Bunker: Building for the End Times

Cultural geographer Garrett (coauthor, Global Undergrounds) delivers an engrossing tour of the fortified living spaces where “preppers” plan to isolate and protect themselves from the collapse of civilization. Using prepping “as a lens through which to perceive and understand contemporary conditions of social life,” Garrett profiles developer and “dread merchant” Robert Vicino, who charges $25,000 for a bunker in his 10,000-family complex in South Dakota; sketches the history of the survivalist religious group Church Universal and Triumphant; and visits the Tasmanian “wilderness redoubt” an American lawyer built in the 1970s after reading the nuclear fallout novel On the Beach. The Church of Latter-day Saints recommends “practical prepping” to its members, some of whom store years’ worth of food in their basements, and the Mormon founders of Plan B Supply, which builds “custom assault vehicles and bug-out rigs,” have led their customers on missions to rescue flood victims. Garrett notes the project delays and scam allegations that have plagued bunker communities, and suggests that some developers seem to be capitalizing on “violent media narratives” of the Trump era. Yet he makes a convincing case that preppers offer hope for humankind’s ability to “engineer our survival.” This richly detailed account will have readers wondering about their own disaster plans. Agent: Emma Parry. (Aug.)