When Technology Fails: A Manual for Self-Reliance, Sustainability, and Surviving the Long Emergency, 2nd Edition

Price: $35.00 - $19.99
(as of Sep 08, 2026 13:52:14 UTC – Details)


YOUR GUIDE TO EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS: Learn to live sustainably so you can survive today—and the disasters of tomorrow—with this comprehensive survival skills primer covering food, water, shelter, first-aid, energy, and more.
Prepare to embark on the path toward sustainability. Unlike any other emergency preparedness book, Matthew Stein not only shows you how to live green in seemingly stable times, but to live in the face of potential disasters—whether they last days or years, or come in the form of social upheaval, economic meltdown, or environmental catastrophe.
Inside, you’ll learn:
• The basics of installing a renewable energy system for your home or business
• How to find and sterilize water in the face of utility failure
• How to keep warm if you’ve been left temporarily homeless
• Practical information for dealing with water-quality issues
• Alternative health and first-aid techniques
Each chapter describes skills for self-reliance in good times and bad.
• A survey of the risks to the status quo
• Supplies and preparation for short- and long-term emergencies
• Emergency measures for survival
• Prepping water, food, shelter, and clothing
• First aid, low-tech medicine, and healing
• Securing energy, heat, and power
• Metalworking
• Utensils and storage
• Low-tech chemistry engineering, machines, and materials
Fully revised and expanded, When Technology Fails ends on a positive, proactive note with a chapter on “Making the Shift to Sustainability,” which offers practical suggestions for changing our world on personal, community and global levels.
“This book is an indispensable basic manual for the real-life issues that await us in the decades to come.” —James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography of Nowhere

From the Publisher

Compact survival kit

Solar dryer

Colloidal silver generator

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1933392452
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Chelsea Green
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 27, 2008
Edition ‏ : ‎ 2nd
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 493 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781933392455
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1933392455
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.1 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.54 x 1.19 x 11 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #84,139 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #73 in Disaster Relief (Books) #119 in Survival & Emergency Preparedness #185 in Sustainable Living
Customer Reviews: 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars (521) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find the book informative and well-written, with one noting it provides enough detail without overwhelming the reader. Moreover, they consider it a necessary reference and a good starter book for preppers, guiding readers toward survival. Additionally, they appreciate its value, with one customer comparing it to “very cheap insurance.” However, the content depth receives mixed feedback, with some customers finding it comprehensive while others wish for more detailed information.