# Suggsted Books on Simple Living



## RnJ (Oct 1, 2010)

Hey, I gotta go read a book a review it for a Study of voluntary simplicity class. Any recommendations for good books that have to do with living simply, defying consumerism, not depending on money, etc? Note, it has to relate to simple living, and has to be at least 100 pages. The few that I've already been thinking of are all nearly 300 pages or more. I'll get to them sometime, just don't want to have to read something like Walden in 2 weeks, you know?

What do you guys recommend?


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## macks (Oct 1, 2010)

There was a great book on here called Possum Living, it might not be 100 pages though. Check the uploads section


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## Dishka8643 (Oct 1, 2010)

You might find this interesting:

Life with the Esquimaux: The Narrative of Captain Charles Francis Hall

Life with the Esquimaux: the ... - Google Books


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## Dishka8643 (Oct 1, 2010)

You also might like

Our Southern Highlanders by Horace Kephart 

Our southern highlanders - Google Books


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## RnJ (Oct 4, 2010)

macks, I downloaded that book a while ago. Apparently it's also on Amazon, so it's legitimate enough to use for a book review for a university class, I'd say. And apparently it's 224 pages in the original format, but the HTML file I have of it is only 80. Perhaps I'll print that out and use it. I've already read the first half at some point, now I'll have the opportunity to finish it.

As for Our Southern Highlanders, that books sounds really interesting, but sounds like more of an anthro-type book. The course is about voluntary simplicity, meaning people who are deliberately living simple, not out of back-country ignorance. The synopses that I read are not very good at explaining just what about the mountain-people the book focuses on.


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## macks (Oct 5, 2010)

Sounds good, I'd like to read what you write about it if you don't mind. I read it in one sitting, partly because I was doing a lot of sitting, mostly because it was really good.


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## RnJ (Nov 4, 2010)

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20 October 2010

Opting Out Without Dropping Out:​Dolly Freed's Possum Living: How to Live Well Without a Job and (Almost) No Money​ 
*Freed, Dolly. Possum Living: How to Live Well Without a Job and With (Almost) No Money. 1978. Reprint. Portland, OR: Tin House Books, 2010. Print.*

I imagine very few people today, when asked if they would enjoy a simpler life, would say no. The
motivation to make the transition may not be there, but people seem to like the idea. While greener living has been
the main impetus for simple living in the past few decades, many people associate a simpler life with less work, less
stress and more time for themselves. Dolly Freed's Possum Living: How to Live Well Without a Job and (Almost) No
Money, a classic originally published in 1978, seeks to help readers achieve just that kind of life. Freed wrote the
book with a grade 8 education, after quitting school to live self-sufficiently with her father, and have more time to do
what she wanted. They acquired land in a Pennsylvanian suburb and reduced their dependency on nine-to-five work,
instead providing for themselves directly. Freed's book is a not only an informal instruction guide, but a reflection of
her experience living as a â€œpossum,â€ which she describes as being stupid, yet able to thrive in the harshest
conditions, having existed millions of years before humans. The focus of the book is on opting out of the rat race
and the money economyâ€”that is, establishing your well-being as independent from the constantly fluctuating
economy.

Freed offers practical suggestions on how to do this, and tells countless stories regarding their experiments
in simple living. The book is jam-packed full of recipes and instructions for doing and making things, but reads less
like a reference guide than an attempt to convince readers that living without a job really is feasible and satisfying,
and to get them started. Freed is serious about â€œpossum living,â€ but she writes in a humorously plain-spoken, if not
unsentimental manner, frequently with tongue-in-cheek statements. â€œDaddy and I would rather mug old ladies in the
park for money than sell candles, but that's only because of our overdose experience.â€ Included are extensive
sections on buying cheap housing through foreclosure or back-tax sales, raising and slaughtering rabbits (even in
your basement!), catching and cooking fish and turtles, distilling your own wine and spirits, and dealing with law
and dishonest authorities. Other sections provide information on income, raising animals, hunting game, gardening
and foraging, using grain, canning and preserving food, nutrition, utilities, clothing, transportation and health.
Overall, Freed makes a case for simpler living by showing how it can reduce stress and worry in one's life,
illustrating how it has worked for her, and engaging the reader practically with specific advice on how they might
pursue simple living.

In Possum Living, Freed promotes living simply from an economic rationale. That is, by spending less
money on consumer goods and doing-it-yourself, one doesn't have to earn much money or even work very hard. In
fact, she appreciates not having to make all the tough decisions that people with money have to make. In contrast
with people currently practicing simple living, she can't understand the spiritual, religious and ideological rationales
people hold, and only once acknowledges simple living as being easier on the environment. Mostly, she promotes
frugality and â€œmiserism,â€ coming off as much more practical than idealistic. Though ethics apply in the slaughtering
of animals, meat is fair game as far as Freed is concerned, and she considers vegetarianism and significant caloric
foraging too impractical for sustenance. Given the increasing interest in simpler living as it relates to ethics, nonviolence,
and especially environmental stewardship, it's likely some readers will write her off as just a lazy pennypincher.
And Freed wouldn't disagree.

Freed makes it clear that not having a job and quitting the rat race does not require one to be a hippie, live
in the boondocks, or be a â€œfolksy, hard-working, back-to-nature soybean-and-yogurt freak.â€ And one definitely does
not need to drop out of society. Freed and her father actually lived in a middle-class suburb, where they raised their
animals, gardened, and hunted and fished within walking distance. She also insists that jobless simple living is
gratifying, and allows her, at times, more free time then she knows what to do with. Indeed, it is chosen simplicity,
not poverty. Perhaps many people these days, who like the thought of simplifying their life but aren't too keen on the
associated stereotypes, need to read this. Freed doesn't just present a logical case for her lifestyle, but also dodges
the stereotypes that hinder people from pursuing simpler living.

Repeatedly throughout the book, Freed emphasizes the need to think simply, but logically. She explains that
in order to succeed at anything, one needs to use common sense, and their own judgement and experiences. She
frequently debunks advice give in books or government publications, such as how to best garden and what to feed
rabbits, and encourages the reader to think for themselves instead of merely accepting advice from authorities. The
reader gets the sense that much of what simpler living entails has been complicated by bad advice, since Freed
makes several attempts to convince us that simple living is merely common sense. But if its common sense, why do
people lack it? What she is referring to is the ability to think independently and logically, and focus on present
realities instead of complicated propaganda; practicing consciousness. There are many examples of consciousness
throughout the book. Freed gives several examples of how she experimented and succeeded with something that was
apparently bound for failure. She is always mindful on how scraps can be used to feed bunnies or fertilize the
garden, and what good use certain common food waste can be put to. Freed even insists that if you live properly and
just listen to your body, it will tell you what it needs to be healthy. As she sees it, health lies in having a healthy
outlook on life, eating well generally, and getting exercise, not medical services or even buying natural supplements.
For living simply, the ability to filter out misleading messages from consumer culture which bombard us daily is
very important, as we try to discern what works better for us based on our experiences and logical thinking.

Some people will be put off by the more extreme aspects of Freed's style of simple living. Very few people
will want to practice simplicity just as her and her father have. For example, how many people will make and eat
sausage from the tongue, lungs, brain, spleen, thyroid, adrenals, uterus and testicles of an animal? Or how about
raising rabbits in your basement? And what if your nine-to-five job is satisfying? Furthermore, instructions for tax
and law evasion, and a detailed strategy for dealing with dishonest authorities, involving a combination of calm
confrontation and anonymous threats, are likely to offend some readers. If this is a model for simple living, it sure
won't appeal to everyone. Since Freed speaks so much about her own experience, she risks coming off as preachy
and prescriptive of her own brand of simple living. But she does so to illustrate to the reader what their simpler life
might be like, not to dictate it. Freed says in an introductory section and throughout the book that one can do things
their own way, as they see fit. One of the perks of possum living, she explains, is that it gives the person the
confidence to have freedom of choice; it is not a lifetime commitment, but will teach you how to do more with very
little in whatever you choose to do in the future. Freed understands as well as the reader that simplicity has to be
adapted to personal preferences if it really has the person's well-being in mind.

Overall, this book is geared for people who are already somewhat interested in living simply, specifically
escaping the money economy, but are not necessarily interested in reading the more theoretical literature on simple
living. Because parts of Freed's lifestyle might seem a bit over-the-top, and lacking ethics, this book will not appeal
to people who seek a less radical form of simple living, or those who want to keep their job. This will definitely be
the case for people who want to practice better environmental stewardship without changing their lifestyle much, or
people who read the book without having a prior interest in alternative lifestyles. However, the candid, humorous
tone that Freed uses, and her description of some admittedly unorthodox practices make for an always-interesting,
captivating read. At its worst, Possum Living is an odd, perhaps funny depiction of frugal living and the do-ityourself
ethic. At its best, it is an inspiring illustration of how to live a simpler, more satisfying lifeâ€”without the
nine-to-five job.


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