Review, Charlie Smith, Straight.com July 1, 2013 Five Stages of Collapse is a highly entertaining and enlightening examination of the entrails of what happens when societies are driven into the abyss by greedy, hard-hearted elites and corrupt and incompetent politicians. And if Orlov turns out to be correct, this book just might end up saving your life by revealing steps you can take to prepare for the worst. Review, Carolyn Baker, Speaking Truth to Power April 7,2013 I am a huge fan of Dmitry's work, and I must concur with Richard Heinberg who says, Even if I believed collapse were impossible I'd still read everything Dmitry Orlov writes: he's that entertaining. Incisive articulation of reality tempered with irrepressible humor and sarcasm define his writing style and not only compel us to stay with what some describe as a dark Russian perspective, but reveal a man who has found a way to live with what is so and navigate it with buoyant humanity. The Five Stages of Collapse is nothing less than a definitive textbook for a hypothetical course entitled The Collapse Of Industrial Civilization 101 or perhaps a bible of sorts for an imaginary Institute of Collapse Studies. While to my knowledge no such courses or organizations presently exist, this book would be an essential aspect of any such entity's credibility. Review, Michael C. Ruppert, April 18, 2013 The writing of this book was a rotten job, but it was absolutely necessary. If someone had to do it, I am very glad that it was Dmitry Orlov. Without his wit, alacrity and experience, the task of beating the horse of the Cartesian approach to understanding our dying world to death would have resulted in something unbearably maddening, dry and uninspiring. In this book he sneaks some LOLROF side-splitters in when you least expect them. One gathers from Orlov's painstaking efforts, the futility of looking to outdated constructs and philosophies for understanding and relief from a crisis that demands complete innovation and inspiration. Reading closely, one sees Orlov carefully planting seeds of reconciliation with our planet and each other throughout--as a fundamental baseline. He arrives at places outside the box of the current meme by using methodologies and analyses that are sacramental within the meme. That's an achievement. Perhaps in his next book he will stand on that ground more forcefully and tell us what he sees. We don't need to understand collapse right now as much as we need to survive it. And that is where Dmitry Orlov rises through the rubble and gives us magnificent gems like this: At the rock bottom of human survival, there is no individual and there is no state; there is only the family, or, if there isn't, there is something that's not quite human--or there is nothing at all. Profound insight combined with wry humor is such an incendiary weapon I am tempted to call The Five Stages of Collapse an Orlov Cocktail. His delivery of hard truths laced with irony saturates us in seldom reported but extremely relevant facts about the world. He is one of the best writers on the scene today, working at the top of his game. There is more to enjoy in this book with every page you turn, and in very uncertain times, Orlov's advice is, at its core, kind-spirited and extraordinarily helpful. ---Albert Bates, author, The Biochar Solution Even if I believed collapse were impossible I'd still read everything Dmitry Orlov writes: he's that entertaining. Unfortunately, however, collapse of some sort or other, of some degree or another, is almost guaranteed. Orlov does us all a great service by teasing apart the kinds and degrees of collapse so that we can prepare for what is likely and dig in our heels to prevent what is unsurvivable. ---Richard Heinberg, Senior Fellow, Post Carbon Institute, Author, The End of Growth
