An open plea to The Erik Blair Diaries author John W. Whitehead
How many times do I get the privilege of reading books that I can see myself reading again and again? John W. Whitehead’s The Erik Blair Diaries is one of them.
It’s an eclectic bunch, but I can put The Erik Blair Diaries: Battlefield of the Dead up there with books like Spirit Legacy and classics like To Kill a Mockingbird. All three books are in different genres, but there is one common denominator that sticks with me: Each book is/was unputdownable, and those I can see myself reading almost annually if I’m in a TBR slump of subpar works.
It’s 2024, and we’re going on 2025 as I write this unofficial review, but in the age of woke-dominated creativity, it’s easy to get caught in a slump. I’m not saying I don’t have a diverse group of characters in my own books because that would be a lie, but you know what I mean: There’s a stark contrast between molding characters the way that one sees them as opposed to blatantly diversifying a cast just for the sake of wokeness, or whatever.
Thankfully, there are a few authors who have written fiction in the 2020s I can trust. Julane Fisher, who wrote The Text, is one of them. And it’s a book I’d recommend to any libertarian, even if its writing is clunky at times. But that’s not the case with Whitehead’s work, and while I’ve read virtually every article he’s submitted to the Ron Paul Institute featuring his and Nisha’s name, this guy was born to write fiction.
The Erik Blair Diaries: Spiritual successor to Nineteen Eighty-Four?
Yeah, that was literally my nickname (or phrase?) for the book, except it’s not quite standalone, or at least that’s the vibe I picked up. Okay, it shouldn’t be standalone. As a huge fan of Kate L. Mary’s Beyond Trilogy (another highly recommended work for libertarians), The Erik Blair Diaries is a book that has got to become a dystopian sci-fi trilogy as it contains all the elements for it, especially with the way it ended.
Though different from Book I in Mary’s trilogy, Beyond the Wall, I got similar vibes. A lot of mystery of facing the unknown with maybe a ray or two of hope. I’m trying to be vague here so as to not spoil the plot, but trilogy elements aren’t the only reason Whitehead’s fictional book should spawn a couple of sequels.
If you’re someone like me who gets to dedicate a “solid” 30 minutes a day (even on weekends) to devour fiction, Whitehead’s work won’t bore you with details. It’s not just a fast-paced read; it’s ultra-fast, and there’s no slowing down once you pick this thing up and start embarking on this suspenseful roller coaster.
I wouldn’t say the work has the deepest characters, but they’re deep enough so you’re not looking at cardboard cutouts. This isn’t a bad thing, by the way. Erik, Eileen, and the numerous minor and supporting characters they cross all have interesting tales and you’re given the right amount of info, so that’s another one in the win column.
Realism of it all
Some readers may scratch their heads at some of the ‘creatures’ we meet in The Erik Blair Diaries, but honestly, if you fast-forward 60 years into the future, is it really that far-fetched?
I’ve recently been reading Dr. Robert and Jill Malone’s PsyWar: Enforcing the New World Order slowly but surely so I don’t miss important details. It should be noted it takes me forever to read nonfiction since I’m rather anal about absorbing every last detail. Anyway, judging from what the Malones uncovered, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw stuff that came straight from not just a dystopian novel but a horror film.
Back when I read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix for the first time, I remember one of the characters (was it Remus Lupin?) who said something like, “There will be magic you never knew existed.” Well, let’s transform that comment into something those of us in the real world can relate to: There’s technology out there right now that we don’t even know exists, let alone in 2084.
What I’m getting at is, this isn’t some dystopian science fiction novel some random author just cooked up. Whitehead writes a lot, and I mean a lot, of nonfiction; just check out the link I shared to his and Nisha’s author page at the Ron Paul Institute. That said, there’s more realism to this work than one may think since this guy researches actual inconvenient truths for a living.
The open plea
We’ve already seen a hint of what tyranny looks like in the 2020s if you remember the madness surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. While it opened many of our eyes, there is still a strong contingent of people out there who will either support future mandates and restrictions, citing something like civic duty, or simply resigning themselves out of fear, saying something like, “Well, we gotta follow it because it’s the law.” I actually had a few people try to tell me that.
Anyway, not only would expanding this work create an exciting and fast-paced trilogy featuring a cast of characters with the right amount of depth, but it also provides readers with an entertaining read. Sure, the work is fictional, but someone with Whitehead’s credentials means that these readers in the masses might start peeking around the corners of their blinders and look more into his nonfiction work.
Then, the snowball effect could potentially begin. I’m talking about conducting research into, and reading works from The Mises Institute, FEE, AIER, FFF, and other alternative outlets that know more than just a thing or two about the truth. And it all stems from entertaining fiction and its influences.
More fiction, good, solid, ultra-fast-paced fiction from libertarian-minded authors, would at least plant a few seeds and potentially expose more readers to alternative media when they may not otherwise seek it out themselves. It’s just a thought, but one I would implore John W. Whitehead to take a long, hard look into exploring.
John, I hope you read this unofficial review and take note of this plea because you have a lot of talent for writing entertaining fiction and you also have expertise in the realm of mass surveillance and God knows what else to back it up.