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Saving JFK
What if?
Interloping time travelers from the year 2028--Emma, a dynamic seventeen year old; Ethan, her impulsive twin brother; Zak, a very special best friend, and their time travel guide, Dr. Currant---an eccentric, well-preserved "baby boomer" inventor--spin back the clock to stop the Chicago assassination of President Kennedy and resurrect the American Dream.
This is a time-traveling road show filled with nostalgia and nastiness, fact and fantasy, and hope for the future. By 2028, decades of official denial and concealment have left Americans with an empty shell of a country constructed on a foundation of a fictional history. But the quartet from the future is determined to rework the past.
They leave the monotonous madness of the year 2028, a dystopia-utopia, a time of no privacy, and total government control--and experience the joy, sadness and danger of an earlier, bolder era filled with hope for the future. On the way, they meet Ferrie, Banister, Oswald, the mysterious Umbrella Man, the Three Tramps and other conspiratorial characters. As they travel in the bizarre, bloody world of 1960's American politics, their retro-quest to rescue JFK exposes a stunning new view of the "Crime of the Century".
Based on the facts of the recently revealed Chicago assassination attempt on JFK twenty days before Dallas.
Interloping time travelers from the year 2028--Emma, a dynamic seventeen year old; Ethan, her impulsive twin brother; Zak, a very special best friend, and their time travel guide, Dr. Currant---an eccentric, well-preserved "baby boomer" inventor--spin back the clock to stop the Chicago assassination of President Kennedy and resurrect the American Dream.
This is a time-traveling road show filled with nostalgia and nastiness, fact and fantasy, and hope for the future. By 2028, decades of official denial and concealment have left Americans with an empty shell of a country constructed on a foundation of a fictional history. But the quartet from the future is determined to rework the past.
They leave the monotonous madness of the year 2028, a dystopia-utopia, a time of no privacy, and total government control--and experience the joy, sadness and danger of an earlier, bolder era filled with hope for the future. On the way, they meet Ferrie, Banister, Oswald, the mysterious Umbrella Man, the Three Tramps and other conspiratorial characters. As they travel in the bizarre, bloody world of 1960's American politics, their retro-quest to rescue JFK exposes a stunning new view of the "Crime of the Century".
Based on the facts of the recently revealed Chicago assassination attempt on JFK twenty days before Dallas.
302 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 3, 2011
4 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
W. Green
15 books1 followerI grew up on the far Northwest side of the Windy City, attending Taft High School with more notable others like Terry Kath (Chicago), Jim Jacobs (Grease), and Jim Grabowski (Packers). I can thank fascinating teachers like Harry S. Miller, who piqued my interest in flying saucers, banned cancer cures, and the visualization process; and John Brow, who led me into the writing life.
Before I became a full-time writer, I was a principal architect and real estate executive. I also have experience as a golf course caddie, drive-in restaurant manager, door-to-door salesman, and as a long-term student, leading to a B.Architecture from the University of Illinois and a J.D. from Loyola University of Chicago. I spent the '67 Summer of Love exploring Europe in a Volkswagen pickup truck, and for six months just after the 1968 May Day protests, I attended architectural school in Paris.
I have written both fiction and nonfiction books, but my sole focus now is writing fiction. Each of my books begins with the question: What if? Many words later, I may have an answer.
Architects and writers have visions, plan them out in detail, and then build structures, stacking bricks or words one after another to create the form. These are similar, satisfying creative processes that I have enjoyed for a lifetime.
Before I became a full-time writer, I was a principal architect and real estate executive. I also have experience as a golf course caddie, drive-in restaurant manager, door-to-door salesman, and as a long-term student, leading to a B.Architecture from the University of Illinois and a J.D. from Loyola University of Chicago. I spent the '67 Summer of Love exploring Europe in a Volkswagen pickup truck, and for six months just after the 1968 May Day protests, I attended architectural school in Paris.
I have written both fiction and nonfiction books, but my sole focus now is writing fiction. Each of my books begins with the question: What if? Many words later, I may have an answer.
Architects and writers have visions, plan them out in detail, and then build structures, stacking bricks or words one after another to create the form. These are similar, satisfying creative processes that I have enjoyed for a lifetime.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 6, 2012
"Saving JKF" by W. Green really appealed to me when I read the synopsis as I do enjoy a good time travel yarn and I have always been interested in some of the conspiracy theories around the Kennedy assassination. The story itself follows two twins, Emma and Ethan, their friend Zak and the slightly eccentric Dr Currant who are living in the year 2028. In their time, everything is monitored and controlled with little real freedom available. History itself is only portrayed in a manner which is acceptable to the government without variation.
However, some people question this history although this is done in private as the government does not tolerate such heresy and has even banned time travel to ensure no one could ever alter what has been written. However, when Dr Currant illegally builds a time machine, he is joined by the twins and their friend on a trip into the 1960's.
Whilst Dr Currant appears to have his own secret reasons for traveling into the past, Ethan, his sister and their friend believe that the root of their loss of rights emanates from one point, the assassination of President Kennedy. Therefore, they set out on a mission to alter time and prevent the assassination in the hope that a better future is created.
The plot itself is a rather standard time travel affair with a group of people from the future trying to use what they know about the past to ensure a major incident is avoided. It does have a good mix of assassination, conspiracy and history and I enjoyed seeing the way in which Green tried to blend some of the real people and places into his fiction. However, I have to admit it didn't really wow me as I have seen this type of thing so many times before.
What I did really like however were the little side stories that Green managed to insert into the story. Some seemingly minor encounters in the past were then used to create some rather interesting and surprising outcomes in the future. These really did enhance the story and it was nice to see this odd bit of realistic selfishness in the characters.
One little niggle I wish to highlight is in regards to the sub-title of the book which is "Time Travel Twins". In all honesty, the twins themselves didn't seem any more important to the story than Zak or Dr Currant so I don't know why the author chose to focus on them. I suppose it may just have been an easy name to use for what could be a potential series of novels. It just makes the book sound like a rather weak young adult affair when it really isn't and it may have put me off reading the book had I actually known it which would have been a shame.
Overall this is a standard time travel novel that should appeal to fans of that sub-genre provided they aren't looking for anything that original. The book isn't lacking detail and I think some of the people who question the truth behind Kennedy's assassination may really enjoy the way in which Green has tried to embrace the possible conspiracy.
However, some people question this history although this is done in private as the government does not tolerate such heresy and has even banned time travel to ensure no one could ever alter what has been written. However, when Dr Currant illegally builds a time machine, he is joined by the twins and their friend on a trip into the 1960's.
Whilst Dr Currant appears to have his own secret reasons for traveling into the past, Ethan, his sister and their friend believe that the root of their loss of rights emanates from one point, the assassination of President Kennedy. Therefore, they set out on a mission to alter time and prevent the assassination in the hope that a better future is created.
The plot itself is a rather standard time travel affair with a group of people from the future trying to use what they know about the past to ensure a major incident is avoided. It does have a good mix of assassination, conspiracy and history and I enjoyed seeing the way in which Green tried to blend some of the real people and places into his fiction. However, I have to admit it didn't really wow me as I have seen this type of thing so many times before.
What I did really like however were the little side stories that Green managed to insert into the story. Some seemingly minor encounters in the past were then used to create some rather interesting and surprising outcomes in the future. These really did enhance the story and it was nice to see this odd bit of realistic selfishness in the characters.
One little niggle I wish to highlight is in regards to the sub-title of the book which is "Time Travel Twins". In all honesty, the twins themselves didn't seem any more important to the story than Zak or Dr Currant so I don't know why the author chose to focus on them. I suppose it may just have been an easy name to use for what could be a potential series of novels. It just makes the book sound like a rather weak young adult affair when it really isn't and it may have put me off reading the book had I actually known it which would have been a shame.
Overall this is a standard time travel novel that should appeal to fans of that sub-genre provided they aren't looking for anything that original. The book isn't lacking detail and I think some of the people who question the truth behind Kennedy's assassination may really enjoy the way in which Green has tried to embrace the possible conspiracy.
October 23, 2012
I like that the book is set slightly in the future.. and if we keep allowing our government to keep trampling all over our rights.. that we are well on our way to becoming a very paranoid nation. With the Government as the most paranoid of them all.
The story is about three teenagers and one much older man who travel back to 1963. They all have their own reasons for going. One teen very much wants to stop the assassination of JFK. Interestingly.. they go back in time to JFK originally being murdered in Chicago.
I don't want to give any spoilers.. Just know.. that the author does a wonderful job of describing in rich detail all that one would experience.. if one could go back in time. From the relaxed manner of the population.. to everyone smoking! lol No one butted into other people's conversations. In fact.. to do so.. was considered EXTREMELY rude. (which it still is)
I'd highly recommend the story for any age group. There's something in this fantastic tale.. for everyone!
The story is about three teenagers and one much older man who travel back to 1963. They all have their own reasons for going. One teen very much wants to stop the assassination of JFK. Interestingly.. they go back in time to JFK originally being murdered in Chicago.
I don't want to give any spoilers.. Just know.. that the author does a wonderful job of describing in rich detail all that one would experience.. if one could go back in time. From the relaxed manner of the population.. to everyone smoking! lol No one butted into other people's conversations. In fact.. to do so.. was considered EXTREMELY rude. (which it still is)
I'd highly recommend the story for any age group. There's something in this fantastic tale.. for everyone!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews