When the renowned aviation hero and rabid isolationist Charles A. Lindbergh defeated Franklin Roosevelt by a landslide in the 1940 presidential election, fear invaded every Jewish household in America. Not only had Lindbergh, in a nationwide radio address, publicly blamed the Jews for selfishly pushing America towards a pointless war with Nazi Germany, but, upon taking office as the 33rd president of the United States, he negotiated a cordial 'understanding' with Adolf Hitler, whose conquest of Europe and whose virulent anti-Semitic policies he appeared to accept without difficulty. What then followed in America is the historical setting for this startling new novel by Pulitzer-prize winner Philip Roth, who recounts what it was like for his Newark family - and for a million such families all over the country - during the menacing years of the Lindbergh presidency, when American citizens who happened to be Jews had every reason to expect the worst.
| ||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
In 1997 Philip Roth won the Pulitzer Prize for American Pastoral. In 1998 he received the National Medal of Arts at the White House, and in 2002 received the highest award of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Gold Medal in Fiction, previously awarded to John Dos Passos, William Faulkner, and Saul Bellow, among others. He has twice won the National Book Award, the PEN/Faulkner Award, and the National Book Critics Circle Award.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
In the 1990s Philip Roth won America's four major literary awards in succession: the National Book Critics Circle Award for Patrimony (1991), the PEN/Faulkner Award for Operation Shylock (1993), the National Book Award for Sabbath's Theater (1995), and the Pulitzer Prize in fiction for American Pastoral (1997). He won the Ambassador Book Award of the English-Speaking Union for I Married a Communist (1998); in the same year he received the National Medal of Arts at the White House. Previously he won the National Book Critics Circle Award for The Counterlife (1986) and the National Book Award for his first book, Goodbye, Columbus (1959). In 2000 he published The Human Stain, concluding a trilogy that depicts the ideological ethos of postwar America. For The Human Stain Roth received his second PEN/Faulkner Award as well as Britain's W. H. Smith Award for the Best Book of the Year. In 2001 he received the highest award of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Gold Medal in Fiction, given every six years "for the entire work of the recipient." In 2005 The Plot Against America received the Society of American Historians Award for "the outstanding historical novel on an American theme for 2003--2004." In 2007 Roth received the PEN/Faulkner Award for Everyman.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book makes my hair stand on end.,
By Cindy B "Book fan" (Iowa, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Plot Against America (Hardcover)
Let me qualify by first saying I am a huge fan of Roth's. This book is right up there with "The Human Stain" and "American Pastoral," although it has a completely different structure. It's a "what if" story revolving around FDR's loss of a third term to Charles Lindbergh, who runs on a platform that has a single issue - staying out of the war in Europe, which is accelerating because of actions by Hitler. Lindbergh's anti-Semetic agenda is feared by the Jews of Newark, and the book is told from the viewpoint of a pre-adolescent boy living there during this time. It's a chilling account of how government (lead by a popular and compelling President) can subversively take over the hearts and minds of a nation and cause havoc of a chilling nature. I'm not completely finished with the book yet, and I'm counting on Roth to give a satisfying ending. I don't think this is one of Roth's big commercial successes in the long list of his novels, but it should be.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chilling,
This review is from: Plot Against America (Hardcover)
This book created in me a fascinating mix of feelings. I did not want to continue reading for a variety of reasons. First of all, the plot did not seem to progress. There just was not that much activity. There was a lot of fear, a lot of suspicions, but very little action. Secondly, it did not feel good to read. It did not rise to the glorious state of joy nor sink into the painful abyss of tragedy. It felt rather like floating through a marsh. Third, I did not particularly relate to or care about any of the characters. Now, hearing that, you may be surprised that I would recommend the book, but I am recommending it for a variety of reasons. I believe that all of the aspects of the book that seem to make the reader immediately want to return it to the shelf are important and purposeful. Roth was writing a book to create the very uncomfortable feelings you will probably experience while reading, which is quite daring for an author. First, the lack of action displays how quietly and subtly changes in our government can occur. The United States may have been immune to physical attacks or hostile coup d'etats, but how does our liberty stand up to a slow and secret shift toward fascism? Second, the lack of strong feelings one way or another reveal in ourselves the ability to be persuaded to believe very different things. Lastly, the ambivalent feelings we have toward the characters also presents a strong point. Are we as Americans willing to stand up and protect people that we do not know and maybe don't even like? It is an interesting book, and I think it ought to be on many reading lists, especially in light of our current political situation. Perhaps there is no risk of the country becoming a Nazi stronghold, but what other fate waits for our nation if we do not pay very close attention to the subtle changes?
3.0 out of 5 stars
Roth goes political with mixed results,
This review is from: Plot Against America (Hardcover)
"The Plot Against America" finds Philip Roth stepping outside his comfort zone and getting a little too political when compared to his other work.
The novel revolves around the historical rewrite that Charles Lindbergh, a documented Nazi sympathizer, runs for president and defeats FDR in the 1940 presidential election. As feared by Philip Roth's family and other politically aware Jewish citizens, Lindbergh begins to enact a series of laws that have the obvious desire of either assimilating or punishing the Jewish community. Philip's family lies at the heart of this struggle- torn apart by the desire to join the Lindbergh cause versus the desire to fight it- and embodies the struggle that minority and immigrant families undergo when living in a society where they are oppressed and viewed as lesser citizens. While one of Roth's goals with this novel is a giant What If?- what if Nazi sympathizers were in power during World War II?- it is Roth's other purpose- the one that defines Roth's success over the years- that ultimately makes this book rewarding. His description of a middle class, Jewish family living in America in the middle of the 20th century is what makes this book rewarding, and at times, hilarious. Roth's strength as a writer is the fearlessness in which he embraces and examines his heritage, and it is this aspect of the story that produces the most engaging work. When all is said and done, the ambitious plot involving Lindbergh and a shadow Nazi government seem too forced, and while undeniably interesting, Roth has overreached his comfort zone as a writer. While not one of Roth's better efforts, "The Plot Against America" is a unique re-write of American history and in many ways, relates to the ongoing struggles of minorities (i.e. muslims, immigrants) and their place in American society.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Listmania!
|
|
So You'd Like to...
|
|
