The Only 6 Books Our Subscribers Must Read

There is now an overwhelming quantity of books and resources available for RV basics, full-time RV living, homesteading, tiny house culture, and rural land development. You could spend years poring over them, but The Home Base Herald is all about getting you answers fast.

If we had to limit ourselves to just the barest essentials, some or all of these six books will be required reading depending on your situation.

The “Bible” of RVing

The RV Book
Mark J. Polk

There could be no other book at the top of this list. The venerated RV Book is the sacred text of RVing, and should frankly come free with every camper sold. If you’re only going to buy one book on the list make it this. It’s the most comprehensive guide for understanding the different classes of RVs, tow vehicles, camping equipment, maintenance requirements, and the realities of RV ownership.

For Full-Timers

A Beginner’s Guide to Living in an RV
Alyssa Padgett

A nice companion to The RV Book above. This one is less about mechanical how-to’s and equipment details (though there’s some of that), and more about the day-to-day realities of life on the road—from utilities to mail, internet, budgeting, and common rookie mistakes.

Adventure Bait

50 States, 5,000 Ideas
Joe Yogerst & National Geographic

Implicit in the term “Home Base” is that you’ll inevitably find yourself “off-base” enjoying the freedom and adventure of the RV lifestyle. For those traveling America over land, there is no single book more alluring than this. Joe Yogerst wrote it in partnership with National Geographic, so it’s lavishly illustrated and packed with destination ideas like national parks, charming small towns, scenic drives, festivals, and hidden gems.

Saving for the Land

The Millionaire Next Door
Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko

Offbeat choice but hear us out: The majority of Home Base Herald subscribers are not actively in-market for land, but rather preparing to buy one day. What they ought to be doing is following our monetization guide, but the point is saving up is a common denominator here.

The Millionaire Next Door is so seminal and central to the personal finance community, we’d say it would be near-impossible to read it and not accelerate your savings goals. Plus the paperback is only ten bucks or so. See? You’re saving money already.

Financing the Lifestyle

Full-Time RV Finance
Sean & Julie Chickery

After The Millionaire Next Door helps you save up to buy your Home Base, this book will help you pay for the lifestyle. It was written by a couple of genuine full-time RVers, and covers budgeting, retirement planning, taxes, insurance, healthcare, and the financial realities of life in an RV.

Tiny House Inspo

Tiny House: Live Small, Dream Big
Brent Heavener

The Home Base Herald has a ton of overlap with the tiny house community. This is an inspirational, thick coffee table book, light on text and instead filled with 250 drool-worthy photographs of the smallest, most efficient homes in the world.