The End Is Always Near

An interesting way to pull together ideas and question history. Enjoyed his podcasts too.

Pandemics. Nuclear war. Perhaps January 2021, with four thousand people dying of COVID each day and an increasingly panicked psychopath-terrorist still at large in the White House, might not have been altogether the best time to read a book about how/why societies collapse? Then again, Carlin's point is that this is nothing new: human societies have been collapsing for, oh, pretty much as long as we've had societies. There are a few which haven't – yet – but thinking that we're special is just an embarrassing cognitive bias. This too shall pass, maybe even within our lifetimes. Maybe this week. Collapses are more easily seen in the rear-view mirror.Have I discouraged you from reading it? I hope not: this was a fun book. It's actually kind of lighthearted, if you're self-aware enough to appreciate the preciousness of our moments while also contemplating mortality. It's well organized, informative, and thought-provoking. It suffers from an overabundance of footnotes, some pithy, some informative, all of them super-awkward to read on my Kindle edition (I have no idea how the print edition manages them). And, sadly, it doesn't really read like the Dan Carlin I know and adore from Hardcore History. It's his voice, only muted and distant, without the dynamic energy he conveys in his podcast.Oh: even if you've read [b:Collapse 475 Collapse How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed Jared Diamond https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1441419222l/475.SY75.jpg 1041106], you might also enjoy this one. It's been fifteen years since I read Collapse but I'm pretty sure there's little to no overlap. They're very different treatments. And even if you're a history buff, you stand a good chance of learning a few things: I consider myself somewhat informed about the Roman Empire, Black Plague, World War II, Manhattan Project, Cuban Missile Crisis, ... but I learned plenty more about each, plus a ton about Assyria and the Bronze Age and early plagues and more. And I just really like how Carlin links themes together, and the thoughtful questions he poses.Final note: if you've read more than a handful of my reviews, you know how I grouse about the state of editing. This one was grammatically and orthographically perfect... but I do wish an editor had caught and corrected Carlin's reference to “a supervolcano [...] in Yosemite.”

Dan Carlin is a treasure. If you are familiar with his Hardcore History, you know what to expect in this volume. If not and if you are interested in history, you are in for a treat.
As for what it is all about – well, the title might be a clue.
I highly recommend the audio version, which is of course narrated by Dan Carlin himself. (It would be difficult for anyone else to match his engaging style.)