Twenty years ago, the premise of Roth’s novel was speculative, perhaps even far-fetched: Charles Lindbergh, a member of the America First Party, turns up unexpectedly at the Republican Convention, captivating the crowd with his youth and fame. At odds with an ailing President Franklin Roosevelt, Lindbergh is elected president in 1940, ushering in an era of fascism and anti-Semitism. Told from the perspective of a Newark native named Philip Roth, the story delves into the horrific consequences of Lindbergh’s reign. “Fear reigns in these memories, a constant fear,” the book begins, and the rest of the book shows why. Roth has written more nuanced political novels (The Human Stain, American Pastoral), but none are as eerie as this one, especially given the current state of the world. — Nora Klug