The Jump

by Mark Paxson

Airplanes crashing into buildings, cities destroyed by The President's Men, the country left as a patchwork quilt of functioning states and those filled with people with no hope. A construction crane transported around the country for the distressed and depressed to end their misery. The Jump, a tale that takes place in a not-too-distant future, is an absurdist, dystopian take on an America ruled by a President who has declared martial law, created a cult of personality, and ruled as a dictator for far too long. It's a world where nothing makes sense and so much is not known.

This is gonna be fun. Trust me. (Berthold Gambrel, The Directorate)

152 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 1, 2025

About the author

I've spent my life reading and always wanted to write. About ten years ago, I started One Night in Bridgeport, a legal thriller. Bridgeport is now available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon, and in all other e-reader formats on Smashwords.

Writing that story opened the door to writing. I've since written about 45 short stories -- with two stories published by The First Line and two at www.toasted-cheese.com.

Weed Therapy, about a man's journey to find happiness, is my next novel ready to be published. And, after that, I have three partially completed novels ready for my attention.

In my other life, I'm an attorney. I have two teenagers about ready to start college. I cook, bake, garden ... and read.

You can keep up with my writing news at www.markpaxson.com, and read my latest thoughts on virtually everything else at www.kingmidgetramblings.wordpress.com.

Reviews

[Audrey Driscoll · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I had to devise a title for this review it would be “Stephen King’s The Stand Meets The Wizard of Oz.” In a dystopian America of the near future, a pair of siblings and their father begin long road trips on foot. The dad is headed to Washington DC to exact his revenge on the President (known as the Old Man), and eventually the kids decide to go find him. They meet odd characters with odd names and experience the inexplicable. A tall shadow haunts their thoughts, of an itinerant construction crane that is the bleak solution for some people’s problems. Frequent flashbacks hint at how things used to be and how they deteriorated under the rule of a dictatorial President with capricious whims (but surprisingly good taste in music). Among the memories are vignettes of family life and glimpses of popular culture such as movies and kitschy decorative items. These anchor the reader to reality in a plot where zaniness and sentiment are woven together.

“Nothing is as it seems, everything is as it should be.” This maxim of the Old Man pretty much sums up the absurdity of the situation and the revelations that erupt at the end. Although not meant to be a fictional take on the Trump presidency, there are enough similarities to give readers something to ponder, dread, and hope for.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Jump is a unique blend of dystopian fiction, satire, and social commentary that takes the reader on a quest of familial revenge. At least, revenge is the initial goal—a husband on a quest to avenge his wife after the authoritarian presidential regime leads to her death. But the farther Richard travels—and his adult children behind him, undertaking their own journey to find their father—the more unclear things become for Richard, and soon he doesn’t know who or what to believe.

Although the author mentions having started writing the book before the current political climate, the parallels to today’s state of affairs are visible, making the story not only entertaining and thoughtful, but prescient as well. Colorful characters and amusing prose add to the reading enjoyment.

All in all a fun (but at the same time sobering) mind-bending read!

[Cassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not my usual genre and I really enjoyed this. Dystopian and eerily a peek into our possible future.

[Saffron Asteria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book starts off as a bleak and stressful endeavour. There were a lot of moments where I panicked, which is something that I respect about how Mark Paxson writes. The writing is polished, the emotional journey was exhausting for me and he takes every opportunity to enrich the atmosphere of this story without dragging anything out. Delicate subjects are treated with respect, but he doesn't shy away from tackling things that people fear. You'll race through The Jump, just don't peer over the edge too soon.