Press and Reviews

Reviews:

"Blair creates a terrifying depiction of a democratic country transformed into terrorized totalitarianism. . . An apt and enthralling remake that projects such alarming realism, it's difficult not to fear the onset of such a sinister dystopia."
     - Kirkus Discoveries

"Destined to Become An Underground Classic...This author has accomplished the most difficult task for a novelist: writing a sequel, with skill and verisimilitude, of another person's work. We couldn't put this book down. It is just too close to the truth, just a couple of turns of the screw away from what>America is becoming."
    - Buzzflash.com

"This is a hell of a story, deftly-written, with a wacky, delicious sense of humor...a clever and imaginative understatement of the crazy world in which we now live."
     -Frank McCourt, author of Angela's Ashes

"Whether it strikes one as satire or dystopic nightmare, this novel will be accessible to those who don't generally read speculative fiction: it just hits that close to home. Highlighting this country's current and frighteningly potential parallels with the world of 1984, it depicts a totalitarian and renamed "God's United States," the Constitution replaced by the "Patriotic Citizen's Bill of Rights and Responsibilities," the one media outlet-Foxy News-run by the government, millions labeled "subversive" who're corralled in ghettos and privatized prisons, and further horrors. The protagonist, Winston Smith, works for the Department of Homeland Security of a decade from now. He makes the mistake of starting to express independent thought and ends up running for his life...it's one heck of a gripping and provocative read.
     - Seeley Quest, Modern Times Book Store Staff Pick of the Month Review (San Francisco)

"The plot is surprisingly engaging, offering a gratifying element of suspense, and the premise is deeply thought provoking. I found myself wanting to discuss this book with everyone I knew. . . America 2014 walks a thin line between visionary and paranoid, which may ultimately be a strength in the debates it has the power to provoke. While I doubt the likelihood in ten years of Predator Drones sweeping down from the sky and instantly destroying suspected 'subversives,' it is undeniable that the foreign policy Blair imagines is straight out of the neocon’s Plan for a New American Century. Foxy News’ propaganda-centered stranglehold on the media strikes uncomfortably close to home in this time of media consolidation and 'embedded reporters.'  If not great literature, America 2014 is nevertheless highly readable and provocative, a call to action in the face of an administration whose assault on civil liberties, international law, and truth would make Orwell write another book. You will want to join the Resistance, before it’s too late."
    - Neela Ghoshal, NYC Indy Media

"I was surprised to find that I enjoyed the novel. Initially skeptical of its premise, I found myself enjoying the story, in part because the author chooses plot over polemicism, every time. It's a good, quick pre-election read, and a self-aware homage to Orwell's dystopian masterpiece."
    - Blogger Mathew Gross

"The Bush Administration's relentless assault on civil liberties lends a haunting realism to this gripping fiction.  It is a frightening tale of where this government's erosion of our Constitution might take us if allowed to continue"
    - Professor Linn Washington Jr., civil rights columnist for the Philadelphia Tribune

Amazon Reader Reviews:

“I'm left speechless after reading this book; I couldn't put it down. Very scary but very believable as well! I enjoyed the "name connection". Good ending - but sad, as is the situation of our Country. Everyone should read America 2014. This is truly a wake-up call.”
    - Barbara Bartlett, VT

“America 2014 is a powerful statement that even a busy student can find the time to read, enjoy, and ponder.”
    - Andrew Demers, PA

“The book was very readable and also very compelling. I think it is very believable, and I wouldn't count myself as one that normally would be easily led by this sort of novel. I'd give it a B.”
    - Patrick Benton, ME

“I found it to be a really interesting read. As I first starting reading it, it felt a little hamhanded, as if it went too far, but as I kept going and starting really thinking about it, I was rather disturbed at how little suspension of belief was required.”
    - Jed Sorokin-Altmann, NH

“America 2014 is one of the best books I have ever read. It's 1984 repackaged with relevance to today. Dawn Blair (a pseudonym) cleverly creates a world in which the supreme power is George O. Blush, and in which Homeland Security has become similar to the Gestapo. America 2014 poses the scary question: "What If?" What if George W. Bush continues to pass more Patriot Acts (a staple of the book, and instrumental in taking away freedoms of Americans), and what if he runs for a third term? I read this book on a recent vacation to Mexico and finished it in about four hours. It's a smooth, great quick read. And the fabulous thing about it is how relevant it is. Everything's not just drawn up as in a science-fiction tale, but it draws off things from the present day (i.e. the Patriot Act, Homeland Security, etc.). Coming back from my trip, I saw that several of the things mentioned in America 2014 had been implemented in America. Fingerprint readers and Cameras were now present at each U.S. Customs booth. Is the world becoming like America 2014? Let's hope not.”
    - Daniel Smirg, CT

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