Main Street Books will host a reading and book signing by local author John Michael Greer on May 6th at 7:30 PM.  Mr. Greer will be reading from and fielding questions about his book The Long Decent; one of two of his works that focus on the subject of peak oil.

The new century has seen Americans expressing deep concern about US dependence on petroleum, rising energy prices, and the threat of climate change.  Unlike the energy crisis of the 1970s, however, there is a lurking fear that, now, the times are different and the crisis may not easily be resolved.  The Long Descent examines the basis of such fear through three core themes:

• Industrial society is following the same well-worn path that has led other civilizations into decline, a path involving a much slower and more complex transformation than the sudden catastrophes imagined by so many social critics today.
• The roots of the crisis lie in the cultural stories that shape the way we understand the world.  Since problems cannot be solved with the same thinking that created them, these ways of thinking need to be replaced with others better suited to the needs of our time.
• It is too late for massive programs for top-down change; the change must come from individuals.

For the author hope exists in constructive adaption to massive change - actions that range from taking up a handicraft or adopting an "obsolete" technology, through planting an organic vegetable garden, taking charge of your own health care or spirituality, and building community.

John Michael Greer is a certified Master Conserver, an organic gardener, a scholar of ecological history, an internationally renowned blogger, and an award-winning Peak Oil author.  He recently moved to Cumberland from Ashland, Oregon.

Main Street Books is located at 2 E. Main St. in downtown Frostburg.  For additional information contact 301-689-5605 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .