The Plot Against America

Synopsis:

Life in a fascist America during World War II.
Eras:

World War II

Review of The Plot Against America:

The Plot Against America is an unusual alternate history fiction novel by Philip J. Roth. It is set in an early 1940s, principally in Newark, New Jersey, (the time and location where Roth himself grew up), and tells the story of an America which is increasingly turning towards fascism and anti-semitism.

The novel's main viewpoint character is a young Jewish boy named Philip. It is from his perspective that we see the rise of anti-semitism, but we also learn many other details of Philip's childhood. As a result, the book is not just about the changes to history, but also about growing up - and these details are one of the things that gives the book its very unique flavor.

According to Roth, he was not aware of the alternate history genre at the time he wrote this novel, and while that seems surprising in many ways (and some reviews and critics have questioned this claim), it does seem possible that Roth's claim could be true, especially since there are a number of aspects of the story which don't follow the normal conventions of the alternate history genre. Perhaps the most obvious example of this is the ending (and what happens after America's fascist period) - which I won't reveal in this review - but which I am confident that anybody with even the slightest belief in the butterfly effect will find unbelievable and perhaps even contrived, and which in my opinion is more along the lines of secret history than alternate history. That said, I personally did not find the ending detracted from the novel as whole - because I felt the novel was really about what Philip's feelings and life in the situation described, rather than the specific historical details of the political background story.

It is probably worth mentioning as well that the book has attracted some criticisms, especially from some sections of the conservative press, for its portrayals of real life characters (such as Charles Lindbergh), and for the apparent ease with which anti-semitism becomes common in th United States. Addressing the second criticism first, Roth has actually written in his autobiography about the anti-semitism that he himself encountered during his childhood, and many of the anti-semitic incidents he describes in the novel seem to be clearly based on the anti-semitism that he found in our timeline's non-fascist America. As for the portrayal of historical characters, I don't think that you would want to read any alternate history if you were highly sensitive about that sort of thing!

Over all, this is one of my favorite alternate history novels, not inspite of the differences from most of the genre, but because of them. Yes, I could make many nitpicking criticisms about flaws that I perceived in the plausibility of the historical events described in the novel - but as I've already said, the book isn't really about historical events or even alternate historical events, rather it's a high quality work of literature, largely about growing-up, in which alternate history simply provides the background.

If you're the kind of alternate history fan who is only interested in the historical details such as specific battles, weapons and leadership decisions, then this book is not for you. On the other hand, if you have a broader appreciation of good and interesting writing, and want something different from the glut of run-of-the-mill alternate history novels, then this books is for you.

Your Comments

Please leave a comment and tell us what you think:

From Amazon.com

Disclosure: The following products' details and descriptions provided by Amazon.com. Our company may receive a payment if you purchase products from them after following a link from this website.

The Plot Against America

By Philip Roth

Vintage
Released: September 27th, 2005
Grey Paperback (391 pages)

List Price: $17.00^*
Lowest New Price: $12.79^*
In Stock.^*
^*(As of 14:01 Pacific 20 Mar 2023 More Info)

Click Here

Description:
The Plot Against America

Manufacturer: Vintage
Brand: Vintage
ISBN: 1400079497
EANs: 9781400079490, 8601420106512
PartNumber: 9781400079490

Details:

Paperback
Edition: 1st
Number of Pages: 391
Author: Philip Roth
Publication Date: September 27th, 2005
Release Date: September 27th, 2005

Physical Description:

Size: 8.01 Inches by 5.18 Inches by 0.88 Inches
Weight: 0.69 Pounds
Color: Grey

Click here for more information

The Plot Against America

By Philip Roth Vintage Books / Random House Paperback	Lowest New Price: $56.99^* In Stock.^* ^(As of 14:01 Pacific 20 Mar 2023 More Info) Click Here*
Description: The Plot Against America Manufacturer: Vintage Books / Random House Brand: Vintage Books / Random House ISBN: 0099484889 EAN: 9780099484882 Details: Paperback Format: Import Edition: First Vintage International Edition Author: Philip Roth Physical Description: Size: 6.96849 Inches by 4.3307 Inches by 1.1811 Inches Weight: 0.551155655 Pounds Click here for more information

Study Guide: The Plot Against America by Philip Roth (SuperSummary)

By SuperSummary Released: August 1st, 2019 Paperback (62 pages)	Lowest New Price: $11.95^* In Stock.^* ^(As of 14:01 Pacific 20 Mar 2023 More Info) Click Here*
Description: Study Guide: The Plot Against America by Philip Roth (SuperSummary) Manufacturer: Independently published ISBN: 1086688570 EAN: 9781086688573 Details: Paperback Number of Pages: 62 Author: SuperSummary Publication Date: August 1st, 2019 Release Date: August 1st, 2019 Physical Description: Size: 9.0 Inches by 6.0 Inches by 0.14 Inches Click here for more information

Philip Roth: Novels 2001-2007 (LOA #236): The Dying Animal / The Plot Against America / Exit Ghost (Library of America Philip Roth Edition)

By Philip Roth

Library of America
Released: February 7th, 2013
Black Hardcover (740 pages)

Lowest New Price: $35.00^*
In Stock.^*
^*(As of 14:01 Pacific 20 Mar 2023 More Info)

Click Here

Description:
Philip Roth: Novels 2001-2007 (LOA #236): The Dying Animal / The Plot Against America / Exit Ghost (Library of America Philip Roth Edition)

Manufacturer: Library of America
Brand: Library of America
ISBN: 1598531980
EAN: 9781598531985
PartNumber: part_1598531980

Details:

Hardcover
Edition: 1st Edition
Number of Pages: 740
Author: Philip Roth
Publication Date: February 7th, 2013
Release Date: February 7th, 2013

Physical Description:

Size: 8.15 Inches by 5.21 Inches by 1.16 Inches
Weight: 1.3117504589 Pounds
Color: Black

Features:

Used Book in Good Condition

Click here for more information

Copyright (C) 2007-2023, Answers 2000 Limited

CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE,COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.� r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED 'AS IS' AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.

Disclosure: Our company's websites' content (including this website's content) includes advertisements for our own company's websites, products, and services, and for other organization's websites, products, and services. In the case of links to other organization's websites, our company may receive a payment, (1) if you purchase products or services, or (2) if you sign-up for third party offers, after following links from this website. Unless specifically otherwise stated, information about other organization's products and services, is based on information provided by that organization, the product/service vendor, and/or publicly available information - and should not be taken to mean that we have used the product/service in question. Additionally, our company's websites contain some adverts which we are paid to display, but whose content is not selected by us, such as Google AdSense ads. For more detailed information, please see Advertising/Endorsements Disclosures

Our sites use cookies, some of which may already be set on your computer. Use of our site constitutes consent for this. For details, please see Privacy.

Click privacy for information about our company's privacy, data collection and data retention policies, and your rights.

Contact Us Privacy Terms of Use Advertising/Endorsements Disclosures

In Association With Amazon.com
Answers 2000 Limited is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
In Association With Amazon.co.uk
Answers 2000 Limited is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk.
As an Amazon Associate, our company earns from qualifying purchases. Amazon, the Amazon logo, Endless, and the Endless logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

All trademarks are property of their respective owners.
All third party content and adverts are copyright of their respective owners.