Official Review: Radioland by m.e. Elzey

[Abacus]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Radioland" by m.e. Elzey.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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In Radioland, 79-year-old Harry Chalberg and 89-year-old Mariam Katz have worked together for 48 years. A white nationalist killed Harry's son and daughter-in-law after the murderer listened to the Cal Brown Show (America's leading conservative Radio Talk Show) on New Signal News (NSN). Mariam is a Holocaust survivor, members of her family died during the Holocaust, and a Nazi Officer she worked for as a maid, sexually abused her. Mariam lived in Germany while Hitler was coming to power, and she sees the same frightening brainwashing and propaganda in America now as she saw in Germany. She is desperately afraid of the future.

Harry and Mariam, after more than a decade of unremitting effort filing lawsuits against NSN, are still trying to force all news media to be responsible for their actions. It's difficult to prove the causal link between murderers and the talk show, but when a particular case comes along, both Harry and Mariam are old and worn out, but still determined to try one more time to bring NSN to justice. Will they succeed with Morton vs. NSN?

The phenomenon that was the Cal Brown Show started with a guy called Andy Cole. Andy had a desire to make massive amounts of money and no moral scruples. He decided that Cal Brown had the voice to persuade Americans to think what Andy Cole and his political backers wanted them to think. Over the years, the Cal Brown Show became wildly popular, but often the producers scripted the entire show, including the people who called in. They were all actors. Andy Cole thought intensely about his lifestyle when his divorced wife Mary died. Cal Brown was just a voice but NSN paid him millions of dollars for the persuasive powers of that voice.

The other two players who are influential to the story are the Austin Brothers. They own a company called Austin Securities and they are very wealthy. Hailey Austin, the younger brother, runs the business, and Jack Jr. manages the philanthropic side. Jack Jr. keeps running across the name of Worden-McAlister, but Hailey denies knowing him. Jack Jr. investigates the Worden-McAlister Think Tank and finds that it financially supports NSN. Jack makes plans to combat his brother's influence.

Radioland is a fast-paced book with a topical theme. People with money are bribing politicians to influence the opinions of the American people. They use Goebbels type propaganda to achieve their aims. Many Americans who understand that it is happening, find it frightening. Politicians are not following the constitution but working for personal aggrandizement. M.E. Elzey is writing a warning to Americans that politicians are leading us into accepting a lifestyle most people would hate. Only the American people can stop it.

Radioland is an elaborate and comprehensive story with many unexpected twists and turns. Harry and Mariam are terrific characters. Jack Jr. and Hailey are opposites and very interesting. They have enough money to influence the world, and they end up pitting their wits against each other. Andy Cole and Cal Brown epitomize many in the news/entertainment media.

M.E. Elzey's narrative moves about in time, plus there are abrupt changes in the subject from the end of one sentence to another. I think it may be an attempt at creating pace, but I had to look back for context. Some chapters are specific to Harry and Mariam, some to Cal Brown and NSN, and some to the Austin Bros. There are secondary characters who are essential to the story and add complexity so the reader can lose track and have to re-read. To get the chronological narrative, I re-read the chapters in the order they make sense to me.

I thought the story was compelling, authentic, and quite mind-blowing about a conservative talk show trying to brainwash the American people. But there are many voters today who see that the Democrats and fake media are the ones adopting these tactics. It feels like there is a world-wide movement towards government control that is being manipulated by very wealthy people. In my opinion, government control favors the few at the top and exploits everyone else.

I rate Radioland 3 out of 4 stars for its focus on one of the most significant current dangers to the quality of American life. I would rate it 4 out of 4 stars, but it requires another round of editing. I do not rate it 2 out of 4 stars because it is well-written and forewarns of danger ahead. I liked the relationship between Harry and Mariam and their focus on securing justice. I found the jumping around in time and between the three sets of characters a little confusing.

I recommend the book to a broad audience, especially people concerned with upholding the constitution and removing undue influence from politicians and their puppet masters. Mariam's memories of the Holocaust contain sexual content and horrific descriptions of her physical and mental state, which may be too much for some readers.

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Radioland
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[Cynthia_Oluchi]

I don't really like books on politics, but the content if this one makes it really captivating to me. I like that the book forewarns danger ahead for its readers. Thanks for this review!

[Abacus]

I don't really like books on politics, but the content if this one makes it really captivating to me. I like that the book forewarns danger ahead for its readers. Thanks for this review!

It is compelling to read, and accurate about the dangers faced by American society. I have to admire an author who can describe real danger, while creating a fictional story around it.