Adventurers of all ages will love Bear Grylls’s latest book, Do Your Best: How to Be a Scout. Whether you are a scout, were a scout, or just dream of being one, the book appeals to the inner scout in all of us. It’s full of practical skills and advice for anyone interested in adventure, as well as tips for how to navigate some of life’s other challenges.
A Modern Scouting Handbook
The first handbook for scouts was put together back in 1908 by the founder of the scouts, Lord Robert Baden-Powell. It was full of practical advice and sold all around the world, but it gradually fell out of use.
Bear Grylls has been the U.K.’s chief scout since 2009 and is chief ambassador for global scouting. He has written more than 85 books, so the global adventurer was the perfect person to write this modern scouting handbook, and it has 344 pages packed full of advice.
The book is divided into three sections—how to be a scout, how to be an adventurer, and how to be you. The first section is all about how to be a great scout, for instance, by being trustworthy, loyal, and courageous, and it includes advice on being a great team player, as well as how to be a leader and how to protect our planet.
The second part of the book, how to be an adventurer, has great advice on how to survive, how to camp, how to give first aid, how to predict the weather, and how to find your way when lost. There’s fantastic information on identifying birds, trees, being a camp cook, and tying important knots.
The third section, how to be you, deals with everything from being a good friend to how to be fit and healthy, how to get out of your comfort zone, and how to live more freely.
Preparing for Life’s Adventures
“It’s an honor to write a book that’s for scouts and volunteers of all ages—but especially for those young people who are doing their best to be prepared for the adventure of life ahead,” says Bear.
“Do Your Best is all about passing on the skills and stories I’ve learned over many years as chief scout and chief ambassador of World Scouting, and sharing the values that make scouting such a powerful force for good around the world,” he adds.
“It’s a book for anyone who is a scout, was a scout, or hopes one day to be a scout—a book that will inspire people to do their best, learn new skills, live life to the full and make a real difference in the world,” Bear writes.
Being Positive
Throughout the book, Bear offers a generous amount of encouragement—how it’s okay to be nervous in some situations, how to arm yourself to face life’s battles, and what to do when things go wrong.
He reminds readers that if you lose your way, it comes down to three things: “courage (when it matters), kindness (in everything) and developing and strengthening that ‘never give up’ spirit inside us all.”
Do Your Best: How to be a Scout is now available in the U.K., Ireland, and Australia/New Zealand, and it will be published in April 2024 in the U.S. Buy it here.
