C/O Futures Book Review
Keaton O.K. Bunker
11 September 2024
Russell W. Glenn, author of Come Hell or High Fever: Readying the World’s Megacities for Disaster, is an experienced defense analyst, having served in the United States Military for twenty- two years. After retiring from his military career, the author became a senior defense analyst in the think-tank community before taking a position as a Faculty Member of the Strategic and Defense Studies Centre at the Australian National University. He obtained a bachelor’s degree from the United States Military Academy, master’s degrees from Stanford, the School of Advanced Military Studies, and the University of Southern California, and a PhD in American History from the University of Kansas.[1]
The book contains an abbreviations list, foreword, and preface followed by ten core sections that make up the body of the text, as well as a bibliography and index. The main sections of this work explore the rise of the large urban centers known as megacities, creating a detailed narrative of their relationship with both natural and anthropogenic disasters.
In Section One: The Nature of Megacities, the author explains the purpose and importance of the book. This begins with an exploration of the nature of modern megacities and why megacities are so important to humans around the world, discussing examples such as London, Tokyo, and New York. The purpose for writing this work is made clear as the author explains his wish to ease the impact of urban catastrophe by reaching those responsible for disaster readiness. Section 2: More on Megacities furthers the concepts of the first section and offers a more in-depth analysis of what it means to be a “Megacity”. It is in this section that Glenn explores catastrophes that have occurred in these urban centers in recent years and offers features that distinguish urban areas from those that are considered rural. Additionally, the final subsection defines the exceptionality of a megacity when compared to other urban areas. The definitions given in this section lay the foundation for all following analysis in the work.
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