Review: McCallandia

Bill Hall's clever new political novel, McCallandia, imagines what America would have been like if Tom McCall, Oregon's popular, environmentally-friendly governor, had succeeded Richard Nixon as President after Watergate.

McCall was a moderate Republican, best remembered for passage of Oregon's Bottle Bill and making the state's ocean beaches public. He also played a small roll in counter-culture history when he countenanced Oregon's mini version of Woodstock, Vortex I, the "only state-sponsored rock festival."

Oregonian will enjoy this imaginative story about their favorite son. But readers outside Oregon will also enjoy the learning about this memorable figure -- both because of the things he accomplished and for his colorful, outsized personality. McCall could be very thin skinned. He needed a strong, loving wife and an excellent staff to harness and focus his energies. He was wrong on issues a few times, but was the first to step up and admit it.

McCallandia lets readers get to know an imperfect, yet great person whose story still has relevance for all of us.

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