In this work of historical fiction, Philip Roth reimagines the 1940 United States presidential election. Instead of Franklin Roosevelt winning a third term, populist aviator and America First isolationist Charles Lindbergh secures the presidency. The narrative follows the Roth family, middle-class Jews living in Newark, New Jersey, as the new administration signs a non-aggression pact with Hitler and implements the Homestead Act of 1942. This policy forces Jewish families to relocate to rural, anti-Semitic regions under the guise of national assimilation, leading to localized pogroms and the gradual erosion of civil liberties.
Readers interested in the fragility of democratic institutions and the mechanics of domestic ethnic scapegoating will value this detailed study of political volatility. The text attracts those who study how rhetoric transitions from fringe isolationism into state-sanctioned discrimination. A reader finishes the book with a specific understanding of how quickly an established national identity can fracture when executive power targets minority demographics. It offers a blueprint for identifying the social shifts and legislative maneuvers that precede a descent into authoritarianism.
Thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Deep Diver. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2004
- Language
- EN
