A Field Guide to the Apocalypse

Is this finally it? The end times?Because from COVID-19 to climate catastrophe to the looming AI revolution—not to mention the ever-growing background hum of rage, fear, and anxiety—it’s starting to feel like the party we call civilization is just about over. The good news? It’s always felt that way.

Drawing on evolutionary psychology, history, brain science, game theory, and more, cooperation theorist (and, coincidentally, zombie expert) Athena Aktipis reassuringly explains how we, as a species, are hardwired to survive big existential crises. And how we can do so again by leveraging our innate abilities to communicate and cooperate.

Pack a ukulele in your prep kit. Practice your risk-management skills. Enlist your crew into a survival team. And embrace the apocalypse. You might just enjoy it. Plus, it will help us build a better and more resilient future for all humankind.

• "If Aktipis seems too cheery, that’s the point. ‘Having fun is an extremely important tool,’ she writes. “We need each other, we need art, we need opportunities for self-expression and communication, and we need to feel embedded in a community that has a stake in our well-being.’ This is a weird, weirdly encouraging book from a scholar who understands the risks of volcanoes, killer robots, militarized pathogens, space aliens, nuclear weapons, wildfires and the greenhouse effect, but still she refuses to be terrified into inaction. Signing off, she writes, ‘Don’t fret. This is just the beginning.’ "
   
  Ron Charles, Washington Post Book Club
• "This feel-good book about the end of human existence comes just in time to remedy the winter doldrums. The basic message is yes, we are living in apocalyptic times, but we should calm our fears and prepare for whatever comes. Aktipis is by turns witty, insightful, reassuring, silly, and always interesting. Aktipis' advice seems a sensible response to it all. Teens will also enjoy both the topics and tone of Aktipis' survival guide."
   
   
  Booklist
• "Terrific. Aktipis is a talented writer, with an engaging style, sly humor, and an ability to incorporate remarkably diverse sources into a fun and information-packed book."
  Robert Cialdini, New York Times best-selling author of Influence
• “ At turns irreverent, unexpected, informative, and funnier than it
  has any right to be, this is a brilliant handbook for preparing for
  the future, no matter what it brings.” —Andrew Maynard, author of Future Rising
  
  “ This guide doesn’t sugarcoat our apocalyptish circumstances,
  but it demands radical optimism by reminding us of who we are:
  a species built for change, compassion, and survival.”
  —Rachel Feltman, author of Been There, Done That