The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick

genre: alternative history, adult

At the end of World War II, America was defeated by the Axis.  What was once a continent that spread from ocean to ocean has been parceled into the Pacific States on the west, an extension of the Nazi Reich in the east and a no man's land in the middle.  As a conquered people, those formerly known as "American" have had to find a way to survive under whichever regime they happen to live under - neither of which tolerate political dissonance of any kind.

What would Americans be like without their power?  You'd want to hope they'd rise up and fight but in this alternative history, they's mostly found a way to survive.  They study the I Ching, making themselves believers in the kind of divination that such numbers and interpretations can provide.  Many of the populus gladly let their worst selves rise to the surface as they accept the slavery and anti semitism that have become, once again, socially acceptable views.  In this world we meet a few specific people, from very different parts of society, who are trying to, on one way or another, know what kind of life they should lead.  Some want more, some want less, some want to fit in and others would like to remove themselves.  And always, in the background, there is the idea that maybe this isn't the only way things could've happened.  Maybe the evil lurking constantly at the edges wasn't necessarily a given.  And if you think there is a real chance that things could be another way, what would you do be willing to do to make change?

I wanted more from this.  I chose it because I found the television adaptation so intriguing - it turns out that the screenwriters really fleshed out the characters and plot of the novel.  Parts of the book were philosophical to the point of nonsense, to me, and maybe that was the point but it lost me.  Important threads just ended, with no resolution at all.  I appreciated the choppy, Japanese-ized American that they spoke in the west, I liked the idea of "American products" being something that are now of historical value, as the idea of  American products becomes nothing but a dream,  I felt the weight of being an oppressed people, but the ending left me so wanting that I hesitate to recommend it too highly.  I think I'll just let the show fulfill my love for the genre instead.