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Roth's 'Plot Against America': Walter Winchell as Howard Dean
 
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Roth's 'Plot Against America': Walter Winchell as Howard Dean, an Amazon Short
by Ken Kalfus (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
Price:  $0.49
Length:  2,007 words, 12 pages
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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Philip Roth's The Plot Against America is among the most discussed novels of recent years - yet many readers have been misled by his assertions that the book has no topical relevance. My article argues that Roth's alternate history, in which Charles Lindbergh is elected president in 1940, lampoons the figures in our current national drama, especially the Democrats who supported the invasion of Iraq. The novel's key villain, Rabbi Bengelsdorf, backs the Bush-like Lindbergh, "koshering" him against charges of anti-Semitism. In this respect, Bengelsorf recalls the pro-war Democrats who gave the imprimatur of liberalism to the invasion and opened the door to Republican domination.
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4.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)
 
 
 
 
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Mighty review, but still tipping over into a bit of polemics..., April 7, 2006
By Adam Mezei "Adam Daniel Mezei" (Prague, Czech Republic) - See all my reviews
I, as well, read Roth's book and agree with author Kalfus here that the novel was stellar for about 2/3 of the way through...then it was as if we were subjected to Roth's first draft musings. As if Roth had scrawled several jumbled and disjointed notes and paragraphs on the page, and we -- as his readers -- were left to pick up his sundry pieces and sew 'em back together. (Are we the only ones who felt this to be the case?)

I, too, was really put off by the RFK and Sirhan Sirhan assertions later on in the book, and didn't really feel such an insertion was a well thought out authorial device on Roth's part.

I couldn't agree with Mr. Kalfus any more that Roth appears to have rushed out his PLOT AGAINST AMERICA in time to coincide with a certain *something,* what that something was, I'm not entirely sure. Nor am I skilled enough to surmise. The last third of the work just seems so, well...well, so goshdarned contrived!

I'm also somewhat surprised by the title of Mr. Kalfus' story here. I mean, "Howard Dean" gets a single (or double) mention throughout the entire nine pages, but this is the mysteriously chosen title? Hm...perplexing.

I was certainly attracted to the Roth allusion, which is what got me buying this Short in the first place. All this to say that my review of Kalfus' story has surely intrigued me to delve deeper into this writer's works. I enjoy the way Kalfus breaks down an argument, and his prose flows smoothly. He takes his sentences seriously, to be sure.

What's more, if this doesn't get people wanting to read Roth's original book (not such offshoots, stellar, but not the Real McCoy), I'm not exactly sure what will.

Bravo to Mr. Kalfus for keeping this subject alive. Yours, sir, was a great read with heaps of insight(s). Thank you again.
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