As almost all anthologies this book is a mixed bag as well. But as alternative history is my favourite subgenre, I can`t really say anything bad about it. What if the Chinese conquer America? Or if the Roman Empire not falling apart? Or the Enlightement doesn`t happen in Europe? ( )

Fjöldi smásagna þar sem höfundar leika sér mannkynssöguna. Hvernig múhameðstrúin gæti breiðst yfir Evrópu, Kínverjar stofnuðu nýlendur í Ameríku á undan Spánverjum, Jesús væri ekki dæmdur til dauða, Rómaveldi héldi velli o.s.frv. Sumar sögurnar voru ansi áhugaverðar pælingar en aðrar því miður ákaflega ótrúverðugar. ( )

A mix of different alterante histories from different authors and periods. A few of them were really interesting and made me research new periods. A couple were more of a what would have happened if this impossible invention had happened, but it was ok overall. ( )

The Raft of the Titanic (2010) by James Morrow - delightful and slightly whimsical.
Sidewinders (2010) by Ken MacLeod - imaginative and humorous.
The Wandering Christian (1991) by Kim Newmanand Eugene Byrne - long-winded, dull, unimaginative.
Hush My Mouth (1986) by Suzette Haden Elgin - found the premise implausible.
A Letter from the Pope (1990) by Harry Harrison and Tom Shippey - excellent
Such a Deal (2010) by Esther M. Friesner - enjoyable with a black humour ending
Ink from the New Moon (1992) by A. A. Attanasio - dull
Dispatches from the Revolution (1991) by Pat Cadigan - chilling and plausible
Catch That Zeppelin! (1975) by Fritz Leiber - enjoyable
A Very British History (2000) by Paul J. McAuley - dull
The Imitation Game (2008) by Rudy Rucker - unmemorable
Weihnachtabend (1972) by Keith Roberts - unmemorable
The Lucky Strike (1984) by Kim Stanley Robinson
His Powder'd Wig, His Crown of Thornes (1989) by Marc Laidlaw - ok
Roncesvalles (1990) by Judith Tarr - dull
The English Mutiny (2008) by Ian R. MacLeod - good
O One [Celestial Empire] (2003) by Chris Roberson - good
Islands in the Sea (1989) by Harry Turtledove - ok
Lenin in Odessa (1990) by George Zebrowski - dull, didn't finish
The Einstein Gun (2010) by Pierre Gévart - ok
Tales from the Venia Woods [Roma Eterna] (1989) by Robert Silverberg - excellent
Manassas, Again (1991) by Gregory Benford - dull
The Sleeping Serpent (1992) by Pamela Sargent - ok
Waiting for the Olympians (1988) by Frederik Pohl - excellent
Darwin Anathema (2010) by Stephen Baxter - ok ( )

I've always been fascinated by alternative history stories, the 'what if's' of history. What if Churchill had been hit by a car before the Second World War? What if Roosevelt hadn't had polio, what if Henry IV hadn't gone to Canossa? So I couldn't help but pick up this collection of stories and novella's of Alternate Histories.
The collection was pretty good. There were some good stories in here, like one about the Roman Empire lasting to the year two thousand (having a serious effect by cancelling out the industrial revolution it seems), or the one about the crew of the Enola Gay dying before dropping the bomb and the replacement bomber refusing to drop the bomb on Hiroshima.
However, reading alternate history requires knowledge about the pivotal change in the story. If I don't know the effects of the bomb on Hiroshima, or the shooting of Franz Ferdinand, it isn't interesting at all from an alternate history point of view to read about a change in this history. Then it is just a story, pretty nice, but it loses its power. This was a problem for me in several of the stories. It was still a fun collection to read, with some nice classics. Four out of five stars. ( )