Book Review: The Iron Heel by Jack London

I went through a Jack London phase a few years ago. I read Call of the Wild and was blown away by how amazing it was (if you haven't read it, make sure to do it). I shortly followed up with White Fang and was left wanting more. I got a collection of his Yukon short stories on my Kindle and would read them from time to time on the elliptical machine at the gym - while they weren't as good as his novels, they were entertaining enough.

I remember one morning on the treadmill I had noticed a book called The Iron Heel. I had never heard of it, but since it popped into the algorithm because Jack London wrote it I figured I'd give it a try. After all, doing the elliptical machine is always a good time to read a new story about rugged folks roughing it.

I started reading the story and was immediately stunned. This novel was taking place hundreds of years from now. And concerned a new civil war and the resulting authoritarian regime. And had what I guess were supposed to be footnotes written in giant block letters interrupting the story almost like they were written by AI.

I only got a few pages in and shut it down immediately. Jack London writing speculative fiction more than a hundred years ago. I felt like I had discovered a tear in the matrix.

Fast forward to now, and at one point in the last book I read, A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear, there was a quote from Jack London's The Iron Heel. I didn't recognize the title at first, then realized I still had the book and had never really read it. I fished it out my queue and started reading it.

So, yes - hold on to your seats - this is Jack London, writer from more than a hundred years ago who primarily wrote man vs wilderness or beast vs wilderness tales, writing a science fiction story. However, it wasn't quite as science-fictiony as it first seemed, and actually does seem to fit into London's wheelhouse.

See, while, as I said, the events are "taking place" hundreds of years from now, all that is taking place is that the future civilization is publishing the writings of someone from the 1920s (and those aggressive footnotes are the future civilization trying to make sense of "modern" times). And the revolution that will remake the fabric of America will be a war between capitalism and socialism, with the capitalists winning out but the socialists the clear good guys in the book (which totally jives with what Jack London was about).

The writings being PUBLISHED IN THE FUTURE are written by the main character's wife as a way to remember what he was about and how he started the revolution. Note: It's clear from the first few pages that the main character dies, the wife is killed shortly after she wrote the entry, the capitalists will win the war, and socialism will eventually win out hundreds of years later - none of that are spoilers. With the ending known, this is a story of how all the events came into play.

As mentioned, the wife is writing about her recently-killed husband and how he started the revolution. He came from the working class, learned everything he could growing up, then stood on his soapbox (literally) to preach the tenets of socialism to his peers. He started to get recognition, and eventually was invited to speak to more distinguished audiences due to his eventual wife's father, a college professor. The main character then goes from upper class party to upper class party to argue with the elitists about why their capitalism is wrong.

Now, it's important to note that this was written more than a hundred years ago. The Russian Revolution had happened when London was writing this, but fascism as we recognize it hadn't really taken shape yet. I mention that to say that the arguments the main character gives (and there are MANY) still pretty much hold up, which is an accomplishment since not all tenets had been solidified. Just look at George Bernard Shaw's Man and Superman - Shaw also had a main character that argued in favor of socialism, but so much of it came out sounding like fascism that starting around WWII editions of the book were printed with a forward from Shaw apologizing for what the main character says (!).

With that said, the whole first half of the book is someone arguing economic principles to STUNNED audiences, and you won't believe this but everything he says turns out to be right. So, there's that.

The book picks up a bit in the second half, though - this is where events are set in motion after the main character becomes more well-known. We see him lead strikes and get elected to Congress, where he is identified as a threat to the capitalist class and framed for terrorism. This starts the revolution, which the capitalist class has no intention of losing.

No quarter here, this book is a SLOG - five out of ten hot dogs. I can't say it's all that well-written, and spending half the book listening to a know-it-all who is always right isn't the best way to spend your time. It's not entertaining, but it is INTERESTING. So, if you're peaked by curios like a non-science fiction writer from the last century trying his hand at a future timeline, check it out!