In the wake of global catastrophes that have destroyed industrial civilization, the inhabitants of Union Grove, a small New York town, do anything they can to get by, as they struggle to deal with a new way of life over the course of an eventful summer.

The small town of Union Grove has adapted, struggled, and thrived in the new age of civilization. But early spring is full of hardships: Fresh food is scarce and the winter stores are almost gone. Despite the time of privation, young explorer Daniel Earle resurrects the town newspaper, and the town trustees ask him to help revive the Hudson River trade route. But even as the townsfolk strive forward, a group of visitors remind them that nothing...

Offers predictions as to what technological advances will truly bring, in a sobering look at the future that dispels the overly optimistic vision of the future as depicted in 1950s pop culture.

What will happen when our current plagues of global warming, epidemic disease, and overpopulation collide to exacerbate the end of the oil age? The last two hundred years have seen the greatest explosion of progress and wealth in the history of mankind, much of it based on the exploitation of cheap, nonrenewable fossil-fuel energy. Our daily enjoyment of oil and gas has given us the energy equivalent of three hundred slaves per person in the industrialized...

Appleseed, Johnny, 1774-1845