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The Cold Last Swim

door Junior Burke

Leden	Besprekingen	Populariteit	Gemiddelde beoordeling	Aanhalingen
12	5	1,630,799	(3.5)	5
"The genesis of this novel of alternate history is a December 1954 photograph taken during a live television performance of the General Electric Theater. In the photo, young James Dean is brandishing a pistol at fellow actor (and weekly show-host) Ronald Reagan. The juxtaposition is startling. Two cultural icons, one who would be dead within a year, and even though having had only one feature film released in his lifetime, would be immortalized as a symbol of cool rebellion. The other, in a little over a quarter century, would become leader of the free world, the standard bearer of traditional and even fundamentalist values. Although the story is largely from Jimmy's viewpoint, Reagan is not meant to be seen as a villain; nor is Jimmy a hero. In many ways, THE COLD LAST SWIM is classical Greek drama: Reagan's Apollo, god of light, warmth, and temperance; Jimmy's Bacchus, license, alienation, and impulse. One can clearly picture each in fifties America, Reagan firmly established among the open freeways and unblemished skies of sunny Los Angeles; Jimmy, emerging from the black and white shadows of a rainy New York street. Alternate history demands that at least one significant event be changed yet the narrative that is affected still could have happened in the wake of that invented occurrence. In THE COLD LAST SWIM, quite a number of events are nuanced, but all could have plausibly unfolded in its own parallel universe. While a period piece, The Cold Last Swim is wholly contemporary, as in it, the seeds are being sown for the cultural gulf that divides America today. The elements are inherently cinematic, and with the twelve-year frame of the narrative and a tightly enmeshed ensemble, it could ultimately serve as a container for a long form television series. The 1954 to 1966 span is quite purposeful. When we look back at the 1950s there is an elegance which, by 1966, was still apparent. What is termed "the sixties" is most often the street violence, rock festivals and war-torn Vietnam images that flooded the final few years of that decade. By 1966, demonstrations remained largely peaceful, the Woodstock nation was not in evidence and the Vietnam War had yet to be substantially escalated. In other words, the fuse had been lit but the explosion was still to take place"--… (meer)

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1950s (decade) (1) 2020 (1) Advance Uncorrected Proof (1) Alternatieve geschiedenis (2) ER book (1) ER books not owned (1) ERR (1) Fictie (3) James Dean (1) January 2020 (1) Koude Oorlog (1) kph (1) noir fiction (1) Please Not to Forget (1) Ronald Reagan (1) Verlaten (1) Vroege recensenten (2)

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Toon 5 van 5

Deze bespreking is geschreven voor LibraryThing Vroege Recensenten.

I did not enjoy this book. Although the premise was appealing, something about the writing style really did not work for me. The characters felt flat and the most interesting events of the novel were rushed through. I very nearly did not finish this book, but kind of forced myself to keep going hoping it would somehow improve. Unfortunately, it did not, and I found it a very unsatisfying read.

theodarling | Jun 18, 2020 |

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The Cold Last Swim is a strange and imaginative book. It creates an alternative history that imagines James Dean shot Ronald Reagan in an act of method-acting run amok. Was it accidental or impulsive or premeditated? There is a trial but James Dean died before the end…at least in the eyes of the world. In the epic “chickie run” from “Rebel Without a Cause” Dean is believed to have gone over the cliff with his car when his jacket catches on the car.

Seeing the opportunity in the confusion, Dean avoids prison through assuming alternate identities that bring him to New York City and Berlin in personae that connect with his past, to his songwriter friend Specs who must be a nod to Phil Spector and the “wall of sound” and his race-car friend Rudi. These are true friendships that have profound effects in Dean’s life, but also on the lives of his friends.

Meanwhile, Ronald Reagan continues his inexorable rise to power with the help of the political operators right out of C.R.E.E.P. There’s a lot of action and a fast, and quirky plot that will surprise you in its ability to come round full circle.

I liked The Cold Last Swim. It suits the James Dean of the novel and of history. There are ways the book reminds me of James Ellroy with the conspiratorial no-holds-barred rush of a plot. No one uses language like Ellroy, but there his kind of quirk running deeply through the story.

I received an ARC of The Cold Last Swim from the publisher through LibraryThing.

The Cold Last Swim at Gibson House Press
Junior Burke author site

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2020/05/20/9781948721103/ (

)

Tonstant.Weader | May 20, 2020 |

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What happens if Ronald Reagan is shot, not in the Eighties, but in the Fifties by James Dean. That is but the star of an intriguing look through an alternate history focusing on Dean’s troubles and tribulations. (

)

mrmapcase | Apr 26, 2020 |

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This book is a great character study of James Dean. Unfortunately I am not as big a fan of Dean’s as I thought I was because I found myself being more irritated than charmed by his self-destructive and callous behavior. Reading about him helps me understand why he was callous and self-destructive, but the book just didn't appeal. (

)

karenmarie | Feb 29, 2020 |

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Junior Burke’s The Cold Last Swim begins with James Dean shooting Ronald Reagan on live television, leading to a spiraling series of events in an alternate history of Hollywood, the music industry, journalism, and conspiracies from March 1954 – November 1966. Those familiar with the film industry will catch references to the changing nature of film between Rebel Without a Cause and Easy Rider, while the character of Jill Parnell reflects the stories of any number of starlets from Hollywood families between the 1950s and 1960s. While Burke portrays the shooting giving life to Reagan’s political career, he juxtaposes it against a secretive governmental agency in which Zeke Mallory works to support the rising tide of conservatism during the 1950s and 1960s. Other characters, like Specs Pelham, reflect the changing nature of music while Garland Alpert, Oona Stickney, and Hiram Freeman reflect different attitudes toward journalism amid the rising counterculture. Those familiar with the cultural history of this period will find Burke’s novel an interesting alternate history that, through its liberties, underlines some of the truths of this dynamic time. (

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DarthDeverell | Feb 16, 2020 |

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"The genesis of this novel of alternate history is a December 1954 photograph taken during a live television performance of the General Electric Theater. In the photo, young James Dean is brandishing a pistol at fellow actor (and weekly show-host) Ronald Reagan. The juxtaposition is startling. Two cultural icons, one who would be dead within a year, and even though having had only one feature film released in his lifetime, would be immortalized as a symbol of cool rebellion. The other, in a little over a quarter century, would become leader of the free world, the standard bearer of traditional and even fundamentalist values. Although the story is largely from Jimmy's viewpoint, Reagan is not meant to be seen as a villain; nor is Jimmy a hero. In many ways, THE COLD LAST SWIM is classical Greek drama: Reagan's Apollo, god of light, warmth, and temperance; Jimmy's Bacchus, license, alienation, and impulse. One can clearly picture each in fifties America, Reagan firmly established among the open freeways and unblemished skies of sunny Los Angeles; Jimmy, emerging from the black and white shadows of a rainy New York street. Alternate history demands that at least one significant event be changed yet the narrative that is affected still could have happened in the wake of that invented occurrence. In THE COLD LAST SWIM, quite a number of events are nuanced, but all could have plausibly unfolded in its own parallel universe. While a period piece, The Cold Last Swim is wholly contemporary, as in it, the seeds are being sown for the cultural gulf that divides America today. The elements are inherently cinematic, and with the twelve-year frame of the narrative and a tightly enmeshed ensemble, it could ultimately serve as a container for a long form television series. The 1954 to 1966 span is quite purposeful. When we look back at the 1950s there is an elegance which, by 1966, was still apparent. What is termed "the sixties" is most often the street violence, rock festivals and war-torn Vietnam images that flooded the final few years of that decade. By 1966, demonstrations remained largely peaceful, the Woodstock nation was not in evidence and the Vietnam War had yet to be substantially escalated. In other words, the fuse had been lit but the explosion was still to take place"--

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