Book of the Week

Writer Christopher Buckley -- son of the late William F. Buckley -- is no longer writing novels about contemporary political issues -- perhaps because it is increasingly hard for a humorist like Buckley to outdo the humor of real life politics. Instead, he has taken to writing historical novels -- or, if you prefer, novels of alternative history that read like conventional historical novels -- the latest of which is The Judge Hunter.

Like most good novels, The Judge Hunter is too good to spoil so I won't say too much about it. Suffice it to say that the bulk of the story takes place in colonial America during the 1660s and contains a lot of dark humor. As you might guess, little of the plot concerns itself with contemporary political issues though there is one rather obvious Donald Trump reference. Granted, many of the points it makes about colonial America aren't exactly new but to Mr. Buckley's credit, they don't seem stale either.

I also liked Mr. Buckley's previous foray into alternative history -- The Relic Master -- and I look forward to his next novel as well.