The Apolyton Science Fiction Discussion Group: August Nominations

[Imran Siddiqui]

Robert Harris' Fatherland

"The year is 1964. The setting is Berlin. JFK's father, Joe Kennedy, is president. Edward VIII is king, Wallis his queen. Adolf Hitler is about to celebrate his 75th birthday. In this thriller with a twist, the stalemate which ended World War II has evolved into a cold war, not between the Soviet Union and the United States, but between the Third Reich and America. Police investigator Xavier March handles a case involving the death of a prominent Nazi, an apparent suicide. The trail leads to other suicides, accidental deaths, a numbered vault in Zurich, and a beautiful American reporter. March discovers the pattern behind the deaths and locates incriminating papers exposing the Holocaust, which, because Germany didn't lose the war, has been kept secret for 20 years. Harris, author of the nonfiction title Selling Hitler ( LJ 5/15/86), is clearly well versed in the operations and machinations of the Nazi regime. He uses this knowledge to create a realistic and frightening world in which we all could be living."

[chequita guevara]

Do any of the books nom'ed yet count as Science fiction? Will the winner be able to nominate murder mysteries next?

[Imran Siddiqui]

Alternative History IS sci-fi, che . So stop whining

As JohnT said:

No debates as to whether it is sci-fi or not... it is marketed as sci-fi, it is sold as sci-fi, and bookstores and libraries all across the land shelve it as sci-fi.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Do any of the books nom'ed yet count as Science fiction? Will the winner be able to nominate murder mysteries next?

We've had this debate before, which is why I added this, just the third sentence in the OP:

No debates as to whether it is sci-fi or not... it is marketed as sci-fi, it is sold as sci-fi, and bookstores and libraries all across the land shelve it as sci-fi.

[ajbera]

Howzabout The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick?

"It's America in 1962--where slavery is legal and the few surviving Jews hide anxiously under assumed names. All because some twenty years earlier America lost a war--and is now occupied jointly by Nazi Germany and Japan. This harrowing, Hugo Award-winning novel set in a parallel universe is the work that established **** as a legendary science fiction author."

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0679740678/qid=1056151800/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-3816374-6230425?v=glance&s=books

[Maniac]

Does "The Postman" by David Brin count? I don't know if one can discuss much about it, but I liked reading it so...

[Wraith]

Okay, I'm not sure if this counts as AltHist, but if it does, I nominate "To Say Nothing of the Dog" by Connie Willis.

Wraith
So many books, so little: Time, Money, Shelf space (check list)

[Imran Siddiqui]

Howzabout The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. ****?

My second choice .

Does "The Postman" by David Brin count?

It is up to JohnT... but I see the Postman as more of a future western story (like the show 'Firefly'), myself.

[Maniac]

It is up to JohnT

Ok, I'll have to wait. If it isn't accepted, there's of course always "2001: A Space Oddysey". Since a few years that can count as "alternative history" as well. Which reminds me instantly of "1984" too. Those are definitely two books you can discuss about!

[JohnT]

Alternate history deals with deviations in historical events from our world - a "what if", if you will.

... what if the Norman Invasion failed?

... what if Alexander the Great died when he was 20?

... what if the Byzantine Empire was able to successfully defend itself against the Moslems?

1984, 2001: A Space Oddessy, and The Postman are most emphatically not Alternate Histories as they were written as extrapolations of the future by their authors.

If it is listed in the Uchronia site as an AH, I'll automatically accept it. If not, then I'll probably won't.

[JohnT]

For example, the list so far includes:

"The Alteration", a novel set in a world in which the Protestant Reformation failed.

"Ruled Britannia", a novel set in a world where the Spanish Armada successfully invaded England.

"The Man in the High Castle", set in a world where the Axis won WW2.

"The Years of Rice and Salt", set in a world where Europe collapsed due to plague and Islamic and Buddhist societies rose to unify the globe.

See?

[Imran Siddiqui]

Hey, you forgot mine

"Fatherland" is set in a world where Germany won in WW2 (kinda like 'The Man in the High Castle' but different ).

[JohnT]

"To Say nothing of the Dog" is also not a AH.

[JohnT]

Sorry, Imran. "Fatherland" is also an AH.

Somebody needs to nominate Newt Gingrich's "1945".

[Imran Siddiqui]

I don't think any of us has ever read it .