Upheaval

Turning Points for Nations in Crisis

By: Jared Diamond

Narrated by: Henry Strozier

Length: 18 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

A brilliant new theory of how and why some nations recover from trauma and others don't, by the author of the landmark best sellers Guns, Germs, and Steel and Collapse.

In his earlier best sellers Guns, Germs and Steel and Collapse, Jared Diamond transformed our understanding of what makes civilizations rise and fall. Now, in the final audiobook in this monumental trilogy, he reveals how successful nations recover from crisis through selective change - a coping mechanism more commonly associated with personal trauma.

In a dazzling comparative study, Diamond shows us how seven countries have survived defining upheavals in the recent past - from US Commodore Perry's arrival in Japan to the Soviet invasion of Finland to Pinochet's regime in Chile - through a process of painful self-appraisal and adaptation, and he identifies patterns in the way that these distinct nations recovered from calamity. Looking ahead to the future, he investigates whether the US and the world are squandering their natural advantages on a path toward political conflict and decline. Or can we still learn from the lessons of the past?

Adding a psychological dimension to the awe-inspiring grasp of history, geography, economics, and anthropology that marks all Diamond's work, Upheaval reveals how both nations and individuals can become more resilient. The result is an audiobook that is epic, urgent, and groundbreaking.

©2019 Jared Diamond (P)2019 Recorded Books

Terrible narration, buying it in paper instead

I have never had trouble reading Jared Diamond 's books. This one, has put me to sleep several times already. The narrator is incredibly boring and monotone. Terrible,that Diamond's excellent material gets distorted like this.

Great on History, poor on science

Diamond has an interesting and thoughtful way of looking at societal evolution that is very worthy of consideration. He missed a few details like the expulsion of all Dutch-Indonesians after WWII. Some of my extended family were actually kept in the Japanese Concentration camps by the Americans and not released until after Indonesia had elected a government. Then they were released and expelled. Racial purity you know.
The real problem is that Mr. Diamond does not know science very well and parrots the Green movement ideas. Example: he talks about the Floro hydrocarbons causing the ozone hole - something debunked by science. Most of the civilization of the world lives in the northern hemisphere, and an even larger amount of the wealthy who able to afford air conditioning and refrigeration. Yet the northern Ozone hole remained small during all the excitement and the southern hole was very large. The air masses do not mix well between north and south, so if Florine was a problem, we would expect it to attach the northerner Ozone hole, which it didn't.
The second glaring error was his statement that we have a shortage of rare earths because they all come from China. No, they don't. China has about 20% of the earth's rare earths. But through regulation and influence buying the USA and Europe don't refine the rare earths they mine. Rare earth is commonly found with Thorium which is slightly radioactive just like raw uranium is. We can mine and process Uranium, but we are not allowed to process rare earths, only China does. We ship our rare earths to China for processing. One company in the US is applying for permits but spreading a little campaign money around by China will slow or stop that process. BTW legally we must process our own RE because our laws forbid us from being dependent on a foreign power for critical supplies. Exempted from that law is England and Candida and probably Australia who are trusted allies.
He is very right that we have to get better at maintaining natural resources. But on the energy problem he doesn’t follow his own learning. He wants first world nations to step back from being first world so that there will be resources enough for the third world. If he would follow the history of energy he would realize that it will be solved. He wrongly compares the US with Europe gasoline usage where density has made public transport practical. Again, he doesn’t realize that liquid fuel will be manufactured from water and hydrocarbons in the future when energy is abundant. It is that lack of science knowledge again.
As for his parroting of the usual Greenhouse gas theory of dangerous rising sea levels, well every prediction for the last 75 years has failed to materialize. Yes, the Eastern coastline is sinking and the western coastline rising. It is called subduction. So, something is wrong with that "science." It would be better for Diamond to stick with what he knows rather than lower his great reputation with social change by wandering into things he doesn't.

Very good but somewhat dry sociological study

The material ia very interesting albeit presented a bit dryly. For some reason it lacks the energy of Guns, Germs and Steel, one of his earlier qrotongs. The reading was so slow and down right boring I put the speed at 110% which helped significantly. Still I recommend the book for the information and analysis it presents.

How appropriate!

A must read for anyone interested in where we are today politically, how we got here and possible solutions. A brilliant book.

Brilliant as usual

I have been binge reading / listening to all three of his books, Guns Germs and Steel, Collapse, and now Upheaval. I continue to be blown away by his insights into how societies work. I agree with his analysis of America's problems, and I hope some people in positions of power take the time to listen to him and take his advice on how to solve them.

Great analysis

Jared Diamond with another great book with a global perspective and excellent examples of historic upheval, their causes, and the dangers faced by the selected countries in terms of future sources of upheaval. Highly recommend. The first half of the book does focus on the historic aspect but is interesting, and important for the rest of the book.

A must read very informative

Loved this book, full of information and it made me look at Geopolitics in a different way. The history of the nations and the author's breakdown of the nations crisis was illuminating

Great Book!!!

This book is a must read for all Americans. Humanity can control its destiny only through knowledge. This book provides that knowledge.

Historical comparision of several countries

Compares history of turning points in Japan, Norway, Germany, Australia and US, Having just read The End of the World Is Just the Beginning Mapping the Collapse of Globalization By: Peter Zeihan I have been thinking about the current global crises and what lies in store for our future. No one can see the coming changes but I am not hopeful that the worlds people are going to prepare themselves for the coming paradigm changes.

If You Want to Understand the World Better, GIVE THIS A LISTEN

Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel and many other narrative history books takes a look at the modern histories of several countries and compares their paths to resilience and reform to the journey an individual may encounter when enduring personal tragedy. The result is an extremely insightful and accessible look at the world which every individual on planet earth could find some benefit from reading. Narrator is a professional actor, not the author, and he does an excellent job of bringing the words to life in a tone that is suitable to the content.