Scouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship

By Robert Baden-Powell

Book Overview

'A Scout is a Friend to all'

An amalgam of imperial myth, borrowed tips on health and hygiene, and object lessons in woodcraft, the 1908 text of Robert Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys is the original blueprint and 'self-instructor' of the Boy Scout Movement. One of the all-time bestsellers in the English-speaking world, this primer of 'yarns and pictures' constitutes probably the most influential manual for youth ever published. Yet the book is at the same time a roughly composed hodge-podge of jingoist lore and tracker legend, padded with lengthy quotations from adventure fiction and Baden-Powell's own autobiography, and seamed through with the multiple anxieties of its time: fears of degeneration, concerns about masculinity and self-restraint, and invasion paranoia.

Elleke Boehmer's edition of Scouting for Boys reprints the original text and illustrations, and her fine introduction investigates a book that has been cited as an authority by militarists and pacifists, capitalists and environmentalists alike.

ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0198900341
• ISBN13: 9780198900344
• Release Date: January 2025
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.1" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Be Prepared... for a great, refreshing book.

Some of the information in this book may now be out of fashion and sometimes wrong, it is a great pleasure to read "Scouting for Boys". The ideals defended by B.P.: courage, generosity and compassion are as much a necessity today as they were a hundred years ago, when that book was first published. The idea of an active, "hands on" education still find its echo in today's most recent education innovations. Of course, the key message lies in the the initials of the author: Be Prepared!

Excellent if you skip the intro

This original text of BP's "Scouting for Boys" is an excellent read. You can skip the introduction, however. The intro is a steaming pile of horse excrement written by someone seething with contempt for BP and the Boy Scout movement. Why it was included with the book is beyond me unless it's to provide bum fodder whilst camping. Remember, a scout is thrifty!

"The British Empire wants your help"

At the very beginning of the twentieth century, retired General Robert Baden-Powell, the hero of the siege of Mafeking, coalesced his ideas for an organization to train young British boys in scouting for the British Empire. Not a very organized thinker, Baden-Powell borrowed heavily from all sorts of unrelated resources - newspaper articles, military dispatches, fiction, and much more - and produced this, his first book on scouting. Originally published as six separate books, this book brings all of them together, complete with original illustrations.Now, as might be expected from its roots, this book reflects a lot of the biases and ways of thinking from Edwardian England. But, leaving that aside, this is a fun and interesting book that shows clearly the forms that have stayed with the Boy Scouts movement to this very day. The introduction was written by Elleke Boehmer, a professor of Colonial and Postcolonial literature, and is a fairly predictable deconstruction/analysis of B-P and his movement.Now, as a newcomer to Scouting (my son is a Tenderfoot) did I find anything useful in this book? I sure did. Robert Baden-Powell was very knowledgeable about the subject, and this book sure shows it. (I never thought of tying my shoes like that!) Of course some of the information is out of date, especially the first-aid information, so it isn't really usable by the boys "as is." But, this is a nice resource, one that shows you where Scouting started.Oh, and I must say that I actually enjoyed the somewhat jumbled organization of this book. It isn't as scholarly and antiseptic as modern Boy Scout books, and the stories and tales laced throughout make the reading much more fun. Plus, I did find the focus on some subjects, such as logic and deductive reasoning, to be quite interesting. I loved this book, and highly recommend it to you!

A Book That Changed The World

This book is the basic foundation of the largest youth organisation in the history of the world and has been printed in more editions and languages than most other books apart from the Christion Bible. It was designed to be read by young people and to motivate them to develop all of their skills. It continues to be a major force in motivating young people to prepare to be active citizens in society. However it also contains simple truths for adults on the nature of young people and how best to help them learn and to achieve their full potential. It is required reading for adults educating or working with young people. Read it, enjoy it and then come join Scouting.

A good guide to life

This book is a great read, and although it was written some 92 years ago the basic message is as true today as it was then, And as it said in the first edition "Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship" still applies, so read it and apply the ideas for a better world.