Take a photo of a barcode or cover
junderscoreb 's review for:
American War
by Omar El Akkad
This was a plausible and terrifying view of a post-collapse America. It's set about 60 years from now, after climate change has led to major physical and economic changes to the earth, leading the US to ban the burning of fossil fuels. The South refuses to comply, and secedes. From then, El Akkad imagines a scenario that is clearly supposed to be an imagination of what an Israeli-Palestinian type conflict would look like in the near-future United States. Just for fun, he casts a post Arab Spring Egyptian empire into the manipulative overseas power meddling in a conflict for its own gains while openly appearing to be high-minded and helpful.
That's the setting. The story, which follows a family of displaced Southerners who become radicalized, is compelling if a bit pulpy. Just as a story, it moves really fast and is both a pleasant piece of escapism and a satisfying work of terrifying speculation.
That's the setting. The story, which follows a family of displaced Southerners who become radicalized, is compelling if a bit pulpy. Just as a story, it moves really fast and is both a pleasant piece of escapism and a satisfying work of terrifying speculation.