From Publishers Weekly
The 18 contributors to this latest installment of the What If? series are indeed eminent: they include David McCullough, Tom Fleming and Robert Dallek (though series editor Cowley might have found more than one woman for his roster). For historians whose works are bound by facts, there must have been pleasure in letting their imaginations engage instead in speculation, though the "shadow universe" presented here is still rooted in the historical record and reflects back on it. In "Might the Mayflower not have sailed?", for example, Theodore K. Rabb enumerates a series of "strokes of luck" that enabled the Pilgrims to come to America, including Sir Edwin Sandys's propitious takeover of the Virginia Company. And in "What if Watergate Was Still Just an Upscale Address?", Lawrence Malkin and John Stacks wonder what would have happened Nixon hadn't been forced to resign the presidency. Americans would be less cynical, they speculate, and, more surprisingly, the U.S. might have had a national health insurance plan. Other essays ask fascinating questions about the the Civil War and the Cuban missile crisis. A pleasure for history buffs longing to engage in some footloose imagination, this book drives home the fact that even momentous political events can hinge on a few uncontrollable events. Maps and b&w photos. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Book Description
An all-American collection of essays on the pivotal moments in our nation's history by award-winning historians, the third in the bestselling series.

The "what if" concept is one of the most original and engaging on the current history bookshelf. The essays are chock-full of provocative ideas; they are as accessible to the general reader as they are to the scholar; and they are the perfect gift for the dedicated history buff on anyone's list.

In this new collection of never-before-published essays, our brightest historians speculate about some of America's more intriguing crossroads. Some irresistible highlights include: Caleb Carr (The Alienist) on America had there been no Revolution; Tom Wicker on the first time a vice president, John Tyler, succeeded a deceased president and its surprising ramifications; Jay Winik (April 1865) on the havoc that might have resulted if Booth had succeeded in his plan to assassinate Johnson and Seward as well as Lincoln; Antony Beevor (The Fall of Berlin 1945) on the possibility of Eisenhower's capture of Berlin before the Soviets' arrival there in 1945; and Robert Dallek (the upcoming An Unfinished Life about John F. Kennedy) on one of the most agonizing American "what if"s of all: what might have happened if JFK hadn't been assassinated.

Download Description
"Did Eisenhower avoid a showdown with Stalin by not taking Berlin before the Soviets? What might have happened if JFK hadn't been assassinated? This new volume in the widely praised series presents fascinating ""what if..."" scenarios by such prominent historians as: Robert Dallek, Caleb Carr, Antony Beevor, John Lukacs, Jay Winick, Thomas Fleming, Tom Wicker, Theodore Rabb, Victor David Hansen, Cecelia Holland, Andrew Roberts, Ted Morgan, George Feifer, Robert L. O'Connell, Lawrence Malkin, and John F. Stacks. Included are two essential bonus essays reprinted from the original New York Times bestseller What If?-David McCullough imagines Washington's disastrous defeat at the Battle of Long Island, and James McPherson envisions Lee's successful invasion of the North in 1862."

About the Author
Robert Cowley is the founding editor of MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History, which has been nominated for a National Magazine Award for General Excellence. He is the editor of What If ?(tm), volumes I and II, No End Save Victory, and With My Face to the Enemy.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The "what if?" concept is one of the most original and engaging on the current history bookshelf. These essays, all written with that fresh concept in mind, are chock-full of provocative ideas, and are as accessible to the general reader as they are to the well-read scholar. The first two volumes in the series won unanimous praise. "Fascinating," hailed The New York Times Book Review. "Tantalizing," wrote the Chicago Tribune. "The 'alternate history' or 'what if' mode, plausibly and imaginatively executed, can be entertaining as well as instructive," said The Washington Times. In this new collection of never-before-published essays, our brightest historians speculate on some of the nation's more intriguing crossroads. Among the irresistible highlights: Caleb Carr (author of The Alienist) on America had there been no Revolution; Tom Wicker on the first time a vice-president, John Tyler, succeeded a deceased president, and the surprising ramifications; Jay Winik (April 1865) on the havoc that might have resulted if Booth had succeeded in his plan to assassinate Johnson and Seward as well as Lincoln; Antony Beevor (The Fall of Berlin 1945) on the possibility of Eisenhower's capture of Berlin before the Soviet arrival in 1945; and Robert Dallek (An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy, 1917-1963) on one of the most agonizing of all American "what ifs": what might have happened if JFK had not been assassinated. As a bonus in this volume are two articles that any American history collection would not be complete without, reprinted from the original What If?: "What the Fog Wrought," by David McCullough, imagines General Washington's disastrous defeat during the Battle of Long Island, and "If the Lost Order Hadn't Been Lost," by James M. McPherson, envisions General Lee's march into Pennsylvania in 1862, which changes the outcome of the Civil War.

FROM THE CRITICS

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