I did not mean to describe the creation of the book – I only wanted to describe the current role of the book and an explanation for its enduring popularity in some circles. Come to think of it, this is possibly an undiscovered genre; Anathem might belong there, too, as might Sucker Bait and A Canticle for Leibowitz.
Interesting, I didn't realize it was popular in prepper circles. I read it in early teenage years and just loved the mega-history of a book spanning several thousand years. Same with some of Olaf Stapledon's books-- before, I had only read books spanning a single persons lifetime. I guess it makes sense that preppers would also be drawn to it, given the nature of the galactic collapse and underdog civilization making it through.
