App Store

Google Play

image.devices-Singapore 2x

Step into an infinite world of stories

Listen and read

James Howard Kunstler

Humanity hangs on after the fall of civilization in this “wily, funny, rip-roaring, and profoundly provocative page-turner” (Booklist, starred review).

After the collapse of the old world—the pandemics, the environmental disasters, the end of oil, the ensuing chaos—people are pursuing a simpler and sometimes happier existence. In Union Grove, New York, the townspeople are preparing for Christmas … the perfect time for a long-lost member of the community to return.

Robert Earle’s son, Daniel, has come home after two years exploring what is left of the United States. He brings news of three new nations arisen from what was once America—and the dangers and possibilities they may hold. Meanwhile, a horrific murder threatens to turn the community of Union Grove against itself—and what is supposed to be a time of peace and togetherness is overtaken by suspicion and fear.

In this vividly depicted look at a world that may be on our own horizon, “Kunstler skewers everything from kitsch to greed, prejudice, bloodshed, and brainwashing” in a gripping story of hope, hate, and humanity’s last chance at survival (Booklist).

Atlantic Monthly Press

The World Made by Hand Novels

A History of the Future

The dystopian epic of World Made by Hand continues in a novel hailed as “Larry McMurty’s Lonesome Dove, set in the dystopian world of The Road” (New York Journal of Books).
 
 A new age has begun on Earth. Oil is no longer a resource. Some parts of America are nuclear wastelands. Civilization has devolved into a constant struggle for food, water, and shelter.
 
 In the tiny hamlet of Union Grove, New York, the US government is little more than a rumor. Wars are being fought over dwindling resources and illness has a constant presence. Bandits roam the countryside, preying on the weak and a sinister cult threatens the town’s fragile stability. It is up to every citizen of Union Grove to decide what they are willing to fight for, kill for, and die for . . .
 
 This is a tale of humanity at its shining best and brutal worst woven together in a “suspenseful, darkly amusing story with touches of the fantastic in the mode of Washington Irving” (Booklist).
 
 “Kunstler’s postapocalyptic world is neither a merciless nightmare nor a starry-eyed return to some pastoral faux utopia; it’s a hard existence dotted with adventure, revenge, mysticism, and those same human emotions that existed before the power went out.” —Publishers Weekly

The Witch of Hebron

In this “richly imagined” dystopian vision, mankind must find a way to survive as modern civilization slowly comes apart (O, The Oprah Magazine).
 
 When Earth ran dry of oil, the age of the automobile came to an end; electricity flickered out. With deprivation came desperation—and desperation drove humanity backward to a state of existence few could have imagined.
 
 In the tiny hamlet of Union Grove, New York, every day is a struggle. For Mayor Robert Earle, it is a battle to keep the citizens united. As the bonds of civilization are torn apart by war, famine, and violence, there are some who aim to carve out a new society: one in which might makes right—a world of tyranny, subjugation, and death. A world Earle must fight against . . .
 
 In his shocking nonfiction work, The Long Emergency, social commentator James Howard Kunstler explored the reality of what would happen if the engines stopped running. In World Made by Hand, he offers a stark glimpse of that future in a work of speculative fiction that stands as “an impassioned and invigorating tale whose ultimate message is one of hope, not despair” (San Francisco Chronicle).
 
 “Brilliant.” —Alan Cheuse, Chicago Tribune
 
 “It frightens without being ridiculously nightmarish, it cautions without being too judgmental, and it offers glimmers of hope we don’t have to read between the lines to comprehend.” —Baltimore City Paper

The World Made by Hand Novels

The World Made by Hand Novels

Books in order

Listen and read