worlds from a microscopic perspective. Rather than focus on world leaders and governments, the author adopts the point of view of a few “ordinary” citizens, trying to show what their lives are like in this particular fictional reality.

The author adopts his customary storytelling convention in Powerless. The book’s protagonist is Charlie Simpkins, the manager of a fruit-and-vegetable market selling fresh produce in Los Angeles. Charlie had been apolitical his entire life until he received the latest propaganda poster (“Workers of the World United!”) from the unspecified powers that be. Rather than hang the poster in his window, as the government requires, Charlie decides he’s had enough of the status quo. He tears the poster up and throws it in the trash. Word of Charlie’s action gets around, and he is soon reassigned to a new job as a warehouse worker at a location several miles farther from his home.

Fortunately, Charlie has a guardian angel of sorts in Alex Eichenlode, a progressive politician in the governing Politburo. He sends Alex a letter of support, and when Eichenlode eventually gains power, Charlie gets his old job back and enjoys a somewhat improved lifestyle. Eichenlode’s government also introduces various reforms, including a freer press, all in the name of making “true Communism” easier to achieve. Those familiar with European history of the 1960s can probably guess what will eventually happen to Eichenlode’s government and its quest for true Communism.

Those expecting life in the WCPDC to be a uniquely Americanized version of European Communism circa 1960 will be disappointed by “Powerless.” Other than a few quirks (such as many families, including Charlie’s, naming their children “Nikita” or “Svetlana” to curry favor with the authorities), life in Los Angeles is pretty much like life in Moscow of that era. However, I realize that many of those younger than me are unfamiliar with life under the version of Communism that existed back then. This book may prove educational in that regard. Like most people in Los Angeles, Charlie and his wife Lucille are on the waiting list to get a car, a television, and a telephone. Charlie takes the notoriously unreliable bus to work. Typewriters have an even longer waiting list; Charlie figures it’s because the government doesn’t want people printing anti-Communist propaganda.

Those interested in learning more about life in the Soviet Union will be much better off reading a history book than Powerless. Turtledove’s book is a novel set in an alternate universe, not a factual history, so the events he portrays aren’t always accurate depictions of the era. The author also makes the same points over and over, to increasingly less effect. For example, Charlie and Lucille caution each other at least a dozen times their house may have been bugged by the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation). Readers may be shocked to hear that the first time, but by the tenth repetition, the warning becomes monotonous.

This extreme repetition results from the author’s narrative choice in Powerless. He tells the story almost exclusively from Charlie’s point of view. However, other than his initial act of defiance in tearing up the poster, Charlie is a relatively passive individual with no real authority. The author tries to compensate for this narrative decision by making Charlie an avid reader. He reads the Los Angeles Times and Daily Worker on the bus each morning and is clever enough to read between the lines to guess what’s actually going on in Sacramento and Moscow. He also has frequent discussions with customers, his former co-workers in the warehouse, and even a local Communist Party official who drops by the store occasionally to relay the party line. Charlie isn’t always very forthcoming because of his fear that anyone he’s talking to may be an informer, but readers are privy to his thoughts, even when he doesn’t verbalize them.

I kept waiting for something dramatic or exciting to happen to Charlie, but nothing ever did. His career has its trials, but nothing extraordinary. Mostly, he does his job, which the author describes in vague, general terms, and he reads, listens, and sometimes talks. Many dramatic things occur at a safe distance around Charlie, but he and the readers remain insulated for nearly the entire book. Charlie is a dull protagonist, and Powerless is often a dull book.

The only reason to read Powerless is to get a better idea of what life under Communism was like in its heyday. However, Communism in the 21st century is far different from what it was 60 years ago. China and some other countries remain autocracies, but their economies are quite Westernized. I realize many readers in the social media era will never pick up a history text but will read genre fiction like Powerless. The book is meticulously researched and will be educational for many. For that reason, I can give Powerless a two-star rating, but I can’t recommend it.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.