The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick - 1 star

[Ellen]

Wow, and not in a good way. I have never felt so lost or over my head reading any book as much as I did this one. The premise was quite good: what would the world, especially America, look like if WWII had ended differently. Japan and Nazi Germany were the victors and now rule much of the globe with Germany even traveling to, and inhabiting, other planets. Slavery is accepted; Jewish people live under Gentile sounding names; Africa, and the majority of black people, has been obliterated; the Mediterranean Sea has been drained for fertile farmland. All of that is intriguing in a science fiction way but I don't think I understood one tenth of the story. It is a classic that has been around for decades so I know the fault lies with me but I truly disliked this book intensely.