The Foxfire Book by Eliot Wigginton

The Foxfire Book (Foxfire, #1)

by Eliot Wigginton

First published in 1972, The Foxfire Book was a surprise bestseller that brought Appalachia's philosophy of simple living to hundreds of thousands of readers. Whether you wanted to hunt game, bake the old-fashioned way, or learn the art of successful moonshining, The Foxfire Museum and Heritage Center had a contact who could teach you how with clear, step-by-step instructions.

This classic debut volume of the acclaimed series covers a diverse array of crafts and practical skills, including log cabin building, hog dressing, basketmaking, cooking, fencemaking, crop planting, hunting, and moonshining, as well as a look at the history of local traditions like snake lore and faith healing.

Reviewed by jamiereadthis on

5 of 5 stars

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Just like my advice to anyone, for anything, is to build a fire with your bare hands: what we need to do is burn every goddamn self-help book in existence and distribute these instead. I’m serious. Elect me president and that’s the only thing I’ll do. So... don’t elect me president, is what I’m saying.

The moonshining chapter is the best. Plus every single gold nugget of a story that, all the way down to the dialect, sounds exactly like every single story I grew up with from grandmas, grandpas, aunts, uncles, neighbors. This book— these books, plural— are a treasure.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 6 October, 2012: Finished reading
  • 6 October, 2012: Reviewed