REVIEW: The End is Always Near by Dan Carlin

Seeking enlightenment from the darkest days of humanity

THE END IS ALWAYS NEAR by Dan Carlin Published on 31st October 2019 by HarperCollins

The End Is Always Near is a rather pessimistic, but oddly fitting, title for a book about some of the key moments in human history. I confess never having listened to Dan’s podcast, Hardcore History, but the concept here grabbed me straight away - an exploration of some the most catastrophic (or near catastrophic) moments in human history, from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Plague, the destruction of the Assyrian Empire to the use of atomic weapons.

This thread - the moments we got near to human destruction - allows Carlin to cover some of the biggest topics from history in an interesting way. What was responsible for each disaster, and is there a thread of recurring issues and human folly that’s responsible?

Tackling so many big historical questions means it has to be done slightly superficially, with a slight lack of specifics and detail, but when each topic could be a book in itself (and in some cases covers hundreds of years), sacrifices have to be made to cover this kind of breadth.

Because of this lack of depth and the immense readability, this would serve as a great introduction to some key moments in history for beginners, and offers just enough breadth and details that even a history graduate found something he hadn't even touched on before (in my case the Assyrian Empire).

Overall, as a history fan this was definitely an interesting, enjoyable read with an entertaining, but informative narrative voice, a great angle for inquiry and some great historical breadth.

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I received an advanced review copy via NetGalley, in exchange for an unbiased, honest review. Thanks to HarperCollins for approving my request. In the interest of disclosure, I am employed by a different division of HarperCollins but that has no impact on my review here, which is honest, unbiased and independent of my work.