A Hundred Little Pieces on the End of the World

Written with clarity, tenacity, humor, and warmth, A Hundred Little Pieces on the End of the World attempts to find tolerable ethical positions in the face of barely tolerable events — and the real possibility of an intolerable future. It is a compelling, surprising, disturbing, and highly literate work of reportage and contemplation. It is both a collection of gentle-spirited wisdom and a rumination on ruin, as if distilled in equal measure from the spirits of Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It and Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.

Through these ten essays, each further broken into ten smaller pieces, Rember examines the practical and ethical dilemmas of climate change, population, resource depletion, and mass extinction. At the same time, he never forgets those improbable connections between human beings that lead to moments of joy, empathy, and grace.

"Most books explaining why the world is about to end are not fun to read....John Rember has written a book that is not only entertaining and fun to read, but it matters....Buy it, read it. You'll be a better person." Tim Sandlin, author of Skipped Parts: A Novel and Honey Don't

"A brilliantly written, deeply thoughtful, and even humorous book about a very dark topic. I hope civilization will last long enough for it to be published for all to enjoy and contemplate." Paul R. Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb

"...A Hundred Little Pieces on the End of the World is a savage attack on complacency and idleness. If you want to be grabbed by the collar and told to pay attention, be better, think harder, Rember's the guy for you." Matt Sutherland, Foreword Reviews

"Rember's sometimes dark, sometimes humorous book of reflections dispenses hard-earned wisdom on a world in crisis." Publishers Weekly

John Rember lives and writes in the Sawtooth Valley of Idaho. Recurring themes in his writing include the meaning of place, the impact of tourism on the West, and the fragility of industrial civilization. His books include A Hundred Little Pieces on the End of the World; Traplines: Coming Home to Sawtooth Valley; MFA in a Box: A Why to Write Book; Sudden Death, Over Time; Cheerleaders from Gomorrah: Tales from the Lycra Archipelago; and Coyote in the Mountains and Other Stories.