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Original Whole Earth Catalog, Special 30th Anniversary Issue Paperback – December 1, 1998

by Peter Warshall (Editor), Stewart Brand (Editor)
5.0 5.0 out of 5 stars 4 ratings
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  1. Print length
    100 pages
  2. Publisher
    Whole Earth
  3. Publication date
    December 1, 1998
  4. ISBN-10
    1892907054
  5. ISBN-13
    978-1892907059
  6. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Whole Earth (December 1, 1998)
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 100 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1892907054
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1892907059
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.2 ounces
  • Customer Reviews:
    5.0 5.0 out of 5 stars 4 ratings

Customer reviews

5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5
4 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

A Book Collector
5.0 out of 5 stars This was the final issue.
Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2014
Verified Purchase
This was the final Whole Earth Catalog published. The first half contains a reprint of the original 1968 issue. The second half contains a series of interesting articles by various authors. It is a celebration of the 30 history of this publication and the free thinking spirit it promoted. I am very glad to have it as part my Whole Earth library.
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David Perry
5.0 out of 5 stars The way it was...
Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2006
If you weren't there, then this review is for you. The Whole Earth Catalog was not so much a catalog, as a service reviewing stuff, and ideas, and movements in the late sixties and early to mid seventies. You could not be a hippy without a copy of this book, or an environmentalist, or any number of things. But the real purpose the book had was to open the minds of the many to the most ragged edge of contemporary thought. For example:

Richard Buckminster Fuller- 'Bucky' Fuller was fairly obscure outside of the acolytes of the whole earth catalog. The same could be said of a hundred other big thinkers, from Paolo Soleri (arcology) to Gregory Bateson (crack in the cosmic egg)to Jerzy Grotowski to Allesandro Jodorowski. The WEC is the who's who in hip thinking.

Swiss Army Knives- I swear, the WEC put a swiss army knife in the pocket of every hippy on the planet. (some of us still carry them today) Synthesizers (if you are a synthesizer head, read Walter Carlos's essay about them. Garden Tools, hand operated winches, drywall screws and other tools too numerous to mention.

Nomadics- I had never even thought of the idea of being a portable lifestyle until the WEC. Now I am old and a homeowner, but I am still nomadic.

and so on. The WEC (of which this is a reprint) was followed by the LAST WHOLE EARTH CATALOG (that's the big seller) the Whole Earth Epilog, and the Millenium Catalog. The Point Foundation (who published the WEC) also published a magazine, originally called the Co-Evolution Quarterly (or CEQ) which then became the Whole Earth Software Review, and then The Whole Earth Review, and then just Whole Earth. They went out of print, finally in 2003--having brought us thousands of pages on every topic imaginable. The spirit lives on in the WELL (Whole Earth Lectric Link) a venerable online community of smart people (now hosted on salon)

I grew up in Huntington Beach, California. In the sixties the WEC put me onto an entire world of stuff and ideas not available locally. My friends all read the catalog, we all exchanged gifts found in the catalog. We all wore anne kalso earth shoes, levis, chambris work shirts and had long hair. We all read dan o'neill comics, we all laughed at the firesign theater, we all sang folk music. Today we are computer programmers, social workers, architects and college professors. We DID change the world, in so many ways. If you weren't there you don't see the changes, you just see the world as it is. This book is fantastically important, but I doubt a modern young person can even hear the melody.

take pleasure in the ordinary, and in nature

discover new ways to see the events around you

metaprogram your own reactions--your own reality

get out of trouble, get past the bad time

help others if you can,

persevere
120 people found this helpful
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Michael Dobey
5.0 out of 5 stars this was a huge book.
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2011
A huge book physically and one in
sales. Many people back then wanted to learn different ways to deal with things and situations, they would be horrified by the endless plastic bags laying all over the place today. This book was about solutions and it's day was long ago but the memories of looking at it and seeing what people thought were incredible . Anyone who wanted to make a statement back then had this book on their table , from actors to politicians. It was that huge, and the public loved it too. At least for the 6 years or so it was around.
9 people found this helpful
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www.delalonde.com
5.0 out of 5 stars It was our bible
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2000
If you were a sudent at the time of Still Nash and Young, Chicago Transit Autohority, "Jesus freaks" and protests against Vietnam war you must have bought the original version of this book. Full of facts, names, adresses, direct advice on sensitive subjects. It was our bible. This book is full of practical and inspiring solutions for free people like you and me.
46 people found this helpful
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