Little House in the Suburbs: Backyard farming and home skills for self-sufficient living

by Deanna Caswell, Daisy Siskins

"Little House in the Suburbs" will teach readers how to incorporate homesteading principles into their lives while staying within the comfort of the suburbs. Readers will learn the fundamentals of gardening--from what, when and how to plant--presented with options for container gardening, raised-bed gardening, traditional gardening and even covert gardening where they blend edible plants into their flowerbeds. The authors will draw from their real-life experiences as they teach readers how to keep bees, chickens and even goats in their backyards while still keeping the peace with their neighbors and their municipalities. Seventy-five recipes will show readers how to turn the eggs, honey, beeswax, goat milk and plants they harvest in to natural skin care products and non-toxic cleaning products. Readers will also find plenty of ideas for cute handmade gifts for family and friends. Finally, in true homesteading fashion, readers will find advice on how to build community in their neighborhood with babysitting co-ops, meal co-ops and barter systems.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Reference, Food, Self Help, How To, Survival

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 16, 2012

About the author

I write children's books, I'm more famous in my area for my pets! See my new book Little House in the Suburbs and videos uploaded below and the newspaper links here, here, here, here, and here.

Reviews

[Diamond Cowboy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review later.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little chipper for me but also really helpful! Very no-fear homesteading approach, which I appreciated a LOT especially the bees chapter.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gardening, canning, natural recipes for beginners. If you have grown up without anyone doing any of these things = perfect. If not skip it.

[Sandee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an overview of what could be possible to accomplish in the suburbs as far as self-sufficient living. It's not particularly detailed, like it tells you that you may need to supplement a beehive's winter nutrition but not how to figure out if they need it, and an overview of hive disease but not how to tell if your hive is not thriving.

It's a good starting place for ideas, but you'd need a whole other set of resources to actually do any of the things in this book. Or it could be interesting if you're a year into some of these projects and need a little insight from someone who has lived it. The authors are encouraging and tell of their own experiences, which was interesting.

[Katie J Schwartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little House in the Suburbs: Backyard Farming and Home Skills for Self-Sufficient Living is basically a beginner's field guide for simple living when the place you live in happens to be suburbia, and not a farm. Included is a vast wealth of information on backyard gardening, keeping small livestock such as chickens and goats, directions for homemade items like soap and deodorant, and much, MUCH more.

I am so glad that I read this book. I want to try pretty much everything in it (Except for beekeeping. Bees are complicated.) I hope my future family is ok with chickens and goats!

[Nihal · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book is for the absolute beginner. seasoned pinterest users with interest on the subject can completely avoid it. as it is a collection of pinterest pins in a book. might come handy but lack of detailed information makes this book s bit dull. i'd much prefer a more personal book with their experiences than a collection of how-tos

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

GREAT resource for beginners! I wish I had this book last spring. My garden wouldn't have been nearly so pathetic! I was going to give up after 2 years of garden failure, but now I want to try again.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm totally digging this book. It is witty and has a ton of great recipes for all sorts of things. It is one of those library books that I'm going to have to run out an purchase.

[Ami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, a book about self-sufficiency that only focuses on suburbia! Great pictures, multiple points of view and opinions, and detailed personal experience makes this book a winner.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool book that gives sound advice in a creative, sometimes funny way.

[Tandie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book discussing many different types of self sufficiency skills in a fun, modern way. Topics range from gardening & having a chicken coop to raising goats in a suburban area.

[Jade · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were many sloppy typos. Every single converstion from imperial to metric was laughable.

As a goatkeeper, the chapter on goats could be considered exceptionally misleading.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great information, inspiration. Surprisingly entertaining. Oh, how I want chickens!

[Deirdre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suuuper fun read. I devoured it all in one fell swoop when I should have been sleeping (although that occasion is getting rarer and rarer these days, ptl), so I must admit to skipping some of the parts about mini goats and apiaries, fascinating though they were, because I have both a minuscule backyard and two housemates under the age of four.

But I am now excitedly planning some shade-resistant vegetable gardening on a lasagna-style garden on the narrow strip of yard I can claim to grow things AND making a compost bin made out of a garbage can AND actually considering making my own soap, which I had hitherto relegated to the realm of fantasies I would never live out. And mebbe buying a copy for my friend who absolutely yearns for a goat, good urbanite that she is.

Furthermore the authors' voices did not pall or become annoying, as I thought they might at the beginning, remaining entertaining and engaging all the way through.

So it was certainly a win, all things told.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I should probably lead with the fact that I'm not the intended audience for this book. While I did find the first few chapters about different ways to garden and keep animals (including bees!) interesting and generally informative, the second half is just a recipe/idea book I mostly skimmed. I didn't get why there were things about babysitting (???) and how to convince your partner to make changes to your life that match up with a sustainable lifestyle. This just isn't all that helpful unless you fall into a very specific category and live in a particular kind of suburb.

[Jaime Lynn Cornelius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily the BEST gardening/home farm book I have ever read. Deanna and Daisy's personalities shine through: they are witty and relatable, humble and informative. Every page, chapter and topic simplifies things instead of complicates it with another conflicting voice. Throughout the book, calm reassurance that I'm either not messing this up (yet) and everyone will mess it up at some point gives me great confidence that I'm on the right road (instead of a doomed failure)! What a blessing this book has been! I've read an enjoyed every word so far!

[Angie Page-Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Perfect Little Read

I enjoyed the narrative of this book. We are far too reliant on big corporations for our everyday needs. This is a back to basic guide on how to reclaim self-reliance. The book also contains great recipes for making soap, shampoos and homemade vanilla (I’m making that tomorrow. I definitely recommend this book. Now I need some land so I can have a couple of chickens and dwarf goats.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the chapters on planting and chickens, and I liked that it's authored by women who have relatively normal lives/families. I was disappointed in the recipe...there were so many included but very few I was interested in trying.

[Maire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this - full of useful information and I love how they have actually lived what they write so the tips and advice is based on real life. Very helpful for anyone living in a residential area that wants to grow food or keep animals

[Nicole Koneck-Wilwerding · Rating 5 out of 5]

My heart is now ready to get chickens, bees, and mini-goats, but my yard is not.

[Sydnee Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

brb gonna go start my suburb homestead ;) I loved this book! It was educational and fun to read!

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, informational read. The tone is witty and dare I say- girly. So many great ideas!

[Mary Porter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of really great info. Now I’m dreaming of having chickens one day.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great for the gardener with a black thumb, but hopes to improve their skills. Super helpful and sarcastically toned.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

not worth getting through

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very practical and easy to ready advice on self sustaining living, even in a city.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked the humor, the sample garden grid, the 'you can do this! attitude.

[Cheri Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great starting point for anyone who wants to be a little more self-sustaining. Gardening, beekeeping, goats, chickens, making your own cleaning supplies, and soap!

[Monica Mohr · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my 5th homesteading book I’ve read this year and this one was by far my favorite! I feel like I can actually try all the things introduced in this book

[Gracie Schlabach · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extremely realistic approach to starting a backyard homestead. Both authors were very encouraging in their chapters of expertise, made things like composting seem very doable. So many good recipes for cleaning and hygiene products, I bought this book used on Amazon for future reference. Highly recommend!