Jewish Alternate History

Descriptions come from the Uchronia alternate history bibliography, copyright 1999 by Robert Schmunk. The complete bibliography is available at http://www.uchronia.net.

Anderson, Poul, "In the House of Sorrows", in 
  %W Assyrians captured Jerusalem and the Diasporah occurred before
     Christianity could get started.
  %S Adventures of a courier from North Markland (America) in an alternate
     Israel/Palestine.

Averneri, Shlomo, "What If Sadat had Come to Jerusalem Under a Labor
     Government? (1977)", in 
  %W Itzhak Rabin accepted Rumania's Jan 1977 invitation for a state visit and
     while there was advised of Anwar Sadat's peace plans.
  %S Peace talks between Sadat and Rabin include King Hussein of Jordan,
     leading to an agreement that includes the West Bank, but not the PLO.

Benford, Gregory, "Valhalla", in 
  %S A man from a timeline where WW2 lasted til 1947, allowing completion of
     the Final Solution, travels back and sideways to take revenge on Hitler.

Bonanate, Ugo, ASCOLTA, ISRAELE (Lindau 1991, 8871800214)
  %W Early Christian communities were wiped out, and Judaism became the
     dominant Western religion.
  %S Modern scholars are stunned when archaelogists unearth copies of the
     Gospels.

Chesnoff, Richard Z., Edward Klein, & Robert Littell, IF ISRAEL LOST THE WAR
     (Coward-McCann 1969)
  %W While Israel hoped for a diplomatic settlement, Arab forces delivered a
     devastating surprise attack on 5 Jun 1967.
  %S A day-by-day account of the 6-day fall of Israel and its repercussions in
     the US, USSR and the new UAR.

Delaplace, Barbara, "Painted Bridges", in 
  %W Hitler was committed to an asylum before he gained power.
  %S A Jewish psychiatrist tries art therapy, but in the case of patient
     Schickelgruber it backfires powerfully.

Di Filippo, Paul, "Anne", in _Science Fiction Age_ Nov 1992
  %W Concerned about Hitler, Otto Frank sent his daughters to America with his
     brothers-in-law, where they move to Hollywood.
  %S Excerpts from the diary of Anne Holland, from reading for a part in THE
     WIZARD OF OZ to her divorce from Mickey Rooney in 1951.

Dick, Philip K., THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE (Putnam's 1962; Penguin 1965;
     Berkley 1974, 0425039080; Gollancz 1975, 0575019581; Gregg 1979,
     0839824769; Vintage 1992, 0679740678; ROC UK 1993, 014017172X)
  %T German tr. by Heinz Nagel as DAS ORAKEL VOM BERGE (Bastei-Lubbe 1982)
  %T Italian tr. by Riccardo Valla & Luca Signorelli as LA SVASTICA SUL SOLE
     (Editrice Nord 1993)
  %T Portuguese tr. by Silvia Escorel as O HOMEM DO CASTELO ALTO (Brasiliense
     1985)
  %W Before his 1933 inauguration, FDR was assassinated in Miami, which
     eventually led to the Axis winning WW2.
  %S Relations between Americans and their rulers, with light from the Tao and
     an AH novel about a world in which the Axis lost the war.
  %C Winner: 1963 Hugo for best novel

Eshed, Eli, "Skira shell historiot alternativiot leorech ahistoria", in _Amemad
     Ahsiri_ #2 (Dec 1996)
  %C Survey of all alternative histories about Jews and/or the state of Israel.

Fawcett, Bill, "Zealot", in 
  %W Moses led his people into guerrilla warfare.
  %S After three years of fighting, the Hebrews occupy pharaoh's Gizan palace,
     but find themselves beseiged by an overwhelming force.

Friesner, Esther, CHILD OF THE EAGLE: A MYTH OF ROME (Baen 1996, 0671877259)
  %W The goddess Venus appeared to Brutus on March 14 and convinced him not to
     kill Caesar
  %S ...

Friesner, Esther M., "Such a Deal", in  Jan 1992; and 
  %W Rejected by Ferdinand and Isabella, Columbus's voyage of discovery was
     instead financed by a Jewish Granadan merchant.
  %S As Catholic Spain lays siege to Granada, Columbus's ships return from
     meeting the Aztecs, and they carry more than gold.

Fry, Stephen, MAKING HISTORY (Hutchinson 1996)
  %S A time traveler prevents the birth of Hitler. A different Nazi leader
     arises, waiting until after Germany has won the war in Europe with nuclear
     weapons to implement the final solution.

Goldsmith, Howard, "Do Ye Hear the Children Weeping?", in 
  %W Germany won WW2.
  %S An American couple rents a house in Munich and find it haunted by the
     previous occupant's Dachau experiments.

Goldstein, Lisa, "Split Light", in TRAVELLERS IN MAGIC (Tor 1994, 031285790X);
     and THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION, TWELFTH ANNUAL COLLECTION (ed.
     Gardner Dozois) (St. Martin's 1995, 0312132220, 0312132212; SFBC 1995)
  %W Shabbetai Zevi did not convert from Judaism to Islam in order to save his
     life.
  %S After recalling how he came to be imprisoned in Constantinople, Zevi
     foresees both futures that could arise from his decision.

Haiblum, Isidore, THE TSADDIK OF THE SEVEN WONDERS (Ballantine 1971; Doubleday
     1981, 0385171374)
  %T German tr. by Ingrid Herrmann as DER ZADIK DER SIEBUN WUNDER (Heyne 1994,
     3453072669)
  %S Alternate events in Judaic history.

Hale, Edward Everett, "Hands Off", in _Harper's_ Mar 1881; HANDS OFF (J.S.
     Smith 1895); OUR CHRISTMAS IN A PALACE (publ. unknown); WORKS, VOL. 2
     (publ. unknown); ISAAC ASIMOV PRESENTS THE BEST FANTASY OF THE 19TH
     CENTURY (eds. Isaac Asimov, Charles G. Waugh & Martin H. Greenberg)
     (Beufort 1982, 0825300991); and 
  %T Italian tr. by Nicola Fantini as "GiĄ le mani", in 
  %W Joseph was not sold into slavery in Egypt.
  %S A godling discovers the implications of altering an event, as he watches
     the Phoenicians take over the Mediterranean.

Herloev Petersen, Arne, "Soefaerden til Cipangu", in _Information_ Oct 1992
  %W Columbus sails to Japan
  %S A Jewish translator on the Santa Maria saves Columbus from mutiny by

Jacobson, Dan, THE GOD-FEARER: A NOVEL (Bloomsbury 1992, 0747512582; Macmillan
     Atheneum 1993, 0684196603; Sceptre 1993, 0340594952)
  %W There was no Jewish revolt against Rome, and Judaism rather than
     Christianity became the dominant religion of Europe.
  %S C. 1400, an old Jewish man recalls the part he played as a youth in the
     persecution of a Christer girl for witchcraft.

Joergensen, Per C., "Neste aar i Jerusalem", in _Algernon_ Jan 1992
  %W Chaos elsewhere made imperial Russia the sole superpower, and about to
     start a war with the Baghdad Califate in a different '91.
  %S A Jewish refugee tries to get out of Jerusalem.

Laor, Yitzchak, AM MAHACHAL MELACHIM [or NATION KINGS FOOD] (Akhibutz Ameuhad
     1993)
  %S The Six Days War didn't happen due to Israeli soldiers refusing to fight.

Linaweaver, Brad, MOON OF ICE (Arbor House 1988, 0877959455; Tor 1993,
     0812520203); rev. of "Moon of Ice", in _Amazing Stories_ Mar 1982; and
     
  %T Italian tr. of orig. story by Carla Della Casa as "Luna di ghiaccio", in
     
  %W FDR was impeached in 1942, and Nazi Germany used nuclear weapons in 44 to
     win the war in Europe.
  %S The diaries of Joseph Goebbels and his daughter describe the victory, and
     an SS plot 20 years later to kill all non-Aryans via biological warfare.
----------------, "Under an Appalling Sky", in GRAILS: QUESTS, VISITATIONS, AND
     OTHER OCCURRENCES (eds. Richard Gilliam, Martin H. Greenberg & Edward E.
     Kramer) (Unnameable 1992; Penguin 1994); and GRAILS: VISITATIONS OF THE
     NIGHT (eds. Richard Gilliam,  Martin H. Greenberg & Edward E. Kramer) (ROC
     1994, 0451453042)
  %S A int'l expedition, dominated by Nazis trying to discredit Judaism, hunts
     for the Holy Grail and finds...yeti.
  %C Also in series is Linaweaver & Ritch's "The Littlest Stormbringer".

Malzberg, Barry, & Batya Swift Yasgur, "Letters in the Wall", in 
  %S ...

Malzberg, Barry N., "Ship Full of Jews", in _Omni_ Apr 92; and 
  %W Columbus carried several hundred deported Jews along during his first
     voyage.
  %S Columbus argues with a rabbi about conditions below decks. Meanwhile, over
     on the _Santa Maria_, Torquemada plots.

Morrow, James, "Bible Stories for Adults, No. 31: The Covenant", in ;
     and BIBLE STUDIES FOR ADULTS (Harcourt Brace 1996, 0156002442)
  %T Italian tr. by Gloria Barberi as "Storie della Biblica per adulti:
     L'Alleanza", in 
  %W Moses couldn't get a replacement set for the tablets he smashed on the
     golden calf, and society had to be constructed without them.
  %S An attempt to computer-reconstruct the law of Moses from the tablet
     shards, which have been saved.

Murphy, Walter F., "What If Peter Had Been Pope During World War II?", in
     
  %W God re-ran history, giving Pope Pius XII St. Peter's moral character.
  %C The Oct 1943 roundup of Roman Jews leads the Pope to criticize the 3rd
     Reich and Great Britain, and the Nazis attack the Vatican.

Newman, Kim, & Eugene Byrne, "The Wandering Christian", in TALES OF THE
     WANDERING JEW (ed. Brian Stableford) (Daedalus 1991, 0946626715)
  %W Constantine was defeated by Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge after his army
     panicked, making Christianity a laughing-stock of a religion.
  %S In 4759 (999 AD), the Wandering Jew/Christian tells the story of his life,
     from 30 AD Jerusalem to Persian-besieged Jewish Rome.

Pal, Amiram, "Masa Bemerhav Azman" [or "Journey in the Dimensin of Time"], in
     MASA BEMERHAV AZMAN (Or-Am 1980)
  %W Sanherive the Assyrian conquered Jerusalem c 700 BCE and sent the Jews
     into exile.
  %S Two time travelers from a Judaic world prevent the fall of Jerusalem.

Reich, Tova, "Mengele in Jerusalem", in _Harper's_ Jun 1986
  %W Josef Mengele, the Nazi doctor, hid in Jerusalem,
  %S The search for Mengele has an unusual conclusion.

Rowder, Louise, "The Symmetry of Duty", in ALTERNATE TYRANTS
  %W Albert Einstein becomes President of Israel
  %S Albert Einstein becomes corrupted by power

Rupin, Refael, MILHEMET AYHUDIM 2 [or THE JEWISH WAR 2] (Yaon Golan 1994)
  %S The Jews defeat the Romans in the great rebellion in 70 CE and build an
     independent state, which later destroys itself over internal squabbling.

Silverberg, Robert, "An Outpost of the Empire", in  Nov 1991
  %W The first Exodus failed on the shores of the Red Sea, preventing the rise
     of Christianity and its inclement effect on the Roman empire.
  %S 2200 years after the founding of Rome, a clash between the Western
     (Roman-influenced) and the declining Eastern (Greek-influenced) empires.
------------------, "Via Roma", in _Asimov's Science Fiction_ Apr 1994
  %S A Britannic visitor to Rome finds himself among the political "jet set"
     and sees from the sidelines the bloody creation of the 2nd Roman Republic.
------------------, "Tales from the Venia Woods", in  Oct 1989; and THE
     YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION, SEVENTH ANNUAL COLLECTION (ed. Gardner
     Dozois) (St. Martin's 1990, 0312044518, 0312044526)
  %T French tr. by Helene Collon as "Legendes de la foret Veniane", in LE NEZ
     DE CLEOPATRE (Denoel 1994, 2207241912)
  %S Early during the 2nd Republic, two children meet a mysterious old man
     hiding in a ruined imperial hunting lodge in the Teutonic provinces.
------------------, "To the Promised Land", in ; and THE COLLECTED
     STORIES OF ROBERT SILVERBERG: VOLUME I, SECRET SHARERS (Bantam 1992,
     055308996X, 0553370685)
  %S 4000 years after the failed Exodus, the few remaining Hebrews in Egypt
     plan a new Exodus, to space, and recruit an historian to write their tale.

Turtledove, Harry, "In the Presence of Mine Enemies", in  Jan 1992; and
     DEPARTURES (Ballantine 1993, 0345380118)
  %W Isolationist America stayed out of WW2 until it was attacked by Germany
     and Japan a generation after the fall of Britain and Russia.
  %S Even in a 2010 Berlin, at the heart of a world dominated by Nazi Germany,
     Jews will still survive.

Turtledove, Harry, WORLDWAR: IN THE BALANCE (Ballantine 1994, 0345382412; SFBC
     1994; Hodder & Stoughton 1994, 0340624906; NEL 1994, 0340618396;
     Ballantine 1995, 0345388526)
  %W Space aliens arrived on Earth in May 1942.
  %S Surprised to find Earth's technology so advanced after a visit 800 years
     before, the aliens still invade, forcing odd alliances between enemies.
-----------------, WORLDWAR: TILTING THE BALANCE (Ballantine 1995, 0345389972;
     SFBC 1995; Hodder & Stoughton 1995, 0340632399; NEL 1995, 0340648996;
     Ballantine 1996)
  %S The fight rages on into 1943, with beleaguered humanity pushing harder to
     exploit captured uranium.
-----------------, WORLDWAR: UPSETTING THE BALANCE (Ballantine 1996,
     0345402219; NEL 1996, 0340666986; Ballantine 1996, 0345402405)
  %S 1943 comes to a close with humanity slowly gaining ground after several
     nuclear exchanges.
-----------------, WORLDWAR: STRIKING THE BALANCE (Ballantine 1996, 0345405501;
     Hodder & Stoughton 1996)
  %S The war between humans and aliens slowly culminates in a series of
     negotiated peaces.

Watt-Evans, Lawrence, "Truth, Justice, and the American Way", in ; and
     CROSSTIME TRAFFIC (Ballantine 1992, 0345373952)
  %W Smith split the Democrats in 1932, causing Hoover to beat FDR. The
     US-Japan fight started earlier, and a firm response at Munich averted WW2.
  %S 20 years later, the Secretary of State looks for a country to which he can
     name a Jewish consul without offending the host government.

Weiss, Allan, "The Last of the Maccabees," in ARROWDREAMS
  %W [The Romans never fell and the Jews ended up in Canada]
  %C [A Roman explorer discovers descendents of the ancient Jews in
     the New World]

Wildavsky, Aaron, "What If the U.S. Had Had One Law for Its Allies and Another
     for Its Adversaries? The Suez Crisis (1956)", in 
  %W The US did not come down hard on France and Britain during the 1956 war.
  %C Scholarly speculations on alternative outcomes, including friendlier
     relations with France, and an Israel less threatened by Arabs.


Copyright 1999 Evelyn C. Leeper
eleeper@optonline.net
http://www.geocities.com/evelynleeper
February 12, 1999
Modified November 2, 2000