I don’t remember the last time I wrote a book review. Probably something like 3rd of 4th grade, except they used to called them book “reports” back then. Anyway, I just got a few books in the mail, so I feel light maybe I ought to write some reviews. They are all Apocalypse books, and first up is Jason Boyett’s Pocket Guide to the Apocalypse. The publisher, Relevant Books, also has a PDF sample chapter available here, if you’re interested.

Boyett seems to have authored a couple of reasonably successful “life guides” for 20-somethings, especially guys. So he’s obviously got some street smarts when it comes to marketing to this age group. But as a result, this book just ends up being what I would consider light-reading. And ordinarily, I don’t consider light-reading to be worth reading. That’s not to say it’s badly written or poorly executed. Because it’s not. It’s just not the “caliber” of book I like to throw at myself generally.

It has pretty much everything you’d expect from a pop culture-tinged book about the Apocalypse: from an official apocalyptic dictionary to a timeline of failed prophecies to a list of possible candidates for the anti-Christ to a list of movies about the Apocalypse. Yawn. Pretty entry level stuff, but I guess that’s part of what writing for a broad audience entails - or at least that’s what they tell me (though I don’t believe it, personally). I do like the dictionary section, as it covers some basics in an accesible style. Some of his timeline entries offer nice vignettes too. I’m really not in love with his sense of humor. I mean, I “get” it, but I just think it comes off as unecessarily cutesy. And what’s worse, in a year or two, this book will seem hopelessly dated because of it’s language. That may not be a big hang-up for some people, but it is for me - especially as I’m facing this challenge soon in writing my own book.

I’m also not a fan of the type of book that’s not meant to be read straight through. Rather each chapter is built around an annoying contrivance designed to not scare off people with low attention spans. So you’re forced to sit through dictionaries, timelines, “grab bags”, etc. The “grab bag” chapter is is actually “ironically” subtitled “miscellaneous items not long enough for chapters of their own“. Come on. Don’t try and be cute about lazy writing and slip-shod information organization.

The real thing that “gets” me though about this book is that it lacks any deeper insight. And I know, it’s just supposed to be a “fun” pop-type book about this stuff. It’s not supposed to peel your mind open and fuck with the contents. But really, I think that does a disservice to the subject matter - because that’s a pretty integral part of the Apocalypse story. That’s why we’ve been so obsessed with it for so long. That’s why it never goes away.

Reading through this book (or rather, skimming through - after a certain point), I don’t feel like I’m really coming away with anything. I’ve not either (1) come closer to God (if that fits your apocalyptic persuasion, that is), or (2) gained an understanding of the weird Apocalypse phenomenon. I have definitely (3) learned some neat trivia and some basic ideas, but I think that’s it. For some people, that’s probably enough. For me, it’s not.

This book basically holds with the “hip” or “ironic” view of prophecy and the apocalypse. It’s sort of a fun, quaint thing to look at. And looking at how many prophecies “failed” in the past it makes the reader feel all self-righteous to think about how other people could be so easily fooled by religion or by charismatic leaders. It doesn’t of course challenge you to look at your own life, and see how any of it may correlate - either to what you expect from your own future, or how you let other people decide it for you.

Even though it may not be what I want it to be, the book is definitely what it promises: a sort of fun pop-culture romp through a deep and usually serious topic.