"After America," by John Birmingham

"After America," by John Birmingham, (New York: Del Ray Books; 2011), 502 pages.
ISBN 978-0-345-50292-6

After America by John Birmingham is the second book in a series of three fictional alternative history books based on the premise of “what would the world be like if one day the United States ceased to exist? The first book in the series Without Warning covered the consequences and immediate impact of the disappearance of most of the people within the United States. After America is set three to four years after Without Warning. It expands on Birmingham’s premise that the world would be a much worse place without the United States.

Birmingham uses a shifting narrative to tell the story. The first perspective is that of the President of the United States, a former engineer from Seattle, a man who was ill-prepared for the role who has to face multiple complex problems. These vary from the challenge to his authority from a former general now governing Texas to overseeing the restoration of order and the basic necessaries and conveniences of life in Kansas City, the emerging federal government dominated city in this new America. The most pressing issue for the President is the military campaign in New York, where battles are fought against opportunistic pirates (systematically looting the city of its wealth and shipping it to other countries) and the battles against Islamic fighters intent on bringing a holy war to the United States for the purpose of establishing Islam as its dominant religion. Birmingham tells the story of the battles from the perspective of an Islamic revolutionary, an American soldier, and a private treasure hunter performing a search and rescue mission for a wealthy client. Birmingham also shifts the narrative to a migrant family from Mexico settled in Texas to raise cattle. Their new life is turned upside down by bands of raiders that roam the countryside to loot and kill. The new settlers suffer greatly at the hand of raider and form an alliance with other like minded families to commence the long and dangerous trek to the comparative safety of Federal protection in Kansas City. Their journey faces multiple difficulties that include other bands of raiders and the hostile elements. Birmingham also includes a sub-plot that focuses on a highly experienced female assassin who seeks revenge on an old enemy that made an attempt on the life of her family. This vengeance tale takes her to parts of the United Kingdom, Europe, and eventually the United States (particularly New York) where her story merges with battle for New York

After America naturally appeals to readers of alternative history/fiction and speculative military fiction. Birmingham succeeds in making a fascinating and gripping story. His success with this series of books may be due to the fact that he lays out in detail just how cruel and unpleasant the world would be without the stabilizing influence of the United States in its present form. Birmingham’s vision reminds me of the aftermath of the collapse and “balkanization” of Yugoslavia, but on a much larger scale.

The obvious difficulty with this book is that it presumes knowledge of the back-story from Without Warning. Most readers would have already read this book, so they are aware of the back-story; however, if you haven’t read the first book in the series, you may not know exactly what has happened and how the world got into this situation. My advice is to read Without Warning before you read After America. This book also suffers from being the second of three books. It starts and ends abruptly; at the end many issues are left hanging, presumably to be resolved in the third and final book. Such quibbles aside, After America is an entertaining and enjoyable book for all readers, not just for science fiction readers, military campaign readers and lovers of alternative history. It’s a good story, but not uplifting and at times bleak. Birmingham has done well though, and he succeeds in getting his readers to want to know what will happen next, wonder if things will work out, and of course buy the third book in the series to get those answers.

"Without Warning,” by John Birmingham

“Without Warning” by John Birmingham, (New York: Del Rey Books; 2009), 533 pages.

The premise of Without Warning is the question “what would the world be like if one day the U.S.A. ceased to exist? Author John Birmingham plays out this alternative history on the eve of the commencement of the 2003 Gulf War and Invasion of Iraq, when a large energy field called “the wave” descends on most of Canada and the U.S.A. destroying all human life (but not property).Thereafter, the energy wave of unknown origin remains in place over the U.S.A. and Canada destroying all human life that comes into contact with it. After this event, all that remains untouched or unaffected of the remains of the U.S.A. are Alaska, Hawaii, and the Seattle area (plus Guantanamo Bay in Cuba).Birmingham develops this alternative history by deploying a shifting narrative based on people in those locations, as well as others in France and the United Kingdom, plus some professional smugglers in the Pacific Ocean, and the U.S.A.’s military command in the Middle East. In this alternative parallel universe without the U.S.A., the world turns very nasty very quickly. France erupts into civil war, Venezuela invades Guantanamo Bay, war breaks out in the Middle East, Israel takes drastic action to ensure its survival, the smugglers upgrade their craft and become pirates, and the survivors of what‘s left of the U.S.A. come to terms with the new circumstances and try to return to normal life with varying degrees of success. Birmingham’s point is that a world without the U.S.A. would be a much more dangerous, violent, and bleak place. On the whole, the world is a better place because of the part played by the U.S.A.

This is not an uplifting book, even though it is a bit of a thriller with a message that employs all of the techniques to keep the reader engaged and the pages turning. It’s a book that will be enjoyed by fans of alternative history, as well as speculative thrillers with a contemporary military involvement. Birmingham has stated that this is the first of another of his three book series, so we will have to wait for the remaining two books to see how the story works out, to see if this bleak story is followed by more uplifting or hopeful events in books two and three.

"The Story of Ernie Pyle," by Lee G. Miller

“The Story of Ernie Pyle,” by Lee G. Miller (New York: The Viking Press; 1950), 439 pages.

The biography of a writer is rarely full of action and excitement. The writer’s life is in one sense solitary, consisting of lonely hours with pen and paper, or paper and typewriter, activities that do not make for exciting reading. Lee G. Miller’s biography of columnist and war correspondent Ernie Pyle is somewhat unusual in that it records the life of a man who spent most of his life reporting on his findings in the field. Pyle travelled widely in the United States and other parts of the Americas, and most famously as a war correspondent during World War II where he travelled to North Africa, Europe and the Pacific and observed and reported the wide range of human events he witnessed. Miller’s book is the report of the life of an active and well-travelled man who spent his life researching and telling other people’s stories during some of the most momentous years of the 20^th century.

Miller’s biography of Ernie Pyle, published over 60 years ago, was written when Pyle was relatively well known. Pyle’s work was well known to the newspaper reading public. He was widely read before World War II and became even more widely read as a war correspondent on the North African, European and Pacific campaigns. Miller’s biography nonetheless tells of Pyle’s childhood, youth, college years in Indiana, military service during World War I, career as a newspapers journalist and later columnist at a mid-western and later Washington D.C. newspapers, and his marriage. Pyle was one of the first aviation columnists and was well known among the early aviation community. He subsequently took to the road as a travelling columnist filing columns from all parts of the country, as well as reports from his trips to central and South America. Much of this book is devoted to chronicling Pyle’s life as a travelling correspondent and as a war correspondent.

Unfortunately, this book hasn’t passed the test of time all that well. To this reader, too much time and space is given over to the matters of Pyle’s personal life (i.e. the contents of personal letters, opinions, conversations and recollections of friends and acquaintances) and too little space devoted to Pyle’s views and opinions of the fantastic events he witnessed and reported. For example, the author mentions, on separate occasions, that Pyle met General Dwight Eisenhower and General Omar Bradley, yet we never know Pyle’s recollections or opinions of these meetings. Perhaps such things weren’t disclosed in those days, or perhaps Pyle’s reading public already knew his views from reading his columns, so Miller chose not to include them. The modern reader doesn’t know. The book also suffers from Miller’s practice of rarely quoting from Pyle’s famous columns; but when he does, it’s with terrific effect. For example, Pyle’s column describing his walk on Omaha Beach in Normandy on D-Day, his survey of the wrecked material, equipment and dead servicemen is very moving. Miller’s use of this quotation is done with so great effect that this reader wonders why he chose to quote Pyle’s columns so infrequently. Miller’s failure to use Pyle’s greatest works left this reader with a thirst to read more of Pyle’s original columns rather than continue with this biography. By reading this biography of Pyle, I became more interested in Pyle’s work, than in the Miller’s biography of his life. So, if you are interested in what made Ernie Pyle so revered in the United States, I suggest that you bypass this book and instead peruse some of Pyle’s books, such as Brave Men, Here Is Your War, Men of Iron, or Ernie Pyle in the American Southwest. If you must read a biography of Pyle’s life, you may want to consider more contemporary works that may place Pyle’s work and legacy into context, such as James Tobin’s Ernie Pyle’s War: America’s Eyewitness to World War II, or Ray Boomhower’s The Soldier’s Friend: A Life of Ernie Pyle.

Sydney, Cipher and Search: Solving the Last Great Naval Mystery of the Second World War by Captain Peter Hore

Sydney, Cipher and Search: Solving the Last Great Naval Mystery of the Second World War, by Captain Peter Hore, (Naval Institute Press: 2009), 320 pages.

Captain Peter Hore has written, arguably, the definitive book on the “mystery” of the sinking of the Australian cruiser H.M.A.S. Sydney by the German raider Kormoran in November 1941 with the loss of all 645 hands. It has long been acknowledged that the Australian light cruiser H.M.A.S. Sydney was sunk by the German raider Kormoran off the coast of Western Australia. Survivors of the Kormoran (disabled in battle and subsequently scuttled) captured and interred in Australia reported individually to investigators that they engaged H.M.A.S. Sydney at a range of about half a mile, causing great destruction that eventually caused her to sink. The “mystery” referred to in the title is how the Kormoran, a converted freighter with guns and torpedo armaments equivalent to that of a cruiser, could cause the loss of the pride of the Australian navy with the loss of its entire crew. To his credit, Captain Hore presents all of the facts from primary sources, including some that he discovered, to explain what happened. Captain Hore's sources include re-constructed and newly translated (by the author) battle logs written in code in a German-English dictionary by the Kormoran’s captain; Australian, German and British naval archive material; the author's interviews of surviving Kormoran crew members in Germany and Chile; and photographic evidence of the wreck of H.M.A.S. Sydney, located for the first time in 2008.

Captain Hore’s book is neither emotional, nor accusatory; he neither evangelizes his reader to a particular explanation or theory, nor attributes either praise or blame to the crews of H.M.A.S. Sydney nor the Kormoran. Rather, he simply collects evidence from all sources to explain what happened and lets the facts speak for themselves. The facts are that H.M.A.S. Sydney failed to follow established naval wartime procedures for identifying suspicious freighters, and brought herself broadside to the Kormoran at a range of approximately half a mile. When H.M.A.S. Sydney (which was not at battle stations) challenged the Kormoran, the captain of the Kormoran removed her disguise, ran up her German flag and commenced firing on H.M.A.S. Sydney with all of her guns and torpedoes causing catastrophic damage that caused her loss, and the loss of all crew. H.M.A.S. Sydney’s counter fire disabled Kormoran, which her crew subsequently abandoned and scuttled. These facts were found to be consistent with photographs of the wreck of H.M.A.S. Sydney. Captain Hore’s book presents all of the known facts, which leaves this reader with the opinion that the Kormoran should be solemnly recognized as having achieved something quite extra-ordinary: this was a major success for the Kormoran – something never before achieved where a raider (a converted freighter with significant weaponry) sank a cruiser with the loss of all hands. Conversely, for H.M.A.S. Sydney, it was a complete and total disaster. What is not known, nor will ever likely to be known, is why H.M.A.S. Sydney’s captain disregarded established wartime naval procedures and placed his ship and the lives of all of the crew in such a vulnerable position.

Captain Hore has written a fine book that explains all of the facts on the loss of H.M.A.S. Sydney. The book reads like a novel: it is interesting and fast-paced mixing discovery, de-ciphering and code breaking, travel, and first person interviews on multiple continents. The final product is an excellent story accessible to both experienced armchair naval experts interested in relatively obscure naval battles, and civilians who simply enjoy a good story well written. At the same time, this book could rightly be considered the definitive or authoritative book on this subject, which in itself is quite an achievement.

Final Impact by John Birmingham

Final Impact by John Birmingham, (New York: Random House; 2008), 413 pages.

Final Impact by John Birmingham is the third book in the series of three novels in the so-called “axis of time” series. The premise of the series could be summarized in the form of a question: “What do you get when a 2021 military experiment transports an American-led multinational naval armada `back through time to 1942, and relocates the armada to the middle of the U.S. naval task force heading towards Midway Island and the battle of Midway?” John Birmingham answers this question over the course of the three novels.

In Final Impact, the axis and allies make use of their acquired knowledge of the future to prosecute World War II to its conclusion. The impact is both significant and devastating. Each side develops more devastating weapons, such as the jet aircraft and a form of cruise missile, with the intent of using them to defeat their opponents. New military campaigns emerge in this new and alternative history: the Japanese are defeated at Hawaii and in other Pacific naval battles; and, the allies liberate Europe by an invasion started at Calais rather than Normandy. These changes from the history we know, while novel, do not change the result of the war with both Germany and Japan suffering crushing defeats at the hands of the allies; same result, but slightly different means.

Birmingham's clever and innovative series of novels is extremely engaging, fast paced and entertaining for all lovers of fiction, not just war buffs and technology and science fiction geeks. The major entertainment comes from what was once called "culture shock" of each of the peoples, in this case, the shock experienced by people from 2021 having to live and work during the Second World War, and the shock experienced by people from 1942 having to deal with the "more enlightened," "liberated," de-segregated, and “broad-minded” military personnel from the future. To each, the other appears barbaric and crude, but nonetheless hey put these differences aside for the purpose of achieving their goal of winning the war.

Final Impact is a fitting conclusion to the axis of time series. It's a more tightly written book when compared with its predecessors, with a greater emphasis on the tightness of the story with fewer detours down interesting subplots. Its a fine conclusion to the series and will inevitably leave the reader wanting more. One suspects that Birmingham will revive these characters some time in the future because they are simply too good to only be the protagonists in three books. We should all look forward to future installments.

Designated Targets by John Birmingham

Designated Targets by John Birmingham, (New York: Random House; 2005), 429 pages.

Designated Targets by John Birmingham is the second book in the series of three novels in the so-called “axis of time” series. The premise of the series could be summarized in the form of a question: “What do you get when a 2021 military experiment transports an American-led multinational naval armada `back through time to 1942, and relocates the armada to the middle of the U.S. naval task force heading towards Midway Island and the battle of Midway?” John Birmingham answers this question over the course of the three novels. The first novel covers the immediate impact of the emergence of the 2021 naval armada in 1942, and the race by allied and axis powers to apply the knowledge of the future, and “fast track new technologies.”

In this second volume the impact of the emergence of the technology and history from 2021 begins to change the course and prosecution of the war, and affect daily life. And why wouldn’t it: if you were engaged in a war and suddenly came into possession of weapons from the future and the history books from the future, wouldn’t you use these resources to your advantage? Much of this book focuses on this issue.

Armed with knowledge of weapons and technologies of the future, the axis and allies attempt to develop those weapons to ensure victory (in the case of the allies) and change the result (in the case of the axis).The race is then on the develop these new technologies before their time, weapons as varies such as the AK-47 through to the ultimate weapon, the atomic bomb. Savvy businessmen indentify sign up as then unknown musicians and actors that will in the future become stars. On the military and tactical level, we see a new history develop. It is new in that knowledge of future and its technologies changes the present. For example, we know from Weapons of Choice that the Battle of Midway die not occur. In Designated Targets, new campaigns emerge, like the Japanese invasion of Australia and later Hawaii, plus the important role of a ship from the future in protecting Great Britain from Axis invasion.

As this alternative history emerges, the reader must surely be asking, how this is all going to work out. Surely, he won’t let the axis nations get the atomic bomb before the allies? Things are now different: events that we know to occur have not occurred in this alternate history, and events in the alternate history only occurred there, not in reality, if you know what I mean. It also must raise in the reader’s mind the logical contradictions in alternative histories and time travel stories. Fortunately, Birmingham’s storytelling is so engaging, fast paced and action packed that we ignore the logical chasm over which be has built his story because it is such an interesting and fascinating story. Nonetheless we are left wondering that surely the allies must win? To his credit, Birmingham doesn’t let us know. The book is so engaging that we put aside all these concerns because we want to how the Second World War ends now that Birmingham has shaken everything up. Birmingham story creates a lot of interest in just how these events are going to play out, but to find out the answer, we have to read Birmingham’s conclusion to the series, Final Impact.

Weapons of Choice by John Birmingham

Weapons of Choice by John Birmingham is the first in a series of three novels in the so-called “axis of time” series. The premise of the series could be summarized in the form of a question: “What do you get when a 2021 military experiment transports an American-led multinational naval armada `back through time to 1942, and relocates the armada to the middle of the U.S. naval task force heading towards Midway Island and the battle of Midway?” John Birmingham answers this question over the course of the three novels. In this first volume the story develops on a number of levels.

On the strategic level, the emergence in 1942 of a 2021 battle armada has the potential to vastly influence the conduct and result of World War II. The allies’ access to 2021 technology and 2021 history books enables the 1942 generation to learn from history by not making the mistakes that are yet to occur, so to speak, thereby changing the course of history. The same occurs with Germany, Japan, and (a temporarily neutral) Russia, who also obtain future technology and knowledge of the future. Birmingham’s book cleverly teases out the premise of the affect of knowledge of the future on current events. For example, the Battel of Midway does not occur. Germany and Russia make a peace (temporarily) to mutually explore the application of the new technology to their 1942 weapons programs. New military campaigns are pursued to achieve new military and political objectives that become apparent with the so called knowledge of history and new technologies.

Birmingham also develops the sub-plot of the political implications of the new technology and historical records. Hitler and Stalin, armed with knowledge of future treacheries, eliminate their rivals. In the United Sates, when faced with new technologies being used by a liberated and de-segregated population, the Government responds by establishing a special zone in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles to use future laws, customs and technologies to enhance the 1942 war effort by bringing forward the development and adoption of new technologies.

The book also develops the sub-plot of the numerous cultural, social, and legal differences between the people from 2021 and 1942. For example, we experience the clashes between the 1942 politicians with a military from the future, and the clashes between military men and women from different eras, in particular, their viewing (in private) of each other as somewhat barbaric. In an era of segregation in the United States, a country fighting a war against a foe that believes in the wholesale extermination of so-called “inferior races,” the appearance of warrior from the future becomes disturbing to both sides when some of 2021 era commanding officers are African American, and women. This culture shock and culture clash is a recurring theme and source of tension throughout the story.

Weapons of Choice is the produce of John Birmingham’s very fertile imagination. He has written a fine novel that mixes historical fiction, science fiction/futurism and socially conscious storytelling. This fine novel should appeal to fans of military history and science fiction lovers, as well as any person that enjoys good and imaginative writing. It’s noticeable that Birmingham creates in the reader an appetite for more. After seeing these improbable events occur, you end up wondering how things are going to work out. We and up wanting to know how things are going to work out in this strange new past that reflects the future. It is fairly safe to say that if you end up reading Weapons of Choice, you’ll also want to read the other two volumes because it’s simply that good and that engaging.