A Fictional History of the United States With Huge Chunks Missing Edited by T Cooper and Adam Mansbach Akashic Books, 300pp, £10.99 ISBN 193335402X
In this eclectic anthology, Huck Finn has become Sassy Sarah (a cross-dressing hooker), the lunar landings are a film directed by Stanley Kubrick, and Gay Aviation Today uncovers the "real" story behind the Lindbergh kidnap scandal. But for all the comic irreverence, there is an underlying seriousness. Metaphors are thinly disguised: the intrepid explorers who set out to conquer America’s west are greedy, flatulent cannibals. Valerie Miner's contribution, "Apprehensions", collapses time
to paint a disturbing picture of McCarthyism "then and now".
Every piece has its own style, but they all share a common purpose: to challenge the dominant single-narrative version of US history and to resurrect those who have been written out of it. We meet Lillian, a Jewish immigrant struggling to survive in 1920s New York; Luisa and Patti, who strike up a lifelong romance during a seven-day strike in Woolworths; and Mr Ota Benga, snatched from the Belgian Congo to be put on show in the Bronx Zoo. As in any collection, the quality of individual contributions varies. But as a whole, this is a brilliantly executed attack on "official" history and the political forces that create it.
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