Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela

"Richly reported...a thorough and important history." -- Tim Padgett, The New York Times

The award-winning, richly nuanced account of the collapse of Venezuela and what it could mean for the rest of the world.

Venezuela has been mired in crisis for over a decade--characterized by economic collapse, political polarization, mass emigration, and widespread hardship--even as the country sits atop some of the world's largest oil reserves. In Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse, William Neuman provides a vivid, granular chronicle of that descent. Drawing on his experience as The New York Times Andes Region Bureau Chief and years of reporting from Caracas, Neuman explores the interplay of charismatic populism, economic mismanagement, corruption, and the international forces that have shaped Venezuela's fate.

The book traces how once-abundant oil wealth became a source of distortion rather than development, how political power concentrated around Hugo Chávez and later Nicolás Maduro, and how everyday Venezuelans endured rolling blackouts, hyperinflation, shortages of food and medicine, and threats to personal safety. Neuman blends history, journalism, and personal narrative into a clear-eyed account of how a petro-rich nation imploded, displacing millions and disrupting the region.

Winner of Best Books of the Year from Foreign Affairs, the National Endowment for Democracy and the Overseas Press Club of America, the book's historical context provides readers indispensable insight into how decades of policy choices, institutional breakdown, and external pressures set the stage for the crises of today. Rather than offering simple answers, Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse equips readers with the historical grounding needed to understand both Venezuela's past and the complexities shaping its future.

Author: William Neuman
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Published: 09/08/2026
Pages: 368
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.65lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.30w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9781250473745

About the Author
WILLIAM NEUMAN is an author and journalist who reported for the New York Times for over 15 years. He served as the Times Andes Region Bureau Chief from 2012 to 2016 while based in Caracas, Venezuela. He previously reported for the New York Post and his work has also been featured by The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic, the Guardian, the Boston Globe, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and The Independent, among others. He began his journalism career while living in Mexico, and has published English translations of several Spanish-language novels.