Sorry for the short update this week. Things have been busy in the non-virtual world.
Got some good things coming this week. I will be reviewing Then Everything Changed: Stunning Alternate Histories of American Politics: JFK, RFK, Carter, Ford, Reagan by Jeff Greenfield and Korsgaard will be showcasing A World of Laughter, a World of Tears, which can be found at AH.com. Later this week I will also be interviewing Nick Pardini who operates and stars in What If History, the alternate history podcast.
Meanwhile, we got our first reader from Macedonia and Costa Rica. Welcome!
And now the news...
Coming Soon: 11/22/63
It is often difficult for an alternate novel to receive mainstream notice. Even authors like S. M. Stirling, Paul McAuley and L. Sprague de Camp, while well-known in the science fiction community, are generally unknowns when it comes to those who have little interest in speculative fiction. Unless an author already has had success in the mainstream, tales of alternate history will remain hidden gems on the bookshelves of the world.
With that being said, prolific horror author Stephen King is publishing a new novel titled 11/22/63 on November 8. The story follows a time traveller as he attempts to prevent the Kennedy assassination. Want to learn more? Check out this video or listen to an excerpt from the audio book.
Will this book be worth it? This writer hopes so and as a King fan I will be picking up my copy of the book when it comes out in November.
Should Spike continue Alternate History?
Should Spike TV's Alternate History be picked up for a full season? You have heard my review and War Blogger's video commentary tearing the pilot apart, but how many positive reviews have you seen? Well there is a petition on Twitter (with only one signature so far) requesting that it be picked up as a series.
The truth of the matter is, I would not mind if Alternate History is picked up as a series. I would even sign the above petition, if I could get a promise of better historical research and real experts to give commentary during the episode. I doubt very much, however, that Spike TV is the network that can give us that, but I would love to be proven wrong. Perhaps the History or Discovery channel would be a better network.
What do you think?
Links to the Multiverse
Articles
The 2011 Red Sox alternate history by Jim Caple at ESPN.
Alternate History Lesson: Fuel or Fool? by Benjamin at SteampunX Serial.
D is for DIVERGENCE POINT by Guy Saville.
Webliography: The WWHHD (What Would Hillary Have Done?) question and the idea that Clinton should replace Joe Biden on the 2012 ticket by Eric Zorn at the Chicago Tribune.
Welcome to the Multiverse by Sean Carroll at Discover Magazine.
Media
What if the Inuit had colonized Denmark? by Liselotte at Newsvine.
I doubt a show about Alternate History would fit History's line-up of Ice Road Truckers, Axe Men, and Swamp People.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget "Ancient Aliens". Nothing inspires someone to learn about history then docs on how aliens have influenced human affairs.
ReplyDeleteOh, I would like to see the show getting made. It'd either be great information or great entertainment, and it'd provide me with material to talk about. Really, no matter how it would turn out, it's a win-win situation.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the link to my serial. While it does lean steampunk it has a core of alternate history (so much so that I almost abandoned the steampunk elements completely before finding an angle I liked). I'm honored to be featured on an Alt History blog.
ReplyDelete-Benjamin
You are welcome. I always like finding new AH universes and if steampunk is involved, even better.
ReplyDelete