THEGUIDEBOOK

No Barksist would have any doubt as to which guidebook this page's title refers. It has been known under different names in its inventor Carl Barks' comic book stories - The Junior Woodchucks' Book of Knowledge, and The Junior Woodchucks' Guidebook (sometimes spelled Guide Book). Barksists affectionately recognize the Guidebook as the only book which contains all the knowledge of the world. Also remarkable is the fact that we are only shown one single copy of the book; the one that is apparently jointly owned by the nephews, and they are the ones who extract the necessary wisdom from it whenever they have the need.

This is the first time ever that all the Guidebook's bits of wisdom as shown in the Barks' stories are listed in a single place. Observe the Guidebook's diversity in both factual information and useful advice. This is truly a guidebook!

U$05 'Atlantis'

Trying to find the spot in the Atlantic Ocean where Scrooge dumped his 1916 quarters: A greener color in ocean water could be caused by tiny plants. The plants are there because the water is shallow!

U$07 'Cibola'

Trying to find their way through the Mojave desert: Travelers afoot in hot deserts should set their course toward shade!

Upon finding a Spanish galleon in the sand: ...it might be the 'Lost Ship of the Desert', which has been seen several times in the last centuries. It is believed to be a real ship that is uncovered at times by desert wind storms!

Translating a picture writing on a wall: A great sickness came with the white men on the big canoe! The people fell ill, and all went to the happy hunting ground!

U$10 The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone

Brushing up on the history of Crete: Crete was the headquarters of those Saracen pirates! They had a regular city in a great cave called The Labyrinth!

Attempting to find the labyrinth: The entrance to the labyrinth is right there - under that tumbled wall!

On opening a suspiciously looking metal door in the labyrinth: That's a trap that's described in our Junior Woodchucks' Guide Book!

U$12 The Golden Fleecing

Reading the story of Jason and the Argonauts: Medea got sore at Jason and skipped back to Colchis, taking the golden fleece with her! And there she hung it in the Hall of Echoes! Then the birdlike creatures came to live in Colchis, and the sleepless dragon resumed his vigil!

About the birdlike creatures: They had heads resembling women! Travelers near the region of ancient Colchis believe that the strange birds, sometimes called 'Larkies', still live there! Wild giggling has been heard on moonless nights in the Valley of the Mists! And natives have found huge bird tracks in their sheepfolds!

How to open a dragon's jaws: Dump four to ten pounds of pepper into the dragon's nose, depending upon size of dragon! This will make the beast open his mouth to sneeze!

How to make a sleepless dragon sleep: Pull wool over his eyes!

U$17 A Cold Bargain

Where to store a trillion-dollar ball of Bombastium: There is a place where it would stay frozen forever! The great ice mountains around the South Pole!

U$18 Land of the Pygmy Indians

How to make a powerful pill of Oxide of Strombolium from minerals found by Scrooge to stop a giant sturgeon from eating Donald: You tell us which of these power powders are which ... (and we can make an oxide of Strombolium)...

U$19 The Mines of King Solomon

Translation of ancient writings on a cliff face: I, Pinjab, captain of King Solomon's caravans, passed this way with forty camels laden with gold and jewels!

Translation of ancient writings on a stone wall: I, Pharaoh so-and-so, of Egypt, give these mines to my son-in-law - to be his forever!

U$50 Rug Riders in the Sky

Trying to make a carpet fly: Wetting the carpet with water from Jari mineral spring probably activates certain antigravity electrons in the metal threads!

U$61 So Far and No Safari

Trying to find a way to rescue Scrooge from a crocodile's mouth: Where will we find that in the index? Would it be under Reptiles? No, crocodiles are saurians! Look in the section under Dentistry! Look in the A's under Ah! Hey, here's an item under Yawns! It says the trill of the lizard wizard bird makes crocodiles yawn! Imagine a book that knows about such things as the lizard wizard!

Setting the animal call whistle: The lizard wizard trill is produced by setting the treble reed at C and the bass chord at G over B flat!

WDCS181 'Bridge-building Contest'

Freeing Donald from a snapping turtle: According to the Junior Woodchucks' Guidebook, the best way to make a snapping turtle let go is going to make you mighty uncomfortable, Unca Donald! It says to lay the turtle on its back! Then it says to remove all weight from the turtle's mouth!

On fearing to lose the bridge-building competition: We haven't time to make a neat bridge now, troopers! We'll have to make the one pictured in section four of the guidebook! The Last Escape bridge! The one designed to save people from breaking dams!

CID 'Tabu Yama Island'

A step-by-step manual on how to escape from a volcanic island: I've discovered a way for us to get off this island - with a little luck...

USA33 Horsing Around with History
(text only by Barks)

Translating writings on an ancient clay cylinder: The Guidebook says these scratches are pre-cuneiform ... this is a distress message ... a shipload of Trojan treasure was wrecked on an island! The survivors ask for help!

Searching for a specific location shown in code on the cylinder: The Guidebook found it! The island!

Having trouble finding the spot: The Junior Woodchucks' Guidebook says so! And the guidebook is never wrong!

Still examining the cylinder which is telling of marooned sailors and a giant wooden horse: They were taking the horse to Greece to show him off! After the shipwreck and the salvaging of the horse, they amused themselves for years plating the horse with gold!