"The Spirit of Exmas Sideways"

1989 Smith, L[ester] Neil, [III] (1946-2021). “The Spirit of Exmas Sideways.” Alternatives. Ed. Robert Adams with Pamela Crippen Adams (New York: Baen, 1989), 69-120, with an introductory note on 71-72. PSt

Alternative history libertarian eutopia connected to his 1980 The Probability Broach. The U.S. Constitution was overturned and replaced with a reformed Articles of Confederation, which became the basis of the North American Confederacy in which everyone carries a weapon. Related novels include, in publication order, in addition to The Probability Broach, not all of which are utopian, the series includes The Venus Belt (1980); Their Majesties' Bucketeers. Illus. New York: Ballantine Books, 1981. 182 pp.; The Nagasaki Vector. New York: Ballantine Books, 1983. 242 pp., neither of which have much to do with the main themes in the series; Tom Paine Maru. New York: Ballantine. 273 pp. Rpt. rev. Rockville, MD: Phoenix Pick, 2009. 222 pp. [An author’s note says that the first edition was badly cut by the publisher and that this version reflects his original intent]; The Gallatin Divergence. New York: Ballantine, 1985. 223 pp.; Brightsuit MacBear. New York: Avon, 1988. 212 pp.; Taflak Lysandra. New York: Avon, 1988. 230 pp., in all three of which there are clashes between the Confederacy and the authoritarian Federalists; and The American Zone (2001) which is a sequel to The Probability Broach. In the chronology of the series, the volumes are The Probability Broach, The Nagasaki Vector, The American Zone, The Venus Belt, The Gallatin Divergence, Tom Paine Maru, Brightsuit MacBear, Taflak Lysandra, and Their Majesties' Bucketeers.