gives you information as well
as websites to lead you directly to the products you are looking for.
Examples of Chapters include: Clothing, Travel, Cars, Real Estate, Construction, Energy Alternatives,
Furniture, Children, Cleaning, Gardening, Investing and Education.
At the end of each chapter gives you pages of companies that are eco-friendly, descriptions and contact info.
If you are planning on trying to go green, even in the slightest, then this is the first book I would suggest.
Living Homes: Integrated Design and Construction
by Thomas J. Elpel
5th Edition, January 2005
The house of your Dreams does not have to be expensive. The key is all in the planning. How much a
house costs, how it looks, how comfortable it is, how energy-efficient it is--all these things occur
on paper before you pick up even one tool. A little extra time in the planning process can save you tens of
thousands of dollars in construction and maintenance. That is time well spent!
See also: Slipform Stone Masonry on DVD
Living Homes takes you through the planning process to design an energy and resource efficient home that
won't break the bank. Then, from the footings on up to the roof, author Thomas J. Elpel guides you
through the nuts and bolts of construction for slipform stone masonry, tilt-up stone walls, log home
construction, building with strawbales, making your own "terra tile" floors, windows & doors, solar water
systems, masonry heaters, framing, plumbing, greywater, septic systems, swamp filters, painting and more!
The fifth edition includes fifteen pages of new material covering concrete-fly ash countertops, the latest
stone masonry tips, plus revised and expanded tips and techniques throughout the book. Living
Homes is 233 pages, including an incredible 300+ drawings and grayscale photos.
Environmental Note: Everything but the cover is printed with soy ink on 100% post-consumer recycled
paper, bleached without chlorine. $1.00 from every book sold is donated to 3Rivers Park to help purchase
habitat for people and wildlife in the Missouri Headwaters watershed in southwest Montana.
The New Ecological Home: A Complete Guide to Green Building Options by: Daniel D. Chiras
Thinking of building a green home or just update yours, then this is a very good guide. Describes a variety
of options, even things as simple as a deck vs. patio, which is the best placement for an energy efficient
home and ways to landscape.
Roadmap to Reality
Consciousness, Worldviews, and the Blossoming of Human Spirit
by Thomas J. Elpel
Illustrated by Bonnie Andrich
What if our entire experience of reality were based on an assumption that could be proven false? In
Roadmap to Reality, Thomas J. Elpel tests the assumption that we are a sentient (self-aware) species, and
finds evidence suggesting otherwise. Like automatons, we copy beliefs and behaviors from generation to
generation without consciously evaluating why we do what we do. We absorb a definition of reality and act
on it, without ever questioning the source of that definition. In short, we don't act; we react.
Roadmap to Reality is the quest to unravel the illusions to discover what reality really is. The journey follows
the link between technology and thought, showing how hunter-gatherer, agricultural, industrial, and
informational societies define reality in predictable ways. In essence, production technology dictates how
we perceive cause and effect, how we solve problems, and how we approach parenting and governing.
Roadmap to Reality sequentially follows simple ideas and commonsense logic to reveal how
consciousness and worldviews evolve in layers over time.
Roadmap to Reality enables the reader to step outside of ordinary reality to obtain a fresh perspective on
culture, government, prosperity, sustainability, and meaning. The quest takes the reader to the ends of the
universe with a casual writing style, peeling back the layers of consciousness to discover the reality beyond.
Roadmap to Reality will change your perspective of history and world events, and it will change you,
enabling you to let go of preconceived notions about the nature of reality to discover a more holistic, more
satisfying life experience. ISBN: 978-1-892784-29-2. May 2008. 260 Pages. Lavishly illustrated by Bonnie
Andrich. Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Cost: $30.
Where Mountains are Nameless: Passion and Politics in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by: Jonathan
Waterman
A true story about a man who makes his home away from home in the ANWAR area. Detailed descriptions
of all types of wildlife and scenery. A deep friendship that develops with a couple who were on a mission to
save the land. Descriptions of how oil might change ANWAR as it has other areas, focusing mainly on
wildlife. A beautiful story.
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