Graff, Keir. My Fellow Americans. Severn House. Dec 2007. 252p. ISBN: 978-0-7278-6522-9. $27.95. Fiction.
In the very near future, the U.S. President has invaded Iran, declared martial law at home, and is now serving a third term. Enter bumbling but earnest Jason Walker, a 38-year-old freelance editor and photography buff, who soon finds himself in deep water after taking photos of a building under construction. He’s snatched off the street in Chicago, flown to a foreign country, and tortured by Homeland Security agents until he confesses to a crime he didn’t commit–only to be told they believe his original story. But there’s a catch. He’s asked to infiltrate a Lebanese Community Center back home, some of whose members may be planning a terrorist attack. Before long, Jason is walking a fine line between his handler, who asks the seemingly impossible; his girlfriend, who entangles him in a protest movement; and his new Lebanese American friend, who wants him to act as a double agent in the name of patriotism and civil liberty. Can anyone be trusted? Graff, a Booklist editor and author (Cold Lessons, under the pseudonym Michael McCulloch), has a light but sure hand. Jason’s harrowing adventures, perfectly paced and leavened by touches of humor, are gripping from start to finish. Highly recommended for all public libraries.