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Pocket Guide to the Outdoors: Based on My Side of the Mountain
Generations of readers have escaped into the woods with My Side of the Mountain, the story of a city boy named Sam who learns to live in the wild. Now, Newbery winner Jean Craighead George offers an easy-to-follow guide for fans who want to live the adventure just like Sam. Learn how to start a fire, build a shelter, catch a fish, identify useful plants, and much more. Hands-on activities are perfect for backyard campers or an afternoon stroll through the park. Illustrated with black-and-white drawings and packed with activities, naturalist trivia, and practical wilderness tips, this entertaining and informative handbook is your guide to outdoor fun.
144 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
3 people are currently reading
229 people want to read
About the author
Jean Craighead George
204 books1,516 followersJean Craighead George wrote over eighty popular books for young adults, including the Newbery Medal-winning Julie of the Wolves and the Newbery Honor book My Side of the Mountain. Most of her books deal with topics related to the environment and the natural world. While she mostly wrote children's fiction, she also wrote at least two guides to cooking with wild foods, and an autobiography, Journey Inward.
The mother of three children, (Twig C. George, Craig, and T. Luke George) Jean George was a grandmother who joyfully read to her grandchildren since the time they were born. Over the years Jean George kept one hundred and seventy-three pets, not including dogs and cats, in her home in Chappaqua, New York. "Most of these wild animals depart in autumn when the sun changes their behaviour and they feel the urge to migrate or go off alone. While they are with us, however, they become characters in my books, articles, and stories."
The mother of three children, (Twig C. George, Craig, and T. Luke George) Jean George was a grandmother who joyfully read to her grandchildren since the time they were born. Over the years Jean George kept one hundred and seventy-three pets, not including dogs and cats, in her home in Chappaqua, New York. "Most of these wild animals depart in autumn when the sun changes their behaviour and they feel the urge to migrate or go off alone. While they are with us, however, they become characters in my books, articles, and stories."
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
September 18, 2012
It's a great book. You have to read My side of the mountain first. I'm homeshcooled so I have to read a book that they pick for the book club. This month's was my side of the mountain. Because my mom is friends with the librarian we got the companion. At first both of the books were just laying around for like a week. Then my mom told me I had to get cracking so I read both of them, I will have a rating for my side of the mountain, but right now we are talking about the companion. I learnd a LOT! from it and it was so cool that I renewed it. If you are going camping or want to go out by your self and spend the night in the woods this book is for you.
xx-dnf-skim-reference
July 27, 2019Skimmed. It looks like it has a lot of information that could actually be useful, but I still wouldn't feel good about using it as the only source before heading out on your own. It does have illustrations and a bibliography. It also has a lot of quotes from the novel. Like George, I hope it inspires youth to get outside, for at least day trips.
June 12, 2013
This is a great little outdoors survival handbook tailored for younger readers, by one of the grand dames of the wilderness and author of the children's classic My Side of the Mountain. Excerpts from Sam Gribley's diary from My Side of the Mountain are sprinkled throughout the book. What I love most about this book is that is assumes that youngsters have some self-reliance and aren't helpless creatures made of glass. There is information about wilderness safety and conduct - putting fires out properly, avoiding poisonous plants, tossing back endangered fish - but none of the usual "get a grown-up to help you whittle" or "don't do this without a grown-up's help." Nope, this book hearkens back to an earlier era in which it was fine for kids to have pocket-knives. I find this reassuring, since when I was a kid in the 1970s, I was not only allowed to have a pocket-knife, but given them for Christmas and taught how to use them (never open more than one blade on a pocket-knife at a time, always whittle away from you, and keep your knife sharp). I'm sure I'm not the only one who, in reading modern books for youngsters, can't help but feel an undertone of criticism at all the instructions involving grown-ups helping out - I think of all the things my parents not only allowed, but encouraged me to do without adult supervision, and I wonder how parenting style has changed so much that the things we used to do for fun are now considered dangerously inappropriate.
Okay, enough soap-boxing: this is a great survival book, extensively illustrated with tips and techniques for building shelter, building fires, foraging for food, fishing, trapping, tracking, navigating, knot-tying, bird calls, outdoor cooking, even instructions for home-made musical instruments. Best of all, the instructions for everything assume that you have either nothing at all, or just the bare minimum day-pack of supplies. This is a true survival book - not instructions on how to camp with loads of food and supplies and comfortable tents, but how to boil water in a leaf, make a fishing pole from bark and thorns, hunt for edible insects and plants, and navigate by the sun and stars. The only thing that is missing is information on hunting and trapping - perhaps because of the young audience for whom it is intended, and that it's not really a "lost in the woods" handbook, but rather a "self-suffiency in the woods" book. Information on collecting roadkill and cleaning fish is plentiful, but nothing about trapping small animals, although there is information on building several types of sling-shots. That seems appropriate - I mean, cooking fresh-caught fish and making acorn pancakes is appropriate for a day trip; hunting and trapping animals is more of a survival necessity that is not something that you ought to undertake for just a day or two in the woods (it takes a lot of time and patience and should not be done for a lark, but only out of necessity).
Since it is tailored for youngsters, it won't replace my go-to handbook How to Survive in the Woods, which is more extensive, but it's a great little book with lots of interesting activities, many of which can be done in backyards - a solar oven in which to bake bread, for example. Who knew you could do that with a cardboard box? I love that the author understands that city kids and kids without access to the woods might want to try these things, too, and explains that parks or yards are good places to explore, too.
Okay, enough soap-boxing: this is a great survival book, extensively illustrated with tips and techniques for building shelter, building fires, foraging for food, fishing, trapping, tracking, navigating, knot-tying, bird calls, outdoor cooking, even instructions for home-made musical instruments. Best of all, the instructions for everything assume that you have either nothing at all, or just the bare minimum day-pack of supplies. This is a true survival book - not instructions on how to camp with loads of food and supplies and comfortable tents, but how to boil water in a leaf, make a fishing pole from bark and thorns, hunt for edible insects and plants, and navigate by the sun and stars. The only thing that is missing is information on hunting and trapping - perhaps because of the young audience for whom it is intended, and that it's not really a "lost in the woods" handbook, but rather a "self-suffiency in the woods" book. Information on collecting roadkill and cleaning fish is plentiful, but nothing about trapping small animals, although there is information on building several types of sling-shots. That seems appropriate - I mean, cooking fresh-caught fish and making acorn pancakes is appropriate for a day trip; hunting and trapping animals is more of a survival necessity that is not something that you ought to undertake for just a day or two in the woods (it takes a lot of time and patience and should not be done for a lark, but only out of necessity).
Since it is tailored for youngsters, it won't replace my go-to handbook How to Survive in the Woods, which is more extensive, but it's a great little book with lots of interesting activities, many of which can be done in backyards - a solar oven in which to bake bread, for example. Who knew you could do that with a cardboard box? I love that the author understands that city kids and kids without access to the woods might want to try these things, too, and explains that parks or yards are good places to explore, too.
October 7, 2016
1) This book has step by step directions on everything from: how to build a shelter, start a fire, catch a fish, find water, tie useful knots, navigate by the stars, track animals, identify edible & poisonous plants, and much more. With each step by step direction to each, the page includes information about the subject as well as examples. Even if this book was not used in the classroom, it would be very valuable to keep in a classroom library.
2) Age Level: 8-12 years old, Grade Level: 3rd-7th grade
3) Appropriate classroom use: For applying real world learning to the classroom in the form of authentic assessment
4) Individual students who might benefit from this book: students who love the outdoors, or students who want to learn survival skills
5) Small group use: I would divide the class up into groups and give each of them a continent to be stranded on, and each group would have to figure out how they would survive on this certain continent using the knowledge learned from the book as well as the prior knowledge known about each continent. Then we would share as a class.
6) Whole class use: This book could be used as a class read, or you could break it up over a couple of weeks reading about one survival tip each week, and then discuss as a class when they would be able to use this in real life, and maybe even demonstrate some of them.
7) Related Books: My Side of the Mountain Trilogy, On the Far side of the Mountain, Frightful's Mountain
8) Multimedia Connection: I could not find any type of multimedia connection to this book, however you could use Outdoor Survival videos found on YouTube specially made for elementary school students that could be related back to this book in the classroom.
2) Age Level: 8-12 years old, Grade Level: 3rd-7th grade
3) Appropriate classroom use: For applying real world learning to the classroom in the form of authentic assessment
4) Individual students who might benefit from this book: students who love the outdoors, or students who want to learn survival skills
5) Small group use: I would divide the class up into groups and give each of them a continent to be stranded on, and each group would have to figure out how they would survive on this certain continent using the knowledge learned from the book as well as the prior knowledge known about each continent. Then we would share as a class.
6) Whole class use: This book could be used as a class read, or you could break it up over a couple of weeks reading about one survival tip each week, and then discuss as a class when they would be able to use this in real life, and maybe even demonstrate some of them.
7) Related Books: My Side of the Mountain Trilogy, On the Far side of the Mountain, Frightful's Mountain
8) Multimedia Connection: I could not find any type of multimedia connection to this book, however you could use Outdoor Survival videos found on YouTube specially made for elementary school students that could be related back to this book in the classroom.
December 19, 2018
Pocket Guide to the Outdoors Review (No Spoilers)
Pocket Guide to the Outdoors is a guidebook based on the award winning book My Side of The Mountain which was a novel written in 1958 about a boy named Sam Gribley who runs away to live in the wilderness. Pocket Guide to the Outdoors contains information on a variety of tips and activities to do outdoors. Some topics the book goes over are, making acorn pancakes, carving a willow whistle, edible plants, and making a fire. The book contains quotes from My Side of the Mountain and the main character in the book does most, if not all the things the book goes over. Even though I don’t go outdoors much, the book still contained information that I could use. Someone who goes outdoors a lot or camps often will probably love this book. I think this book is very well written and I give it 5/5 stars.
Pocket Guide to the Outdoors is a guidebook based on the award winning book My Side of The Mountain which was a novel written in 1958 about a boy named Sam Gribley who runs away to live in the wilderness. Pocket Guide to the Outdoors contains information on a variety of tips and activities to do outdoors. Some topics the book goes over are, making acorn pancakes, carving a willow whistle, edible plants, and making a fire. The book contains quotes from My Side of the Mountain and the main character in the book does most, if not all the things the book goes over. Even though I don’t go outdoors much, the book still contained information that I could use. Someone who goes outdoors a lot or camps often will probably love this book. I think this book is very well written and I give it 5/5 stars.
February 1, 2019
Pocket Guide to the Outdoors is an informational book. It tells about how to make shelter in the wilderness, how to tell what animal tracks are which, and what foods are safe to eat in the forest. You would have a better chance at surviving if you have this book with you at all times. The book has different things for different readers like pictures, paragraphs, and steps to do things in. I would recommend this book to people who like survival and plan to go camping or something like that. I rate this book a 5 out of 5 because it tells information people may want to know, but for other people it may be a little boring. But you’ll love the book if you’re into survival, and in general, the woods.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 25, 2019
I expected more from this book. I would’ve liked it better if the it had more realistic life hacks. Besides my opinion, this book has semi-realistic step by step directions on everything from: how to build a shelter, start a fire, catch a fish, find water, tie useful knots, navigate by the stars, track animals, identify edible & poisonous plants, and much more. With each step by step direction to each, the page includes information about the subject as well as examples. Even if this book was not used in the classroom, it would be very valuable to keep in a classroom library.
January 10, 2019
Pocket Guide to the Outdoors is a guidebook based on the award winning book My Side of The Mountain which was a novel written in 1958 about a boy named Sam Gribley who runs away to live in the wilderness. Pocket Guide to the Outdoors contains information on a variety of tips and activities to do outdoors. Some topics the book goes over are, making acorn pancakes, carving a willow whistle, edible plants, and making a fire.
January 10, 2019
I really did like this book in my opinion. For me wanting to grow up and learn more about the world this was perfect for me. I learned so much more now from reading this book. I give this book a big 5/5 stars for helping me out more when it came to the outdoors. I liked all of the parts in the book, I really didn’t see anything wrong that the author did. Otherwise really good book learned more then I known before.
March 12, 2019
This pocket guid shows how they did things to survive out in nature. It was an understandable guide on how to do things yourself. You can learn many different things from this book. I suggest if your reading My Side of The Mountain you read this book along with it. Together they really make the experience worth while.
January 30, 2019
This book is a pretty good book because it can tall you a lot of things. Like edible wills plants, medicine plants, and shelters. I rate this book a 5/5 because its ability to tell what is needed to tell. The author has done the best job with this book.
March 1, 2019
I didn’t really like this book. A lot of the things that it talked about was confusing. It was rare when I came across something in this book that actually made sense to me. I’m sure other peopl would love this book. If you like the outdoors I think that you would like this book.
July 11, 2017
This was a fun paring with My Side of the Mountain, and now I know even more about all those cool survival skills I will never ever try.
January 31, 2019
Pocket guide to the out outdoors is a great book for people who love to be with a nature.It guide you to instructions on how properly build shelters, finding fresh water and cooking meals.
February 27, 2019
This book is not my kind of book to read. But this books gives a lot of information so I really enjoyed that part. I would recommend this book to people who want to go camping or live in the woods.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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July 1, 2020Read it with the big kid years ago, read it again with the younger. Still fascinating and fun and the kind of thing both of mine are SUPER into.
August 4, 2020
I can't wait to make acorn pancakes!
February 19, 2019
I didn’t really like this book. I thought that the book was well thought out. The tips and tricks were great, and they related to My Side of the Mountain pretty well. I thought that none of the life hacks were bad. They were pretty good actually. But maybe its because I didn’t enjoy My side of the Mountain that much. I think that this book would be good for anyone who likes going camping or wants to run away from their family and hide in the woods. But that’s just not my kind of thing. Not a bad book, just not my favorite.
May 30, 2016
stumbled across this, and picked it up to see how it work in conjunction with "My side of the mountain". nicely organized and filled with lots of practical advice - while reading the accompanying book is a plus, it's not necessary, and this would be enjoyed by children who enjoy exploring the outdoors.
May 23, 2013
I really liked this book. I am a very outdoorsy person, and I also read the book that this is based on and really enjoyed it. This book is great if you will be camping, hiking, backpacking, or just like to learn about living in the wilderness. I enjoyed this book very much, it fit me as a person.
November 16, 2016
Lots of tips for campers and hikers on building shelter, fishing, cooking (boiling water on a leaf!), edible and medical plants (also poisonous!), learning about knots, animals, birds, how to keep your direction and safety issues. The book also includes some recipes, and how to make utensils and musical instruments. For fans of the author’s award winning 1959 book My Side Of The Mountain.
October 20, 2010
This "guide" is disappointing. Not in-depth and is only a starting point for many ideas that were already a starting point when described in the novel.
July 6, 2011
this is a good book too read if you like the outdoors.
January 8, 2015
A great, thorough guide that would make a good reference book for campers and hikers.
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January 12, 2019My nephews are very excited about My Side of the Mountain, as I was at their age, so I read this to see if it might make a good gift for them. I actually learned a couple interesting things myself (ferns and cattails have edible parts, for example). It is a beginner oriented guide, definitely geared to the below age twelve prime readership of My Side of the Mountain. I think it would be best suited to young folks who are outdoor enthusiasts, especially if they live in the country or have access to spaces where they can try out the skills in the book. I decided that city kids like my newphews wouldn’t actually use the book, even if they found it interesting to flip through.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews