Aftermath: A Guide to Preparing for and Surviving Apocalypse 2012

While Joseph doesn't accept Mayan prophecies as divine decree, he isn't quite prepared to dismiss them outright. In his view, 2012 is "best understood as the crescendo of a metamorphic process already under way," because "apocalypse is in the air." Describing himself as a "doomsayer," not a "naysayer," he eschews global warming as the greatest threat to mankind today in favor of a massive burst of solar activity, a crack in the earth's magnetic shield that destroys the world's electric-generating power, acts of terrorism, a nuclear event, or any number of other grim scenarios with consequences devastating enough to challenge the global population's will to survive. Joseph sees the prophecies associated with 12/21/12 as "a compelling shorthand for the possibility of civilization-altering cataclysm and/or revelation within our lifetimes," and urges readers to begin developing "a family emergency plan now" that includes insuring a supply of fresh water, food, weapons (a matter of personal choice), and spirituality ("unless you're into void and oblivion"). With this rehash of his previous alert (Apocalypse 2012: An Investigation Into Civilization's End), Joseph tills familiar ground and straddles the precarious line between real historical investigation and "sky is falling" hysteria. (July)