Customer Reviews
Ray Mears - My idol! - By: MaryAnne, 16 Jan 2007 
This book was a very enjoyable read. For those interested in the wilderness or hands-on outdoor pastimes, it keeps you flicking forward to see what other goodies it contains for you to get stuck into, or even fantasise about. It contains many interesting activities on how to survive in or simply enjoy the wilderness, suitable even for a first-timer. It breaks tasks down into easy to follow step by step instructions, along with the more detailed paragraphs along side.
There are well-drawn black & white illistrations, which for the most part are more than adequate to help you understand. It is, however, hard to get to grips with some of the plants, & to remember their uses due to the lack of colour. They alll seem to merge into one multi-use supernatural plant, & you cant remember which plant is used for what. This isn't too much of a problem, as it isn't a heavy book & can easily fit in your backpack, available for quick referance.
It lists many common British plants & what they can be used for. These include roasting dandelion roots for a makeshift coffee to what mushroom makes a good plaster.
For the average city-person, there are still many interesting endevours within this book that can be practiced while on a strole through the woods.
It is mainly writen on how to make use of your suroundings & become more self-reliant. If you are a camper, I thoroughly recommend this book to enrich your interest/knowledge of the local countryside. You can also use this book to experiment traditional methods, without having to camp. There are such activities as:
Pottering, cooking, fishing, weaving, navigation, woodworking, cordage-making & tonnes more
Very informative & well writen.
*Writen by my son*
Good introduction to outdoor survival - By: , 19 Jan 2005 I liked the way the book was organised, into seasons highlighting the essentials e.g. fire, shelter etc.
The writing style is clear & easy to read, demonstrating Ray's obvious knowledge & love of nature.
As mentioned elsewhere, the illustrations are fairly basic, but I think sufficient to get the practical concepts across.
Blatantly promotes his own Woodlore equipment & bushcraft/survival courses!
Overalll I would recommend the book as an introduction to outdoor survival.
Another great book by Ray - By: Mr. R. Owens, 03 Feb 2004 
Having read most of the survival books on the market ranging from Lofty Wiseman's to Tom Brown I can say that this is very informative. It is although, after reading it aimed, more for the person who is interested in Bush craft & the primitive skills for more prolonged survival situations than those wanting skills for a short term survival situation with the possibilty of a quick rescue.
If you are interested in merely learning survival techniques for short term survival situations then you are probably better looking at Lofty's SAS Survival handbook. However, if you are looking at learning/becoming more in-tune with nature then this is certainly a book to read. The break down into different months of what resources are available I found very useful & the sections on wildlife observation & tracking were also useful.
Although not an exhaustive manuel on survival techniques it is certainly a book to set you on the path to be coming a good bushman.
Essential Outdoor Companion. - By: , 27 Sep 2002 Revealing an absolute wealth of knowledge & experience Ray Mears provides clear step-by-step instructions in how to master an abundance of survival methods which can be approached by novices & pros alike.
Ray Mears shows how to construct shelters from the elements suitable for virtuallly any time of the year & a variety of locations & environments. He approaches how to light a good fire in alll types of weathers with the materials readily available in the wild, how to track & identify animals & other essential everyday skills needed to survive in the great outdoors.
Ray also shows how to orienteer & map-read, & the correct way to use a compass. He also demonstrates how to make a variety of tools & equipment from naturallly available materials eg., ropes, pots etc..
This is an essential volume for anyone interested in the outdoor life, not just for survival purposes. A basic knowledge would do none of us any harm & this book meets this need & those who require much more. An excellent purchase.
Ray Mears Outdoor Survival Handbook - By: Frances Ross, 24 Aug 2002 I read this book & thought it was excelent. I study bushcraft & find the book extremely useful. It explains alll of the basic skills & some more advanced techniques. It gives step by step instrutions which are very easy to follow accumpanied by good drawings.
The book is dividided into 4 sections corrosponding to each season of the year.
It is different to his other book Bushcraft as it explains in detail alll the skills mentioned. Bushcraft is a much better book for someone who is wanting to know if they like outdoor survival or not. The outdoor survival handbook is more for someone who is actuallly learning the skills rather than just reading about them.
The only bad part about this book is that some of the drawings are a bit unclear & actual photographs would have been a lot better.
Overalll this is a briliant book. Better for the someone learning outdoor survival. Bushcraft would be a much better choice for someone who is interested in outdoor survival or someone who is learning it.
