Thoughts on: Remember the Alamo! by Kevin D Randle
The Alamo in alternative history
History has always been a mild passion for me. While I would not be the type to take it up as a career, and I do have to laud those that do make it one, I am happy to be an outsider, looking in and reading the results of the of those brave enough to make it their career.
Enter Alternative History.
Alternative History is the ultimate extension to the question of "What if?". What if this happened instead of that, or that instead of this? What if the bullet had only injured Kennedy (as discussed in George Bernau's 'Promises to Keep'), or what if Hitler had won the war, as presented in Harry Turtledove's novels.
I think that the ideas and topics presented in alternative history can be almost as important as the actual history itself because it give us a way to look at what might have happened and thoughts on what steps could be taken.
A fun journey in history
Randle takes on a journey to the Alamo with a team of mercenaries with modern weaponry, so that they can join up with the soldiers protecting the site and help them secure victory.
While this is a paraphrase of what the book is about, the story itself is very deep, drawing the reader in and keeping your attention on the story and the action. In as much as possible, Randle keeps the book on par with the historical accounts and when he uses his artistic license, it is with grace and within what you might really expect for the situation that the people are in.
This book and others that you might like
If you are interested in this book, please consider picking up a copy of it, or one of the other AH stories listed below. I will warn you that Remember the Alamo! is a little hard to find these days, so you may have to buy used on Amazon.
Do you read alternative history?
Are you a fan of this genre, do not like it or have maybe never given it a chance?
Don't give up on this one early.
One thing I liked about this book was the surprise ending. It is important that if you read Remember the Alamo!, that you stick it out through the entire book. While you may get the general idea of where things are going, you are in for an ending that is very thought-provoking and will make you put the book down for a moment and say, "Well darn it!"
At least that is how I was about it when I read it. I ended up liking the book enough that I have read it three times now, in the last fifteen years or so. And the only other books I have done this will were the Lord of the Rings series.
This is fun for me, but what really makes it mean something is to hear what you, the reader, think. Good comments and negative comments are welcome.
