''The Disunited States of America'' is an alternate history novel by

Harry Turtledove Harry Norman Turtledove (born June 14, 1949) is an American author who is best known for his work in the genres of alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and mystery fiction. He is a student of history and completed hi ...

. It is a part of the Crosstime Traffic series, and takes place in an alternate world where the U.S. was never able to agree on a

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these pr ...

and continued to govern under the

Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 Colonies of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777) by ...

. By the early 1800s, the nation dissolved with each state as a separate country. The states trade with each other, engage in diplomacy, and even go to war with each other. Other states exist which do not in our world, such as Boone.

Plot summary

The story takes place in the 2090s and concerns two outsiders caught up in a war between

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

: a young girl from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

visiting relatives with her grandmother, and a boy from our world's Crosstime Traffic trading firm.

Development

One of the pre-publication title candidates was ''The Untied States of America''.

Literary significance and reception

Frieda Murray reviewing for ''

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

'' said that this novel was "the best so far in this Turtledove series, with characters that you care about and action that, while grim, is plausible and engaging." ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' in their review said "Turtledove delivers lessons on racism and diplomacy for a young adult audience."

References

2006 American novels Crosstime Traffic novels Fiction set in the 2090s Tor Books books Novels set in North America {{2000s-ah-novel-stub

Plot summary

Development

Literary significance and reception

See also

References