In the last two Covid years, Žižek has published three books with OR, which are the “easiest” and most accessible—a good “jumping in” point for the Žižek-curious, and light reading for those who’ve followed him for a while. The first two were titled Pandemic!: Covid-19 Shakes the World and Pandemic! 2: Chronicles of a Time Lost. The third, which came out at the end of 2021, is Heaven In Disorder, after a quote by Mao Zedong:
“There is great disorder under heaven; the situation is excellent.” The idea being that times of unrest offer possibilities and opportunities for political change. Or [as Zizek puts it]: “...when the existing social order is disintegrating, the ensuing chaos offers revolutionary forces a great chance to act decisively and take political power. Today, there certainly is great disorder under heaven, with the Covid-19 pandemic, global warming, signs of a new Cold War, and the eruption of popular protests and social antagonisms worldwide naming but a few of the crises that best us. But does this chaos still make the situation excellent, or is the danger of self-destruction too high? The difference between the situation that Mao had in mind and our own situation can be best rendered by a tiny terminological distinction. Mao speaks about disorder under heaven, wherein “heaven,” or the big Other in whatever form—the inexorable logic of historical processes, the laws of social developments—still exists and discreetly regulates social chaos. Today, we should talk about heaven itself as being in disorder.” … There’s much to agree with, enjoy, and ponder in Heaven In Disorder.” —John Yohe, Spice Today | 
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