Author:Nicholas Guyatt
Journeying to the dusty heartlands of America's Bible Belt, Nicholas Guyatt goes in search of the truth behind a startling statistic: 50 million Americans believe the apocalypse will take place in their own lifetimes.
They're convinced that, any day now, Jesus will snatch up his followers and spirit them to heaven. For the rest of us, things are going to get very nasty indeed: massive earthquakes, devastating wars, not to mention the terrifying rise of the Antichrist.
But true believers aren't just sitting around waiting for the Rapture. They're getting involved in debates over abortion, gay rights and even foreign policy. Are they devout or deranged? Why do they seem so cheerful about the end of the world? And, given the disturbing involvement of a leading presidential candidate, does their influence stretch beyond the Bible Belt ... perhaps even to the White House?
Strange, funny and unsettling in equal measure, Have a Nice Doomsday uncovers the apocalyptic obsession at the heart of the world's only superpower.
Guyatt, with a twinkle in his pen, an open mind and a determination to give Rapture believers a fair hearing, has produced a provocative book
—— Daily MailArresting and entertaining
—— Sunday TelegraphFunny and frightening investigation
—— Scotland on SundayA wonderfully readable survey
—— The TabletWise and funny
—— Catholic Heraldstrangely gripping...frightening stuff
—— Sunday ExpressMarvellous - like all the great teachings, it is both simple and complex, and full of love and compassion
—— JOANNA LUMLEYSogyal Rinpoche speaks directly and clearly to the Western mind and heart with humour, joy and great warmth.
—— RICHARD GEREI have encountered no book on the interplay of life and death that is more comprehensive, practical and wise.
—— HUSTON SMITH, author of The World's ReligionsValuable and profound
—— YOGA AND HEALTHIt is a compelling text, chock full of history, teaching, and truth.
—— New Age RetailerThere is no one better than Ram Dass to transmit the essence of "Eastern" religion and philosophy to Westerners. He has made the journey and from the depth of his Joy and Wisdom he shares with us the journey of so many great Beings.
—— Krishna Das, Kirtan WalaRead this delicious, ecstatic journey and be awakened, be pulled body and soul into the heart of love.
—— Jack Kornfeld, author of A Path with HeartIf the West even approaches enlightenment in the 21st Century, there's no way to overestimate the role of Ram Dass in making it happen. He planted seeds that turned into a million trees; if and when they blossom, they will exude the fragrance of his teaching forever.
—— Marianne Williamson, author of The Age of MiraclesHis deeply personal and profound process of inner transformation--through his guru's "fierce grace" and a life of love and service--is told with characteristic candor and humor. Rich with teaching stories, Be Love Now is an invitation to open our hearts.
—— Yoga InternationalA gift of love from the man who introduced me to the idea of higher consciousness and became one of my greatest teachers.
—— Dr. Wayne DyerAn utterly absorbing read... An elegiac meditation on life, death, family and mortality. Beautiful
—— WanderlustThubron is an impressive prose stylist..he writes with great elegiac precision
—— Times Literary SupplementIt's a pleasure to follow Colin Thubron's hesitant pilgrimage ... the last of the great post-war British travel writers
—— Waterstone's Books QuarterlyAmid the desolation there is a beauty that comes not only from the things that Thubron chooses to describe but from the way in which he describes them
—— TabletWhat Thubron provides in his inimitable way is an account of both fellow pilgrimsand himself
—— GeographicalWonderfully poetic tale
—— CompassColin Thurbron's ode to a mystical mountain in Tibet... Not to be missed
—— Daily TelegraphThis latest travelogue confirms Colin Thubron as one of the greatest contemporary travel writers
—— Time OutI am haunted by its spare simplicity and beauty
—— Simon Winchester , Daily Telegraph, summer readingHis measures prose matches the region's stark beauty. Refreshing
—— Financial Timeshaunting and profound
—— Sunday Express MagazineThis pure artist of the voyage looks back backwards and within, to his late mother and his childhood, as well as up to the Himalayan peaks and peoples that he sumptuously evokes
—— Boyd Tonkin , Independent, Books of the Year[An] elegiac account of high-altitude piety...he's still one of the best in the business
—— Helen Davies , Sunday Times, Books of the YearAn absolutely terrific book. Thubron has perfect pitch. He uses the minimum of words to maximum effect. His descriptions are fresh and acute and he can convey atmosphere and emotion on the head of a pin. The journey to Mount Kailash is enthralling and he keeps the reader right beside him every inch of the way
—— Michael Palin , Observer, Books of the YearPunchy, evocative... It is a dangerous journey up to 18,000ft, where Thubron, who is mourning his mother, is hit by altitude sickness
—— Tom Chesshyre , The TimesAbook which beautifully describes one man's experience of loss and familial love
—— Joanna Kavenna , Guardian[Thubron] skilfully balances his poetic descriptions of the land and its subtle, shifting colours with human stuff - observations of his fellow travellers, encounters and personal anecdotes, snippets of history and rather interesting accounts of Tantric Buddhism, with its swirling pantheon of blue-faced demons, bodhisattvas, gods and goddesses... Thubron has recently buried his last living relative and his grieving gives depth and weight to his meditations on Tibetan Buddhism
—— Angus Clarke , The TimesThis is a superb book from a writer who over his lifetime has shown himself to be our finest modern chronicler of Asia
—— TelegraphThe keenest-eyed, least self-absorbed, of literary travellers, Colin Thubron writes with a pin-point elegance and economy that directs your gaze to a place and its people, rather than to the author's foibles... His tales of seekers, refugees and mystics richly sketch the background of Tibetan history and Buddhist belief. Above all, his lean and supple prose draws meaning and moment from every encounter. "To the pilgrims, there are no mute stones" - and not to their ultra-observant companion
—— Boyd Tonkin , IndependentHis book is interspersed with poignant passages about his late parents and sister, who died in an avalanche when he was 23. Thubron also reveals some cultural surprises.
—— Simon Shaw , Daily MailMaking a lyrical hymn out of travel writing, Thubron's evocative pilgrimage is typically poised yet, triggered by the death of his mother, also unusually personal
—— Sunday TelegraphThubron's writing is as spectacular as his surroundings so he therefore makes you feel as though you are treading the path with him
—— Charlotte Vowden , Daily Express[Thubron] doesn't just walk into the higher reaches of the Himalyas but explores his own reaches of eternity as well as the more outer regions of Buddhism and Hinduism
—— The Irish TimesDeploying a poetic blend of travel and memoir, Thubron uses Buddhism to inform reflections on the cycles of life and the meaning of suffering... it is an elegy for everything that makes us human
—— Sara Wheeler , GuardianReflections of the wheel of life are sensitively handled and the writing is as beautiful as ever
—— Anthony Sattin , Sunday TimesA new Travel Thubron is always to be savoured, but there was something valedictory and elegiac about this
—— Gavin Francis , Scotland on Sunday, Books of the Year