Extinction Rebellion

Insights from the Inside

By: Rupert Read

Narrated by: Craig Bowles

Extinction Rebellion (XR, for short) is an emergency response. Politics as usual, governments, as usual, have let down the peoples of the world in an extreme way: We are on course for eco-driven societal collapse, and we are extinguishing other species very rapidly. We could even end up making ourselves extinct. XR suggests that when your government is driving you and your family over a cliff, it is no longer a legitimate government. Rebellion against it is permitted - indeed, it is required. But XR is insistent that such rebellion must be nonviolent.

©2020 Rupert Read (P)2021 Rupert Read

Critic reviews

"Rupert Read and Samuel Alexander take us deep inside the debates, tactics, and passion that have bound Extinction Rebellion together from its founding days, bringing us radical reflections from the frontlines of rebellion. If you want to understand the movement that is finally waking us up, read this book." (Kate Raworth, author of Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist)

"Invaluable reflections and next-step ideas right from the heart of arguably the most inspiring and important movement of the twenty first century." (Mike Berners-Lee, author of There Is No Planet B: A Handbook for the Make or Break Years)

"Everyone should read this book. It is short, and impassioned, but full of important information: above all an honest and practical plea for us to seize the moment for change urgently. It is inspirational. Please, for all our sakes, read it, and take its timely words to heart." (Iain McGilchrist, author of The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World)

Academic but not practical

I was given a promo code to receive this title for free in exchange for a review.

I had known that XR had been about bringing the cause of social and climate justice into the people's hands instead of the government. However, I found that this book didn't really give us ideas on how to bring about these types of changes to our own communities.

Instead, the book was focused mainly on the data behind movement. When you really think about it, the majority of the readers who would pick up a book like this would already be aware of how devastating the data and statistics are. Granted, hearing that information again and again does get people inspired. However, inspiration without a focus or an aim is pointless.