Review of "What If? 2, Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been," edited by Robert Cowley

 Review of

What If? 2, Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been, edited by Robert Cowley, ISBN 042518613x

Five out of five stars

Learned thoughts on what might have been

 It is always interesting and entertaining to think of what might have happened if one specific event had been a bit different. When people that know history engage in such actions it is also educational. This book contains 25 essays based on what might have happened if an event had a different outcome. The timeframe starts in ancient Greece and moves through the aftermath of World War II.

 The first essay is based on a little-known fact, that Socrates was a soldier before he became a sage. He fought in the battle of Delium in 424 B. C. and apparently barely escaped capture or death. The “What If?” scenario is based on the consequences of his being killed in that battle. Given his influence on Greek thought, the emergence of what we now call philosophy and how the ancients Greeks formed the foundation of Western Civilization, the changes could have been considerable.

 One of the most interesting alternative scenarios is that Henry Wallace was not replaced by Harry Truman as the Vice-Presidential nominee on the ticket with Franklin Roosevelt in 1944. Wallace was a much more seasoned and famous politician than Truman was, and his political philosophy was much more progressive. If he had remained on the ticket, Wallace would have become president on the death of Roosevelt in 1945. His openly stated position on trying to reach some form of understanding with the Soviet Union would have been an interesting expression if he had become president.

 However, the most interesting essay is the last one and is not based on a single event taking a different track. In that essay, the question is based on if conquistador Pizarro had not discovered the potato in South America and brought it back to Europe. The story of how the potato altered the history of Europe after it was widely planted is fascinating. Peasants planted their crops of grain and potatoes, often leaving the tubers in the ground. When marauding armies swept through, they would requisition all the grain, but would not bother to dig the potatoes out of the ground. This food reserve allowed the peasants to avoid starvation as the potatoes were an excellent source of calories and were easy to keep over the winters.

 Although the enjoyment of the reader will be enhanced if they have some understanding of basic history, that foreknowledge is not essential to understand and appreciate these brief stories of alternate history.

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