Exit Blue, by Ivan G. Goldman

Some books are different – stand out in the crowd. Exit Blue is one of them. To large extents it stands out because of its theme: Goldman writes about a somewhat inglorious future. America, in 2019, where some states – the Blue states – have seceded from the Union. Not only that, the book also features the return of a not so terribly talented but oh so persistent political dynasty out of Texas. A family, as it were, who has had several members who have occupied that not quite square office in that house which is white.

The author, Ivan G. Goldman, is a Fulbright Scholar and New York Times-best-selling writer. He has written three novels and is a columnist for The Ring magazine. His work has also appeared in Columbia Journalism Review, Utne Reader, The Nation, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other journals. He and his wife live in southern California.

In Exit Blue, the latest member of the dynasty to occupy the center of power follows the family tradition and launches yet another attack in the ongoing war against terror (or against evil, if you prefer that take on it). While previous actions of the same type by elders of the dynasty may not have been remarkable as far as finding the best spots to attack, the decision this time is even more lame than usual: Bunny launches an attack on Denmark, which is now labeled as “the central front in the war on terror”.

So now we get the usual carpet-bombing – this time of Copenhagen – and a number of other great follies, all more or less engineered by the extremely powerful vice president Magoo. Magoo is a guy who is serviceD by a number of health professionals, and who gets younger and healthier by the month.

However, things are different this time. The Blue states get fed up by the war mongering in Washington, and secession from the Union takes place, followed by a new union.

The action is simply hilarious. The story is told by a handsome Air Force veteran now working as a ghost writer who gets very close to the president and her twin sister. This is a political satire full of imaginative scenarios and includes a rich set of characters that will amuse you. Exit Blue is fun, sharp, at times pretty intelligent, and at times sadly close to stuff that actually has happened in the real world. So this is a different book. One you might well enjoy a lot.

Links to books by Ivan G. Goldman at Amazon US and Amazon UK.

Tagged as: book review, Exit Blue, Fiction, political satire