How to Survive the End of the World As We Know It

This book has a number of flaws, all of which have been pointed out in the more negative reviews. First, it is written primarily for the hard-core survivalists. It's written in their language (although all the strange terms and acronyms are spelled out and explained). This may tend to put you off. If you can forgive it this one quirk, it's a very well researched book. In a way, it's really the product (and general consensus) of literally thousands of blog entries and articles written by very serious and knowledgeable people writing in to Jim's Blog. If you have not visited it yet, you really should. [...] is a fascinating site with a lot of activity and archives that cover the contents of this book and more. Another thing that might put you off is this: This book seems to advise lifestyle changes that are unpalatable to mainstream America. Taken to extremes, this book advocates moving WAY out in the boonies to get away from other people (who will presumably be very dangerous when and if they get hungry). This country home (called a retreat) will be your personal fortress and lifeboat if society collapses. It's written to maximize your chances if The earth is hit by a giant meteor...or the US experiences an EMP attack...or the economy totally collapses...or a flu pandemic kills half of the population. Crazy stuff, huh? But if you don't believe this stuff is likely to happen, you agree with James Rawles. He's not a nut. He's just dealing with worst case scenarios. If you can survive these, you can probably make it though a hurricane evacuation or a brown-out. When it comes to preparation, you choose your own level of pain. The book also advocates crazy stuff like: -Pay off your credit cards so you don't lose your home if you lose your job. -Keep some cash on hand in case the ATMs are off. -Keep your car in good condition so it won't strand you in a snowstorm. -Keep several day's food on hand in case you get snowed in or stranded in your home. -Keep a flashlight handy in case the power goes out. Some of it is common sense advice on how to mitigate or avoid very likely and common problems. Some of the advice is NOT common sense that you could figure out on your own. It's well thought out and tested advice on things that could potentially kill you if you don't know about them. This short volume doesn't try to cover every topic in detail. James Rawles does a good job of covering a lot of material, but you can't expect to cover farming, hydrology, power generation, military tactics and food storage in one little book. It's basically a list of lists and some concise advice on a whole range of topics. This is more of a reference book than a quick, easy read. It provides lots of topics and sources for further study (should you be interested). This book is a thoughtful work designed to help anyone survive a disaster on any scale. You don't have to believe that the world is coming to an end to greatly benefit from it. This is the extreme scenario, of course, but all of the same preparations used to make you prepared for that will also help you weather a local or regional problem. (Many of Mr. Rawles' survival blog readers are more concerned about little disasters, like a power outage or a winter storm.) This book will get you to think. It might even cause you to prepare at least a little, so you won't be part of the problem if a disaster strikes. I recommend it highly, and not just for survivalists.

I've purchased and read several survival books ( The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse , Handbook to Practical Disaster Preparedness for the Family, 2nd Edition to name a few) and by far this is the book that I find the most useful in terms of resources and useful information. I've read some of the negative reviews on this book and while I can see the points that some of the negative reviewers are making (e.g. costs involved in some of the preparations, some details not discussed but 'outsourced' to other websites, perhaps 'extreme' disaster scenarios) I actually found this book extremely useful. Whether or not I agree with the premise of TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world as we know it), this book changed my way of thinking and opened my eyes to the benefits of preparing for events (whether they be mild or catastrophic) and to the depth of planning some events may require. Perhaps it was fortuitous that after reading this (and already making plans and starting to prepare) that I lost power for 4 days after Irene and then a week after the 10/30/2011 snow storm that hit the north east. This really drove the message home for me - although I was somewhat prepared, I certainly wasn't expecting to be without power for a week and I learned my lesson well. Can the costs involved be high? Maybe yes - depending on what you're preparing for and how much you want to prepare - but there are other things you can do that won't cost as much such as storing water and slowly stocking up on foods. It all depends on what level of risk you're willing to take by not being as prepared. Creating a 'bug-out-bag' can be simple enough and researching escape routes to/from your home can mean a big deal. I'm sure for those people who live in hurricane, flood and tornado areas this simple form of preparedness can make a huge difference and sometimes life or death. Just watch the news and do some reading to determine what risks are likely for your area and plan for them. You don't have to lock yourself up somewhere in the woods far away, you may just need to avert disaster - natural or man-made. As far as the references to external sources, I happened to have found this extremely useful and a very big reason of why I like this book so much. I don't think that any one book can have everything and it seems to be the authors intent to make you do more research and reading and explore your options. That's a valuable lesson I learned from this book and it has changed the way I think. The other negative reviews (cost of Kindle vs paperback) have nothing to do with the content of this book so I dismiss them. My suggestion to any 'survivalist' newbies is this: do a 'risk assessment' for you, your family and the area that you live (figure out what types of things can happen); decide where you are most vulnerable (by ranking what's most likely to happen and the amount of impact it would have on your life) and then prepare to be able to survive those events. If you want to go 'all the way' and move to a part of the country that's less risky where you can live off the land - great for you! If you only decide to store extra water, food, blankets and have plans to 'get out of Dodge' should a hurricane be headed your way - then great for you as well - it's your decision. This author isn't telling you that you MUST to go to the extreme, he's just trying to make you think about the extreme possibilities and apply some thought to your own situation and what level of risk you're willing to tolerate and what potential disasters you want to prepare for. By showing you the extreme scenarios, you should be able to see how far you can take it, should you want to - or do a modified version that fits your budget and lifestyle. It's all about being prepared - whether or not 'TEOTWAWKI' is likely, we still live in a world with a lot of risks that we can survive better with some forethought and preparedness.

This book is about what you would do if you had $1-$2 million allocated for preparation for doomsday. However, you can get perhaps 50% of the way there for $3,000 and 80% for $50,000. For $1+ million you have your remote fortress, multiple vehicles, sizable weapons cache with high tech thermal sights, immediate use food, long term food, seeds for doomsday, animals, redundant power (solar and generator) , medical supplies, fuel supply, diesel making equipment, solar power array, communications etc. It's a book filled with recommendations by someone who has put a lot of effort into the process and the product. It's inevitable that among the thousands of comments there will be some information subject to question. At some point you might decide to spend the $50K on the program and take the other $950,000 (if you have it) to Vegas, plunk half of it on the concierge desk and them them you want to have a very good time , something that you will treasure if doomsday lasts more than 30 days. Personally, I think it should be a crime not to have some minimal level of preparation, especially if you have a family. This includes the training you will need to be self sufficient (individually or with neighbors) for 30 days and to be able to leave home on 15 minutes notice with enough to survive for perhaps two weeks. General Honore talks of his post hurricane experience in Florida where only hours after the hurricane people were in the streets demanding to know when the government would arrive with water and food. People with 200 songs on their Iphone and a BMW in the garage seem to think that minimal preparation is beyond them. The author repeatedly emphasizes the need for training in basic skills including medical skills and firearms. This is one of the most important areas. I also appreciated that he repeatedly recommends that you be prepared to be a good neighbor to those in need. There's a lot to like in the book. Things I would have added or changed: The book needs to recommend or provide an introduction to understanding ohms law to provide a foundation for understanding what's practical to power with solar or a generator. Before you install a well pump look at the alternatives. It's tempting to put the largest pump we can power off the grid down the well. However, it might be better to put a smaller pump in that can be powered by an auxiliary generator or the solar system's inverter in an emergency. In any event the pump's electrical requirements should be written on the controller box. It's the voltage and starting amps that count i.e. 240V 20A The simple way to make the system rapidly convertible from the grid to alternate power is to have the pump controller to power connection made with a plug (of the correct voltage/amp)and to label the breaker requirement for the pump. Much of the energy on a typical shallow well system is used to pressurize the system rather than pump water out of the well. Plan to go to an unpressurized system with a reservoir. There are also un-powered ram pumps used in developing countries which can take water with a 20 foot head and pump 10% of it up 100 feet. They are noisy. See internet for a description. Personally a seaworthy boat would make a great combination of escape vehicle and retreat. It needs to be one that will take you to safety with only unskilled crew. Best of all, I would like to have an airplane that I can fly or have a neighbor who flys. However, depending on the situation aircraft may be grounded and takeoffs prohibited at airports that are policed. I'm not impressed with electric vehicles as a doomsday alternative. Although he recommends them as the third vehicle, I would rather have a duplicate of something else for parts swapping. Ethanol containing gasoline has a relatively short life before serious deterioration begins. A fuel stabilizer is essential. I would also look to a vehicle which would run on leaded fuel in an emergency and perhaps invest in a few drums of avgas which is much more stable than autogas. Yes it will kill the cat converter and probably the 02 sensor. I have spent some time living on a remote cattle ranch in BC without electricity, refrigeration, TV, radio etc. Books are essential food for the brain. If the evil government is going to come looking for you and your followers my guess is that they will simply do a thermal scan on a cold night. I'm not much of a fan of building a massive front door unless you are going to put bars on all the windows and build using block. Putting bars on all the windows is likely to put you at a greater risk in the more probable event of a fire. If you are going to build your retreat then you need an auxiliary building to store some stuff in the event you burn down the main building. I'm not a gun expert by a long shot, but I would limit the types of guns to a small handgun (.22), large bore handgun, small rifle (same caliber as handgun) , large rifle and shotgun. If more guns were added they would be duplicates for parts and ammunition interchangeability and familiarity. Overall I think there was too much emphasis on weapons. Based on the same BC experience I would have a conventional long knife for utility purposes. There are lots of situations in the outdoors where a conventional knife is very useful. While I would not advertise what I had, I think the need for secrecy may be overblown. However, the author has it right when he talks about the need to react immediately. The real tragedy of New Orleans is that by the time the mayor issued the evacuation order it was too late. It was not a surprise in that the emergency plan for New Orleans emphasized that an early evacuation order was the key. In summary it is an informative and entertaining book. Recommended.

This was my first book on actual survival prepping and not just bug out bag training (which unfortunately is the beginning and the end for most prepping books). I think Rawles hits the nail on the head right away by stating that your bug out bag is your absolute last resort or at the very least is a tool to get you to your retreat where you'll be staying for TEOTWAWKI. Now for the unfortunate truth for this book that the author will confront the reader with right away. You'll IDEALLY need to live at your retreat year round and your retreat would likely need to be in lightly populated area on a minimum of a couple of acres of land to be truly self-sufficient. I know that will turn a lot of readers off right away due to potentially being impractical (it is for me at the moment too) but the author at least states this in the first couple of chapters as he's not willing to sugar coat what plan will give you the best chances to survive. At the moment I live in a densely populated city so it was a little disappointing to read that but after giving it some thought I respect the author a lot for stating that and the rest of the information in this book is truly excellent so don't let that initial fact deter you from reading the book. My plan is to do everything I can prepping wise with what I can currently do and my end game is to eventually live a self-sufficient lifestyle on land in a remote area. The other thing I wanted to state is the information in this book is dense and at times highly technical (I wasn't at all surprised to find out that the author at one point used to write technical manuals for manufacturers). This isn't a bad thing but for a laymen or beginning prepper it can be a bit of information overload and you won't know where to begin when you're done with the book. My suggestion would be to supplement this book with Tess Pennington's "The Survival Blueprint" which is a book with an extremely similar philosophy but laid out in such a way that you're performing weekly action items and missions to eventually get you to the point where both Pennington and Rawles would likely say you're in good shape for TEOTWAWKI. That way you're both learning the best information available (this book) while taking action (The Survival Blueprint). I think this book's philosophy is excellent and would recommend it to anyone with even an inkling of desire for getting prepared. And with a pandemic and social upheaval currently going on in the world you are not at all crazy to do so. Best of luck.

I just finished reading James Westley Rawles book, How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It: Tactics, Techniques, and Technologies for Uncertain Times and found it a fascinating read. My first thought was WOW, what a great and informative book that lays out all the steps you need to prepare for any collapse of society, be it the fabled "Collapse of the United States" or something as mundane as a hurricane, earthquake or major storm. My second thought, or more accurately my emotional response was a feeling of being overwhelmed. The author does a good job of installing a sense of urgency in the reader, giving one the feeling that they need to move now since the collapse is imminent. If one were to implement all the steps indicated in the book one would indeed be prepared for most any coming disaster, but this would seem to involve a full time dedication to preparation, a willingness to make major changes to your lifestyle and a large source of money. For most of us, myself included, there is just too much that would need to be done to bulletproof yourself and to be prepared for a true "end of the world as we know it." Should a collapse of this magnitude occur most of us would likely end up not surviving it, at least not with the same level of comfort and lifestyle we enjoy today. That being said I really liked this book and consider it a "must read" for anyone interested in getting more prepared for disasters and emergencies. Basic preparation steps like stockpiling water and food, growing some of your own food and taking some basic steps to make yourself, your home and your family more secure are things everyone should think about and implement sooner rather than later. Taking these basic preparation steps would not only make you safer and more secure in your person, it will make society safer. Think about it, if the citizens of New Orleans were better prepared for the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina there would most likely have been less looting, fewer injuries and a lot less panic. Think of this book as a guide to get you to thinking about what could happen and what you might do to get ready for it. Over the last 50 years people have become complacent and developed an over reliance on others for their security and safety. There are gathering storm clouds on the horizon that indicate we might need to relay more on ourselves, our families and our community. Taking some of the steps detailed in this book is a great start.

Rawles brings to this overview of possible scenarios resultant from an TEOTWAWKI event a level of perception and concise explanation largely missing in other books on the subject. The wide scope of the book is designed to give a clear overview of incidents and alternative solutions to meet them; he brings a military-crispness and precision to his explanations that cuts through to the heart of the matter(s). Being ex-mil, having taught search and rescue, wilderness, desert, mountain, and snow survival, and having served on the receiving end of less-than-successful rescues, i'm frankly dumbfounded by the criticism i read to the effect that Rawles 'goes to far' in his scenarios. i would beg to differ: Like any emergency/first aid/first responder texts, Rawles covers scenarios one is likely to encounter under the outlined circumstances; imho, *not* to include the full range of these possibilities would be a grave disservice to the serious 'prepper' who wants a 'full field view' of issues they may have to face. Another criticism, that of being to 'general', misses the mark as well: Rawles covers broad topics [Medical/First Aid; Gardening, etc.] and as such, it's unrealistic to expect either advanced MEDIVAC protocols or detailed instructions on planting early corn in Alabama. Such a book would be untenable, large [and expensive] beyond belief, and i don't believe that was the author's objective. What Rawles *does* offer is a surprisingly comprehensive, detailed view that allows the reader to 'custom tailor' the information to their specific situations. No base is left uncovered, and, perhaps as importantly, he warns against many of the common mistakes that folks unfamiliar with the subjects make, many of which avert certain disaster. He also answers many of the questions that do/will arise: can you use diesel in a kerosene latern? Further, specific suppliers are mentioned, making selection/purchase/securement as simple as it can get, and generally at the best prices [at least WITHOUT SACRIFICING QUALITY: REMEMBER: IN A TEOTWAWKI EVENT, IF YOUR CHEPO FUEL STOVE DOESN'T WORK UNLESS YOU'VE MADE PREPARATIONS, YOU EAT COLD DINNER-at best...]. Overall, the book, like his website, gives as much valuable information in one place as is realistically possible. My impression is that Rawles set out to provide the reader with an extremely detailed 'check list', complete with referrals for materials, should any of the multitude of possible situations currently showing on our 'event horizon' occur: Earthquakes, food shortages, gas/food rationing, etc., and most disturbing, social unrest. In the view of someone with first-hand experience in disasters [as well as the abomination known as 'war'], Rawles succeeds spectacularly. -Rhone

Rawles is a great non-fiction writer, and this is a well written book. However, it has some major faults: - The book is for hard core survivalists only. It assumes complete and absolute break down of civilization. It does not deal with "simpler" short-term emergencies (tornado, fire, flood) that you can ride out living in your normal urban or suburban environment. The book is practically all about establishing a well-stocked remote rural retreat, which you defend tooth-and-nail against looters and invaders, while keeping the curtains down not to let them see your window lights. - Rawles preaches to the choir, not to the uninitiated. If you are not familiar with the survivalist vernacular and have not read similar books / blogs, you will find this book a little jarring and over your head. In fact, Rawles often cross-references his fiction novel Patriots as supplementary guide. Speaking of preaching to the choir: all these five stars reviews which are highly rated as helpful - feel free to ignore the ones written before October 2. Given that this book started shipping on the last day of September and is not available for Kindle, there is simply no way people could have received and read the book before Friday October 2. Rawles is known for encouraging his blog readers to all buy the book on the same day to create a "bestseller" effect on Amazon, and this carries over to the reviews. So beware. - Book is way too tiny and short for much useful learning. In fact, each chapter is basically a thoughtful intro followed by a list of items to get, with some quick facts (e.g. how long honey or wheat can be stored, where to buy the containers, etc). There is barely any attempt to teach survival attitude and skills - those are farmed out to other books or training courses. To the author's credit, he has plenty of great pointers to other books and courses. However, you are much better off going there in the first place. - Rawles has a misanthropic, dog-eat-dog sense to his writing, both in this book and in Patriots. It is too much about hunkering down in your darkened bunker, eating MREs, and using plenty of ammo to keep the less fortunate souls away. While it is possible that a major event could end civilization as we know it, I do wish Rawles had a more positive tone and attitude, at least when trying to covert newcomers to his cause :) There is one really big issue with hard core survivalism in general. If a truly massive global or nationwide disaster comes to pass, the likelihood of surviving it is low, no matter how well you prepare. Surviving a nuclear war or a mass epidemic is unlikely, and more about random chance than preparation. The survivors are bound to come together in sizable groups for strength and protection. If a well armed gang or ex-military unit converges on one of the Rawles-style rural retreats, game is over. So at the end of the day, at least to me, hard-core survivalism comes across as a militaristic make-believe game, mostly indulged by paranoid guys. Last but not least, unlike "soft-core" temporary disaster survival, what Rawles recommends is expensive and requires major lifestyle changes, which limits its appeal tremendously. So, what's good about this book? The chapters on food storage and vehicles stand out. Also, if you are looking for a primer on surviving a major end-of-civilization disaster, this is a great starting point. To the author's credit, his survival blog has more readers than most daily newspapers, so he knows his stuff, whether you agree with him or not.

HOW TO SURVIVE is a preparedness manual for use in emergency or national disaster. James Wesley Rawles is a prolific blogger on issues of survival, a former U.S. intelligence officer, husband and father. In the event of a national disaster there will be two types of survivors: those who have enough and those who don't. Today, each of us gets to choose which type we will be. Preparedness now can transform every family from needing charity into one capable of giving, providing, and blessing others. HOW TO SURVIVE helps prioritize the most immediate needs in a long-term, worst-case scenario: water, shelter, and food. How to purify water, where to find shelter, and growing, storing and making food are all discussed. The book is jam packed with list after list, detailing how much and which items should be acquired and stored. Beyond the basics, Rawles addresses issues of security, transportation, power sources, and community. Survivors of a national disaster will eventually seek to trade and barter, help each other and offer mutual protection from roving gangs and bad guys. He offers intelligent, actionable, practical advice on topics ranging from food- what to store, how to store it, how to grow it - to medical supplies, weapons, and home security. No essential topic is overlooked. There are several interesting themes which run through this highly-readable book: Charity - He advocates having more-than-enough to give away to those in need according to Christian principles Community - new communities will form for trade and bartering Low Tech skills- basic trades and low tech skills will be much-needed For those who want to survive and even thrive in case of disaster, HOW TO SURVIVE is an essential tool. For additional reading, I recommend PATRIOTS by Rawles; a preparedness book thinly disguised as fiction. BOSTON'S GUN BIBLE by Boston Tea Party is also highly recommended. Rawles' blog:[...] is a wealth of articles and resources for the family wanting information on preparedness.

i do not reside in the states at the moment, for all the people around the globe who doesn`t neither, no, it is only in small portions usefull ! and man, be prepared to spend all your money on TEOWAWKI preparations `cause thats what it will cost you if you follow his advise ! i think, be prepared is fine but he takes it more than one step to far for me , sorry , too much , be not in the position to make changes like that ! that doesn`t mean all is crap, some really usefull info you might be able to tailor to your needs but s.a. mainly the US of A can really do with this book !

Ce livre est une bible. Tout y est traité de façon condensée mais précise, ou peu s'en faut. Chaque thème constitue donc une base solide pour ensuite effectuer ses propres recherches si on le souhaite. Sinon, si on ne cherche pas à savoir le pourquoi du comment, on peut se contenter de suivre les infos données dans l'ouvrage. La lecture est envisageable avec un niveau d'anglais moyen. Le style est concis, ce n'est pas de la littérature, donc les seuls soucis seront dus au vocabulaire. L'unique problème est que certains conseils sont difficilement transposables en France, mais avec un peu d'imagination... En plus, le prix est vraiment contenu!

Avrei voluto leggerlo, viste le tante ottime recensioni, ma questo genere di libri voglio anche conservarlo nel tempo. La qualità della carta scelta per la stampa è davvero pessima tanto da farla sembrare un'edizione economica. Aspetterò un'edizione migliore. Ho optato per il reso.

This is truly a no nonsense get off your complacency and do something book. Picking up the How to Survive the End of The World as We Know by James Wesley, Rawles will move you in one of 2 ways; you will either stop wasting your time believing that sitting at home in the cities of North America with a few cans of beans during these uncertain times blinded with an attitude that all will work itself out or you will start your lists by following an absolutely thorough how to get ready for a serious event to keep yourself and your family safe. Author Rawles doesn’t beat around the bush because that exactly where you should be right now and being ready to make it permanent with his tips on tactics, techniques and technologies. This book carries solid information. Information you’d expect from an action plan. Now all you need is the will to start and it’s with this book. [...]

This is a long awaited book from the same author as "patriots" and editor of the survival blog. It is well written, very well organised and extremely thorough. Some of the sections have been lifted from the survival blog (I recognised some of the chapter on firearms) but this doesn't detract in the slightest, "good advice is good advice" no matter how often it is repeated. The book takes you on a steady journey from initial "why prep", the psychology (don't worry not too heavy) of the blind masses (who see no reason to worry), to step by step improvements in your level of mental, skills and physical readiness for potential coming difficulties. It doesn't have to be a nuclear war or asteroid strike, a deep recession, social upheaval or soaring fuel prices, all can put a strain on the big complex machine we call civilisation. For both the new arrival to the world of preparedness to the seasoned veteran, there is something for everyone. Highly recommended.