Ms. Smarty Pants Know It All

Edited by Robert Cowley. (The World’s Foremost Military Historians Imagine What Might Have Been)

I tend to think that if you are interested in history, you’re automatically interested, at least to a small degree, in counterfactual history (or virtual history).

“What If”s are already a part of historical study. Why did people make certain choices and not others? Why did events move along this one path instead of taking any number of tangents along the way?

I have not read either:

• What If?: The World’s Foremost Military Historians Imagine What Might Have Been -or-
• What If? 2: Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been

But I pulled this audiobook down off the library shelf with interest. I think this contains selected essays from both of the books listed above.

Overall, I’m a little disappointed with the experience.

First, I fully admit that perhaps I had already indulged too much in the “What If” world. Many of the topics presented are pretty mainstream. Although, I don’t think you have to be a fan of counterfactuals to share my opinion. I think any military history enthusiast would already be familiar with many of the extrapolations in the book.

I think that’s the problem with doing a book series like this. To explain the alternatives succinctly, you have to rely on the audience to actually know the original.

But if your audience of history buffs already knows the original, then they are already going to understand some of the alternatives.

Since I listened to these essays rather than reading them, I don’t know if there are maps and diagrams involved. Again, the author needs the reader to at least understand the basics of military study—weaponry, tactics, terrain, etc.

Therefore, a general reader will not be able to listen to this audiobook and get much out of it. But, I feel that the essays are geared towards more of a mass audience. The topics are more popularistic and not as mired in historical minutia.

This combination, however, makes the collection miss both audiences. It’s too bland and easy for the knowledgeable investigator. Yet it is too advanced and reliant on previous knowledge for the brand new learner.

That’s not to say that all of the pieces missed their marks, but as a whole, I think it does.

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