In this anthology, 25 leading scholars from across the globe describe and analyse how different societies have handled crisis. In ancient Greek, a crisis refers not necessarily to a catastrophic situation but to an opportunity for great change. Edited by Scottish commentator Iain Martin and Swedish historian Mattias Hessérus, Society in Crisis takes this classical understanding of the term to heart as it acknowledges the many ways in which humans have made the decision to reorient their societies as a result of crisis.

Essayists include: Clive Aslet, Philip Bobbitt, Peter Burke, Gillian Clark, Jonathan Fenby, Peter Frankopan, Jessica Frazier, Lawrence Freedman, Matthew Goodwin, Andrew Graham-Dixon, Johan Hakelius, Vanessa Harding, Tom Holland, Mark Honigsbaum, Alexander Lee, Tim Marshall, Lincoln Paine, Iskander Rehman, Donald Sassoon, David Seedhouse, Graham Stewart, Hew Strachan, Helen Thompson, Richard Whatmore and Adrian Wooldridge.