I don’t even think I need to mention who Harry Turtledove is - I bet on liberal forums I would probably have to or they look him up. That is why I think a boycott of him by the right would be devastating to him - I bet that is most if not all of his reading audience.
Too bad, I always liked his books.
I really enjoyed his “Guns of the South”. And it made the case the Robert E. Lee was never a virulent racist who would sympathize with a modern nazi type racist.
He must be scared they are coming after him next.
Oh well, I didn’t even know he was still alive. So that’s how relevant he is today.
Got a link to your blog?
Yes, he is. He entered the real book market by trying to endear himself to the Southern US Democrats with a book “Guns of the South” as alternate history/sci-fi that the CSA won the war with the North, and did so with the help of (of course, what else NEO NAZI white South Africans trying to alter history and fight their Communist takeover, by sending AK-47’s through a time machine back to 1860’s, as well as other modern technical inventions/pharma, to give the CSA the number advantage (penicillin, antibiotics too) and armament superiority).
His politics made HUGE assumptions about Southern heritage contemporary voters— racists, Nazis, etc. The SAME as what he is touting now— and still missing the point that these views were all shared by DEMOCRATS. In the North a rather famous group were Copperheads, and those supporting McClellan vs. Lincoln. A huge gap in his assumptions— because today the white and black ultra libs are ALL for the destruction of the entire Constitutional Union by SOCIALISM,
and not NATIONALIST Socialism but Globalist Socialism— which is, of course Communism.
Just now y’all figurin’ that out?
I figured out he was a Leftist from his fiction long ago.
Doesn’t mean he isn’t a good and imaginative writer, though.
Not sure if it was him but there was this book I saw once and never got. Now I cannot even find a title. It was an alternative history that places a Special Forces A team in with the defenders of the Alamo.
Dang it. I should have bought it. Oh well, at least every knife I bought in the 70s and 80s is now a prized collectible. Just luck I guess. But I made sure my daughter knew what each was and showed her what they go for on Ebay. I didn’t want her to use them for digging in the garden. She just shook her head and said she’s going to have some questions someday if I’m ever sedated.
The author?
I liked his books until I met him at a 2002 book signing and found him to be an ugly, pompous jerk. That he turns out to be the exact type of loud-mouthed, secular Jewish collectivist that has done so much damage to American art and literature over the past several decades comes as no surprise.
Tried to read on his book about 20+ years ago.
First chapter was a bore, skipped to middle and it didn’t get any better.
Had forgotten this dude even existed until I read recent posts about him.
I never read his book about the South being given automatic weapons to win the Civil War because it sounded like stupid BS. I’m not surprised to learn that he’s an idiot.
I used to read him but when he started padding out the lizard alien invasion series with boring repetitive novels I knew he was just another hack. Eff him.
His writing has been shit for ages anyway.
Never heard of him
I read Guns of The South, and also enjoyed his Worldwar/Colonization series (1994-2004), where in the middle of WWII, reptilian aliens invade. Not very bright aliens, but technologically advanced.
Boycott on! Oh, wait I guess I was already boycotting him because I’ve never heard of him or care about any of these social media mouth breathing asshats. One reason is I don’t walk around all day with my “device” in my hand worshiping at the alter of social media, as a matter of fact I don’t even have a “device”. So, Boycott on!
I liked Guns Of The South and honestly thought he’d died. I’ve got A lot of other good stuff to read so I doubt I’ll bother digging into his writings in the near future. I’ve noticed that several of my fav sci-fi authors all seems to be left leaning loons but damn if they still can’t write a good story, I buy their books used or half priced (never new), ignore the political leanings
And enjoy the stories.
That Turtledove is left leaning is not a surprise.
Neither is the fact he is apparently a jerk in real life.
That doesn’t mean he’s not a good writer. I gave up on World War and never started the alternate WWI series.
But the “Agent of Byzantium” series, the Videssos Cycle and it’s sequels, and a lot of his short stories (”The Road Not Taken”, “The Last Article”, and “Hindsight” for example) are especially good.
With the exception of Marion Zimmer Bradley* I generally do not boycott authors over their non-literary activities.
*Child Sexual Abuse is a different matter...
Bleh. Gave up on him years ago anyway - his books are all repetitive dreck. I somehow doubt he was clever enough to write a “alternate history book generator”, but after a couple, it sure felt that way.