Beyond Civilization (66 books)

“If the world is saved, it will not be saved by old minds with new programs but by new minds with no programs at all.” Daniel Quinn

The books listed here should either provide a non-human supremacist ecology centered analysis/critique of the dominant culture (industrial civilization/neoliberalism) or offer stories, songs, and suggestions for moving beyond industrial civilization.

The books listed here should have nothing to do with personal change/development, religion, techno fixes, or "shallow" environmentalism.

flag

All Votes Add Books To This List

1	Technological Slavery: Enhanced Edition (1) by Theodore John Kaczynski 4.17 avg rating — 1,353 ratings score: 2,793, and 28 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2	Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How by Theodore John Kaczynski 3.93 avg rating — 612 ratings score: 2,662, and 27 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
3	Industrial Society and Its Future by Theodore John Kaczynski 3.85 avg rating — 12,256 ratings score: 2,566, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4	This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate by Naomi Klein 4.16 avg rating — 27,593 ratings score: 398, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	My Ishmael (Ishmael, #3) by Daniel Quinn 4.11 avg rating — 10,539 ratings score: 299, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
6	The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein 4.29 avg rating — 53,194 ratings score: 297, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
7	Strangely Like War: The Global Assault on Forests by Derrick Jensen 4.03 avg rating — 291 ratings score: 285, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
8	Technics and Human Development (The Myth of the Machine, Vol 1) by Lewis Mumford 4.22 avg rating — 325 ratings score: 266, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9	Flight of the Goose: A Story of the Far North by Lesley Thomas (Goodreads Author) 4.16 avg rating — 153 ratings score: 200, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit (Ishmael, #1) by Daniel Quinn 4.01 avg rating — 103,831 ratings score: 198, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11	The Story of B (Ishmael, #2) by Daniel Quinn 4.15 avg rating — 11,694 ratings score: 195, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11	A Language Older Than Words by Derrick Jensen 4.29 avg rating — 2,616 ratings score: 195, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
13	Beyond Civilization: Humanity's Next Great Adventure by Daniel Quinn 3.90 avg rating — 2,783 ratings score: 193, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	Endgame, Vol. 1: The Problem of Civilization by Derrick Jensen 4.11 avg rating — 2,209 ratings score: 191, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
15	Endgame, Vol. 2: Resistance by Derrick Jensen 4.14 avg rating — 1,170 ratings score: 189, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed by Jared Diamond 3.94 avg rating — 74,437 ratings score: 188, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17	What We Leave Behind by Derrick Jensen 4.11 avg rating — 513 ratings score: 187, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	The Derrick Jensen Reader: Writings on Environmental Revolution by Derrick Jensen 4.13 avg rating — 54 ratings score: 183, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
19	Dreams by Derrick Jensen 4.10 avg rating — 167 ratings score: 181, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
20	The Culture of Make Believe by Derrick Jensen 4.26 avg rating — 1,887 ratings score: 179, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
21	The Sane Society by Erich Fromm 4.25 avg rating — 2,880 ratings score: 178, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
22	In Search of the Primitive: A Critique of Civilization by Stanley Diamond really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 57 ratings score: 177, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23	Escape from Freedom by Erich Fromm 4.27 avg rating — 15,922 ratings score: 176, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
24	Columbus and Other Cannibals: The Wétiko Disease of Exploitation, Imperialism, and Terrorism by Jack D. Forbes 4.30 avg rating — 433 ratings score: 171, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25	The Pentagon of Power (The Myth of the Machine, Vol 2) by Lewis Mumford 4.38 avg rating — 199 ratings score: 169, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
26	Profit Over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order by Noam Chomsky 4.03 avg rating — 7,302 ratings score: 167, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
27	Silent Spring by Rachel Carson 4.06 avg rating — 54,439 ratings score: 157, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
28	Our Word is Our Weapon: Selected Writings by Subcomandante Marcos 4.41 avg rating — 729 ratings score: 153, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	The Price of Thirst: Global Water Inequality and the Coming Chaos by Karen Piper 3.82 avg rating — 158 ratings score: 99, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How by Theodore John Kaczynski 3.93 avg rating — 612 ratings score: 99, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
31	The Teachings That Came Before and After Ishmael by Daniel Quinn 4.43 avg rating — 47 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
31	Why It's Kicking Off Everywhere: The New Global Revolutions by Paul Mason 3.76 avg rating — 269 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
33	Future Arctic: Field Notes from a World on the Edge by Edward Struzik 4.03 avg rating — 66 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	Planning for Coastal Resilience: Best Practices for Calamitous Times by Timothy Beatley 3.75 avg rating — 20 ratings score: 96, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
35	Our Ice Is Vanishing / Sikuvut Nunguliqtuq: A History of Inuit, Newcomers, and Climate Change (Volume 75) (McGill-Queen's Indigenous and Northern Studies) by Shelley Wright 4.09 avg rating — 23 ratings score: 95, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	More: Population, Nature, and What Women Want by Robert Engelman 3.98 avg rating — 65 ratings score: 94, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
37	Meltdown in Tibet: China's Reckless Destruction of Ecosystems from the Highlands of Tibet to the Deltas of Asia by Michael Buckley 4.04 avg rating — 75 ratings score: 93, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
38	The New Censorship: Inside the Global Battle for Media Freedom (Columbia Journalism Review Books) by Joel Simon 3.65 avg rating — 37 ratings score: 92, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	The Edge of Extinction: Travels with Enduring People in Vanishing Lands by Jules Pretty 3.17 avg rating — 29 ratings score: 91, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
40	Indian Country by Peter Matthiessen 4.10 avg rating — 171 ratings score: 90, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
41	The People's Republic of Chemicals by William J. Kelly 4.09 avg rating — 57 ratings score: 88, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
42	The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell 4.01 avg rating — 851,154 ratings score: 87, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
43	The Social Creation of Nature by Neil Evernden 4.33 avg rating — 36 ratings score: 86, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
43	Breaking Free: True Stories of Girls Who Escaped Modern Slavery by Abby Sher (Goodreads Author) 3.88 avg rating — 344 ratings score: 86, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	The Natural Alien: Humankind and Environment by Neil Evernden 4.20 avg rating — 92 ratings score: 85, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation by Dan Fagin (Goodreads Author) 4.09 avg rating — 4,670 ratings score: 85, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Rogue Primate: An Exploration of Human Domestication by John A. Livingston 4.08 avg rating — 53 ratings score: 84, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
48	One Cosmic Instant: Man's Fleeting Supremacy by John A. Livingston 4.78 avg rating — 9 ratings score: 83, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
49	One Cosmic Instant: A Natural History of Human Arrogance by John A. Livingston 4.78 avg rating — 9 ratings score: 82, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
50	The John A. Livingston Reader: The Fallacy of Wildlife Conservation and One Cosmic Instant: A Natural History of Human Arrogance by John A. Livingston 4.09 avg rating — 22 ratings score: 81, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
51	The Arrogance of Humanism (Galaxy Books) by David W. Ehrenfeld really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 89 ratings score: 80, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
52	Beginning Again: People and Nature in the New Millennium by David W. Ehrenfeld 4.27 avg rating — 15 ratings score: 79, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
53	The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness by Erich Fromm 4.24 avg rating — 3,333 ratings score: 77, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
54	Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World by Paul Stamets 4.41 avg rating — 3,334 ratings score: 75, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
55	Green Rage: Radical Environmentalism and the Unmaking of Civilization by Christopher Manes (Goodreads Author) 3.81 avg rating — 99 ratings score: 74, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
56	Environmental Culture: The Ecological Crisis of Reason by Val Plumwood 4.22 avg rating — 80 ratings score: 73, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
57	Pacifism As Pathology: Reflections on the Role of Armed Struggle in North America by Ward Churchill 3.90 avg rating — 835 ratings score: 68, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
58	Genesis (Memory of Fire, #1) by Eduardo Galeano 4.33 avg rating — 2,554 ratings score: 67, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
59	Century of the Wind (Memory of Fire, #3) by Eduardo Galeano 4.54 avg rating — 1,427 ratings score: 66, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
60	Faces and Masks (Memory of Fire, #2) by Eduardo Galeano 4.44 avg rating — 1,374 ratings score: 65, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
61	¡Ya Basta! Ten Years of the Zapatista Uprising by Subcomandante Marcos 4.17 avg rating — 219 ratings score: 63, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
62	Conversations With Don Durito: The Story of Durito and the Defeat of Neo-Liberalism by Subcomandante Marcos of the EZLN 4.30 avg rating — 119 ratings score: 62, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
63	The Speed of Dreams: Selected Writings, 2001-2006 by Subcomandante Marcos 4.40 avg rating — 45 ratings score: 61, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
64	Gut and Psychology Syndrome: Natural Treatment for Autism, ADD/ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Depression, Schizophrenia by Natasha Campbell-McBride 4.15 avg rating — 2,944 ratings score: 60, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
65	The Western Illusion of Human Nature: With Reflections on the Long History of Hierarchy, Equality and the Sublimation of Anarchy in the West, and ... Conceptions of the Human Condition by Marshall Sahlins 4.10 avg rating — 309 ratings score: 59, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
66	Stone Age Economics by Marshall Sahlins 3.92 avg rating — 523 ratings score: 58, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars