Henrik Svensen
The End Is Nigh
– A Human History of Natural Disasters

The End Is Nigh
– A Human History of Natural Disasters
“Faced with its catalogue of plagues, fires, earthquakes and tsunamis, one can only hope that The End Is Nigh proves an inaccurate title. But Henrik Svensen’s fascinating book is more than a catalogue of catastrophes.”
The Independent

Millions of people have died in natural disasters. Cities have fallen into ruins, societies collapsed. As of today, nearly half the world’s population live in the danger zone. Have the natural disasters of today changed us, how we live and how we think? Do we react differently today than we did hundreds of years ago when disaster strikes?

Henrik Svensen takes us along on a journey through a number of substantial and minor natural disasters since the beginning of time. This book contains numerous gripping stories and individual destinies. We always ask ourselves the same questions when disaster hits us: Why did this strike us, and not someone else? Does the cause lie in the unruly natural forces, or is it God who punishes us for our sins? Or are disasters caused by our abuse of environment? Why are we so vulnerable?

Henrik Svensen

Henrik Svensen (born 1970) has a PhD in Geology from the University of Oslo (2000), followed by studies in History of ideas. He is currently working as Research professor in geology at the University of Oslo and as an Author of books on dramatic events in the history of the earth.