'A brilliant, scholarly, sharp and witty account of our weird eternal obsession with the end times... So enjoyable, that I didn't want it to end - the world, or the book.' - Adam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived

'Everything Must Go will make you happy to be alive and reading - until the lights go out . . . Brilliant' - The Spectator

A riveting and brilliantly original exploration of our fantasies of the end of the world, from Mary Shelley's The Last Man to Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron, by the Baillie Gifford and Orwell prize-shortlisted writer and co-host of the podcast 'Origin Story'.

For two millennia, Christians have looked forward to the end, haunted by the apocalyptic visions of the Biblical books of Daniel and Revelation. But for two centuries or more, these dark fantasies have given way to secular stories of how the world, our planet, or our species (or all of the above) might come to an end.

Dorian Lynskey's fascinating book explores the endings that we have read, listened to or watched over the last two dozen decades, whether they be by the death and destruction of a nuclear holocaust or collision with a meteor or comet, devastating epidemic or takeover by robots or computers.

The result is nothing less than a cultural history of the modern world, weaving together politics, history, science, high and popular culture in a book that is uniquely original, grippingly readable and deeply illuminating about both us and our times.

'I was blown away by this book... Lynskey is one of the best non-fiction writers around.' - Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland

'Impossibly epic, brain-expanding, life-affirming and profound. You'll never see humanity the same way again.' - Ian Dunt, author of How Westminster Works . . . and Why It Doesn't

A riveting and brilliantly original exploration of our fantasies of the end of the world, from Byron and Mary Shelley to Adam McKay's Don't Look Up and Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron, by the Baillie Gifford and Orwell prize-shortlisted author of The Ministry of Truth and co-host of the podcast 'Origin Story'

About the Author
Dorian Lynskey writes about music, film, books and politics for publications including The Guardian, The Observer, the New Statesman, GQ, Billboard, Empire, and Mojo. His first book was 33 Revolutions Per Minute: A History of Protest Songs. A study of thirty-three pivotal songs with a political message, it was NME's Book of the Year and a 'Music Book of the Year' in The Daily Telegraph. His second book, The Ministry of Truth: A Biography of George Orwell's 1984, was longlisted for both the Baillie Gifford Prize and the Orwell Prize. He hosts the podcasts 'Origin Story' and 'Oh God, What Now?'.

Reviews
Clever and voluminous . . . So engagingly plotted and written that it's a pleasure to bask in its constant stream of remarkable titbits and illuminating insights. * The Guardian *
'Everything Must Go will make you happy to be alive and reading - until the lights go out . . . Brilliant.' * The Spectator *
Lynskey has a journalist's eye for a great story and a killer quotation . . . He is ridiculously well informed. * Literary Review *
Lynskey's encyclopedic knowledge . . . and his glee at the sheer inventiveness of the doomsayers' creations, make this an unlikely page-turner . . . a curiously entertaining read. -- Mat Osman, The Observer
A fascinating guide . . . full of lesser-known cultural gems. * New Scientist *
I was blown away by this book. The staggering range of references, the razor-sharp analysis, the wisdom, left me gasping out loud at times. Lynskey also somehow manages to make a book about the end of the world feel . . . hopeful. One of the best non-fiction writers around. -- Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland
So enjoyable, that I didn't want it to end - the world, or the book. -- Adam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived
A major piece of work, [a] heavyweight yet fleet-of-foot look at humankind's fixation on the end of days, told through the prism of history, religion, literature, popular art, science and more, as compelling as it is authoritative. -- Ian Winwood * The Telegraph *
Impossibly epic, brain-expanding, life-affirming and profound. You'll never see humanity the same way again. -- Ian Dunt, author of How Westminster Works . . . and Why It Doesn't
For a book drenched in destruction, Everything Must Go is not depressing, and often wryly funny. It is incredibly deeply researched, fluently written, moving deftly between close-up detail and broad-brush analysis. * The Arts Desk *



Book Information
ISBN 9781529095937
Author Dorian Lynskey
Format Hardback
Page Count 512
Imprint Picador
Publisher Pan Macmillan
Weight(grams) 752g
Dimensions(mm) 242mm * 164mm * 44mm