[book_info title=鈥漀otes from an Apocalypse: A personal journey to the end of the world and back 鈥� author=鈥滿ark O鈥機onnell鈥� publisher=鈥滸ranta鈥� title_link=鈥漢ttps://granta.com/products/notes-from-an-apocalypse/鈥漖
HUMANITY has always had half an eye on the end of the world. In fact, as Mark O鈥機onnell writes in his entertaining new book, some sort of apocalyptic expectation seems to be a precondition of being human.
Advertisement
Saint Augustine, for instance, wrote in the 5th century that early followers of Jesus fervently believed themselves to be living in the end of days. Augustine thought they were jumping the gun by a few centuries though, lamenting that: 鈥淚f there were 鈥榣ast days鈥� then, how much more so now.鈥� It has always been the end of the world for someone, somewhere, writes O鈥機onnell.
Notes from an Apocalypse is an exhilarating romp through the end times, an exploration of doomsday preparation from Mars colonists to fallout shelter estate agents. O鈥機onnell is fascinated by the ageless human fear of the future, but his book also speaks very particularly to our present moment.
In his travels, he investigates Silicon Valley billionaires buying up swathes of New Zealand as a 鈥渒ind of reinforced geopolitical shelter鈥�, a country-sized insurance plan. New Zealand is remote and blessed by abundant clean water and plenty of space.
However, more than that, O鈥機onnell argues, it offers these techno-libertarians, such as the data analytics mogul Peter Thiel, a chance to play out their political fantasies. Not only can they weather the apocalypse from their lavish retreats but, once it is all over, they can attempt to rebuild the society they long for.
The book also follows the more DIY forms of preparation. O鈥機onnell plunges into the 鈥減repper鈥� internet subculture, a phenomenon whereby people 鈥� primarily white men in the US 鈥� amass vast quantities of survival equipment and devise complex escape plans for when things go wrong.
Working out exactly when that has happened is among the drawbacks of this apocalypse game plan, O鈥機onnell concludes. For example, should the covid-19 pandemic make you head for the hills? As a movement, he writes, it is evangelical in its anti-scientism, fuelled equally by freeze-dried foodstuffs and unpalatable politics.
Notes from an Apocalypse explains how planning for the future, however horrid, is a luxury few can afford. For many, surviving the here and now is a sufficient trial. After all, even those fortunate enough to be cushioned by functioning government and healthcare have felt the strictures of living through a global pandemic.
O鈥機onnell鈥檚 previous book, To Be a Machine, was a gloriously gonzo study of transhumanism 鈥� the idea that we might exceed our bodily limits and lifespans via technology. It was thoughtful, and very funny.
Notes from an Apocalypse is just as spirited. Reflecting on Elon Musk launching a Tesla into solar orbit, he writes: 鈥淚 wondered why no one at SpaceX had thought to point out to Musk that he could have ensured his red sports car would orbit the sun indefinitely by leaving it parked in front of his house.鈥�
In the closing pages, O鈥機onnell turns to watching his children鈥檚 joyous appreciation of the world. 鈥淭here are times when I forget I鈥檓 supposed to be thinking about the end of days,鈥� he writes. 鈥淭here are times when I live only in the present, and it is a good place for the time being.鈥�
