Sharpening the Reading List: Free ebooks on Cooking, Living and Doing!

 

I've been down for the count this past week due to a little late-winter illness running through the household. My taste buds were shot, so no exciting dishes to share. I did, however, find lots of time to curl up with a good book and time to check on a few of my favorite Web sites. I don't know if you've ever heard of a site called ManyBooks (thanks to Project Gutenberg), but they are an incredible resource for DIY/simple living/home cook/outdoors-people types, like me and you. You can download copies of ebooks from many genres, all for free. I especially recommend checking out the Instructional genre.

One of the coolest I found was a copy of Carving and Serving by Mrs. D.A. Lincoln, dated 1906. In the book she writes:

     One must learn first of all to carve neatly, without scattering crumbs or

     splashing gravy over the cloth or platter; also to cut straight, uniform
     slices. This may seem an easy matter; but do we often see pressed
     beef, tongue, or even bread cut as it should be?

I know I often second-guess myself the moment before I cut into a beautiful smoked turkey or slow-cooked roast. Now, thanks to Carving and Serving, I have a deeper understanding and appreciation for my carving knife and the importance of a well-carved, properly-served main course. I hope you enjoy reading it, too!

Here's a short list of other books on ManyBooks.net you might find interesting:

• The American Practical Brewer and Tanner by Joseph Coppinger
• The Art of Making Whiskey by Anthony Boucherie 
• The BYU Solar Cooker/Cooler by Steven E. Jones 
• Camping For Boys by Henry William Gibson
• Camp Life in the Woods and the Tricks of Trapping and Trap Making by William Hamilton Gibson 
• Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches by Eliza Leslie 
• Fishing with a Worm by Bliss Perry 
• Home Taxidermy for Pleasure and Profit by Albert B. Farnham 
• How to Cook Fish by Myrtle Reed 
• How to Camp Out by John M. Gould 
• How to Tie Flies by E.C. Gregg 
• Human Foods and Their Nutritive Value by Harry Snyder 
• Hunting with the Bow and Arrow by Saxton Pope 
• Mushrooms: how to grow them by William Falconer 
• Mysteries of Bee-keeping Explained by M. Quinby 
• On the Trail: An Outdoor Book for Girls by Lina Beard 
• The Practical Distiller by Samuel McHarry 
• Practical Taxidermy by Montagu Browne 
• The Production of Vinegar from Honey by Gerard W. Bancks 
• Shelters, Shacks and Shanties by Dan Beard 
• Things To Make by Archibald Williams 
• Vegetable Dyes by Ethel M. Mairet 
• Wild Ducks: How to Rear and Shoot Them by W. Coape Oates 
• Woodcraft by George Washington Sears