Survival Guides: Basic Survival Skills
Survival isn't just about skill—it's about being prepared for the unexpected.
Deep in the forest, facing nature's wrath, or just stocking up for any emergency, a survival guidebook can be the difference between life and death.
In an age where it is more adventurous to go into the wilds than ever, and disaster can occur at any notice, having it at your beck and call has become the survival of the savviest and the most adaptable.
These books are not just about reading material but lifelines packed with expert knowledge about staying alive in extreme situations.
They cover how to build shelters, find food, navigate without a GPS, and administer first aid, giving people practical skills they can use in real life.
Even the most experienced survivalists refer to them for information because there's no room for guessing in the wild or during an emergency.
We only include books in this list that are accurate, comprehensive, and practical.
These are not theoretical user manuals but ones designed step-by-step, with real-world survival stories, methods, and techniques proven to work over time.
These books will empower outdoor enthusiasts, preppers, and regular citizens to be prepared for any situation that comes their way.
Top 20 Survival Guide Books
1. SAS Survival Handbook - John 'Lofty' Wiseman
Any survival kit should include one of these books. It is said that John' Lofty' Wiseman has written one of the most influential survival books.
The SAS Survival Handbook contains many skills for surviving various conditions, from getting lost in the woods or stranded in the desert to enduring an urban disaster.
The book, written by Wiseman, a British SAS soldier, gives firsthand practical knowledge from real survival training.
It discusses wilderness survival skills, including fire-starting, finding water, building shelter, and first aid. It is truly valuable because it prepares you for real survival situations with self-defense, signaling for rescue, and psychological resilience.
Being a detailed yet easy-to-understand handbook, this guide differs from most survival books. It is a reliable reference that you should read, whether you are a beginner or an experienced survivalist.
2. Tom Brown's Field Guide to Wilderness Survival – Tom Brown Jr.
This field guide is a good place to start if you want to learn wilderness survival naturally. Tom Brown Jr., a master tracker and survivalist, has crafted his survival handbook inspired by Native American techniques.
Unlike the SAS Survival Handbook, which is somewhat more tactical, this book is to live in tune with nature.
Brown teaches elementary survival skills, such as building shelter, making fire with friction, and finding wild food through foraging. His field guide also includes techniques for tracking, a rare skill that can help one hunt, navigate, or even evade danger.
This book is excellent for those who admire Ray Mears and his approach to survival. It introduces readers to practical skills that go far beyond mere survival.
3. How to Stay Alive in the Woods – Bradford Angier
Some books on survival are very heavy on military-style training, and others focus too much on wilderness skills. This reference book strikes the perfect balance—it's easy to read, practical, and full of real-life survival techniques.
Angier covers everything from finding water, building shelter, hunting wild food, and dealing with emergencies.
The book shines because it emphasizes mental resilience, remaining calm, and making the right decisions in survival situations.
This is the best survival book for beginners. It explains the most straightforward survival skills. It is suitable for outdoor adventures, hiking trips, and preparing for natural disasters.
4. Five Years to Freedom by James N. Rowe
This is not any other survival book. It is the true account of how James N. Rowe survived five years as a POW in Vietnam. Most survival books hardly go deeper than the psychological approach to survival.
Rowe's account shows strong mental resilience, creative problem-solving, and survival skills in extreme conditions.
The techniques for escaping, surviving captivity, and survival when all hope is lost are also addressed.
This is an engaging book on survival techniques for readers interested in military survival or survival situations beyond the wild.
5. The Forager's Harvest – Samuel Thayer
One of the most valuable wilderness survival skills is finding wild food; Samuel Thayer's Field Guide came—the book is one of the best on foraging.
This survival book teaches you how to find and safely consume wild plants.
While most people think of foraging as simply picking berries, Thayer explains in detail what is edible and poisonous and how to safely prepare wild food.
This book is an excellent reference for survivalists, hikers, and anyone interested in natural food sources. If you ever need to stay alive in the wild, this survival handbook can help you avoid starvation.
6. The Complete First Aid Pocket Guide
Every survival kit needs to have a first aid book. This reference guide offers essential skills in treating injuries, handling medical emergencies, and preventing infections in a survival situation.
Unlike most wild survival books, this pocket-sized, take-anywhere book can fit inside a survival kit, except for CPR, trauma care, wound treatment, how to treat extreme medical situations if professional aid cannot be called upon, and so much more.
A guide for first aid is not that interesting, as many survival books could turn out to be lifesavers in emergencies.
7. The Ultimate Survival Manual – Rich Johnson
It contains 333 survival skills that any survivalist would need, so it is the best book for someone wanting to learn the basics.
This survival book covers all the techniques for wilderness survival, urban disaster preparedness, and even post-apocalyptic survival strategies.
It is the complete guide to handling survival situations in any environment.
This is an excellent survival book for anyone, whether a beginner or an experienced survivalist. It is both entertaining to read and has step-by-step tutorials.
8. Special Forces Survival Guide – Chris McNab
This book is about survival in the wild and military-grade survival. Chris McNab teaches tactics elite forces use, such as combat survival, evasion techniques, and urban warfare skills.
This is no ordinary book about outdoor adventures. It is a technical survival book that teaches one to face life-or-death situations.
9. Bushcraft 101 by Dave Canterbury
If you enjoy wilderness survival, Dave Canterbury is probably your favorite. This field guide emphasizes self-reliance, an off-the-grid method of survival on the land using minimal gear.
It includes a basic range from fire making to building shelters, hunting, and making tools, all seen from the practical application.
Many call it the survival bible, a place for newbies to learn foundational survival skills and move on to more complex applications.
10. Wilderness Survival Guide – Gregory J. Davenport
Sometimes, you need a straightforward guide that defines what to do in a survival situation. This book does just that.
Davenport's survival handbook explains survival in simple steps: finding topics such as finding water, starting a fire, gathering food, and navigating.
It's an excellent reference book for your survival kit or car.
Learning survival skills is not enough; it's also about being prepared. This is an excellent read if you want a practical guide that doesn't waste time.
11. The Survival Handbook – Colin Towell
Colin Towell's book is one of the best survival books if you prefer step-by-step instructions with clear illustrations.
This survival handbook covers everything from surviving in an extreme wilderness climate and emergency first aid to preparedness for a city attack.
Its unique visual approach includes diagrams in each chapter explaining how to build a shelter, locate water, or perform first aid.
Towell is an ex-British military survival expert whose practical knowledge is evident in the depth of this field guide.
This book belongs in your survival kit if you want a complete guide that is easy to reference in real survival situations.
12. Your Survival – Bob Arnot
Many survival books focus on wilderness survival, but Bob Arnot takes a different approach—this book is all about disaster preparedness for urban environments.
You are probably more likely to experience a tornado, earthquake, pandemic, or more power outages than to get lost in the wild.
This survival guide teaches practical strategies for keeping your home and family safe, from food storage to self-defense.
It is one of the best survival books, teaching readers how to remain alive during modern crises. Survival isn't just about nature but about preparedness anywhere.
13. Survival Medicine Handbook – Joseph Alton, MD
A survival book for survival and preserving life. Given the case of a disaster, Joseph Alton's expertise is useful if professionals providing medical assistance are not available.
This survival guide covers wound and infection treatment and emergency treatments for survival situations lasting more than days. It is great for preppers, off-grid homesteaders, and anyone who needs to be prepared for anything.
This book, which should be in your survival kit, can help with wound treatments, disease management, and medical emergencies, even in a remote place without a hospital. First aid is as important in survival as getting water or shelter.
14. When Technology Fails – Matthew Stein
There's no guarantee that technology is going to keep working. The Survival Encyclopedia is a personal development book that lets readers learn how to live off the grid if necessary.
Read Also: Book Review "The Survival Encyclopedia By Matthew Stein"
Matthew Stein covers alternative energy sources, food storage, and sustainable living skills in the survival guide. One of these is about preparing for natural disasters or for those with a deep interest in living off the grid.
It is a great, fun read that helps readers understand how vulnerable modern conveniences are and why they need to be taught survival skills.
15. Hawke's Green Beret Survival Manual – Mykel Hawke
Mykel Hawke's survival handbook is a must-read if you want military-level survival strategies. As a Green Beret expert, he provides real-world applications of military survival tactics.
This survival book covers wilderness survival, self-defense, and disaster response. Unlike many other books, it teaches basic survival skills and explores psychological resilience, combat techniques, and advanced survival methods.
Unlike most survival guides, This book interests any military training student because of its depth and practicality.
16. Edible Wild Plants – Lee Allen Peterson
Foraging for wild food can be pretty dangerous if you don't know what you are doing. That's why Lee Allen Peterson's book is one of the best survival books on knowing your safe plants.
This reference book covers Central North America's condensible, medicinal, and toxic wild foods. The full-color images help readers recognize these foods in everyday life.
This survival field guide is the ultimate food-finding tool for staying alive in the wild. It is a perfect survival book, so keep it in your survival kit to stay healthy.
17. When All Hell Breaks Loose – Cody Lundin
If you know Cody Lundin, you know he keeps survival honest. This book isn't just about staying alive and thriving in extreme situations.
Lundin covers mental resilience, food storage, self-defense, and adaptability. Unlike most wilderness survival books, this one also prepares you for major disasters, whether natural or artificial.
It's also an entertaining read, with Lundin's humor and wisdom making serious survival topics more straightforward. This one is for you if you want a practical, engaging, initial-s essential-skills-packed8.
18. Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag – Creek Stewart
A bug-out bag is a survival kit you grab when you must evacuate rapidly within 72 hours. Creek Stewart's book is the ultimate guide to packing efficiently and preparing for disaster scenarios.
This book deconstructs:
✔ What essential items will you require
✔ How to pack based on different disaster situations
✔ The best ways to stay prepared without overpacking.
This book is a good place to start if you're new to survival preparedness. It's practical, to the point, and could save your life one day.
19. Northern Bushcraft – Mors L. Kochanski
Most survival guides focus on general wilderness survival, but what if you're in cold and harsh climates? That's where Mors L. Kochanski comes in.
This book is the best survival book for northern environments, covering:
✔ Fire-starting in extreme cold.
✔ Shelter-building with minimal resources.
✔ Tool-making and hunting in winter conditions.
If you ever need to stay alive in the harsh wilderness, this book is a must for mastering cold-weather survival skills.
20. The Ultimate Guide to Surviving Anywhere – John 'Lofty' Wiseman
If you liked the SAS Survival Handbook, this book is a super-expansion that covers all the essential survival skills.
This book goes much deeper into the essentials, covering everything from wilderness survival tactics to survival strategies in cities and towns, including advanced techniques.
This survival book covers natural disasters, getting stranded in the wild, and navigating any crisis in the city or the backwoods.
Wiseman's writing expertise shines through, making this a complete book for beginners or experienced survivalists. If there is one reference book that prepares you for any survival situation, this is it.
Conclusion: Be Ready, Stay Safe, and Survive
Survival is not merely an adventure.
Being prepared for the unexpected is always important. Whether you become lost in the wilderness, are hit by a natural disaster, or face an emergency in an urban setting, the knowledge you gain from survival books can be the difference between panicking and holding on to your control, struggling and thriving, and life and death.
In no way are the survival guides those books; they become a lifeline.
Each is such a powerhouse of essential skills that it can help any person survive based on real-life survival scenarios—from building shelter, obtaining water, making fire, providing first aid, or self-defense to foraging wild food.
These books seem to pass on practical knowledge that everybody can learn.
This ends with reading. Knowledge without practice is useless, so you must apply what you have learned.
You can try building a fire without matches, practicing navigating without GPS, or assembling a bug-out bag with everything you'll ever need in an emergency.
The more you train, the more confident you will be if you need to rely on these skills.
That is why, in this day and age, it's easy to assume that someone is out there who will always bail you out; help is just around the corner.
But history teaches us otherwise: Disasters can happen anytime and without warning; sometimes, we are alone.
Preparedness and self-reliance are not exclusive only to survivalists or preppers.
So, take action today. Pick a book, start reading, and start practicing.
Because when the moment comes, when everything depends on what you know and what you can do, the most valuable thing you'll have isn't gear—it's the skills in your head and the confidence in your heart.
Survival isn't about waiting for rescue. It's about being ready to rescue yourself.
