The Opposition

The Opposition is a novel that follows the lives of four women and four men in a Midwestern college town in 1963, who are seized by the civil rights and anti-war movements. As the Vietnam war accelerates, some of the group get involved in antiwar projects, and one of the women, Valerie, goes to Mexico to study art. Matt, the son of a pro-war minister, is summoned by his draft board and has a powerful drug experience. The group rendezvous in Chicago during the Democratic Convention of August 1968 and the police do not take kindly to them.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 100 pages
Publication date: 01 June 2022
Publisher: Guernica Editions,Canada

The Opposition is a novel set during America's 1960s New Left movement, which tells the story of twenty-something young men and women who are linked by a fierce desire to change the world and become involved in the civil rights and anti-war movements. The novel explores the complex web of passion and pain that these individuals experience as they navigate the pressures of Vietnam, America, and the unraveling of their own lives.

The novel begins in 1963, in a Midwestern college town, where four women and four men meet. As racist violence surges in the Deep South, they are seized by the civil rights movement and take part in demonstrations. One of the women, Sally, has an illegal abortion, and as the Vietnam war accelerates, some of the group become involved in antiwar projects.

One of the men, Matt, the son of a pro-war minister, is summoned by his draft board and has a powerful drug experience on his way into draft resistance. The group rendezvous in Chicago during the Democratic Convention of August 1968, and the police do not take kindly to them. Passions flair and arguments erupt amid street fights.

One of the activists, Kurt, reconsiders confrontations and decides to work with a liberal Congressman to lobby for legislation to end the war. Ronnie, a radical filmmaker, and his lover, Marcia, the daughter of Holocaust survivors, get close to the just-founded Weathermen.

The novel moves through these eight lives to a tragic conclusion, exploring the complexities of the civil rights and anti-war movements, the personal struggles of the characters, and the impact of these movements on American society. The Opposition is a powerful and evocative novel that offers a unique perspective on the 1960s and the struggle for social change.

Weight: 464g
Dimension: 152 x 228 x 31 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781771837361