Historians and philosophers alike have pondered the crucial turning points of history-events that forever altered the course of civilization, and set the stage for the world in which we live today. In these essays, some of the most respected minds of our time ask the question "What If..."

George Washington had never made his miraculous escape from the British on Long Island in the dawn of August 29, 1776?

A Confederate aide hadn't accidentally lost General Robert E. Lee's plans for invading the North?

Alexander the Great had been slain in battle, instead of saved at the last instant by a loyal bodyguard?

The Allied invasion on D-Day had failed?

The Mongols had succeeded in conquering Europe?

Both fascinating and frightening, What If? offers in-depth reflections on the monumental events of the past, and amazing speculations as to what our world might be like had things gone differently in that one singular moment in time.

"Fascinating and provocative."- New York Times Book Review

"The book of the year for any history lover."-Kirkus Reviews

"Counter-factual supposes, would-haves, might-haves, could-haves, possiblys, perhapses, probablys and maybes, in all their dizzying permutations."-Time

"Consistently well-drawn, these scenarios open intellectual as well as imaginative doors."-Publishers Weekly

"Great Fun."-Entertainment Weekly

"A captivating display of historical imagination, What If? takes us through 2,500 years of close squeaks and narrow misses."-C. Vann Woodward, Sterling Professor of History Emeritus, Yale University

What If? includes contributions by:

Stephen E. Ambrose

Caleb Carr

James Chace

Theodore F. Cook, Jr.

Robert Cowley

Thomas Fleming

David Fromkin

Ira D. Gruber

Victor Davis Hanson

Ross Hassig

Cecilia Holland

Alistair Horne

John Keegan

Lewis H. Lapham

David Clay Large

David Mccullough

William H. McNeill

James M. Mcpherson

Ted Morgan

Williamson Murray

Josiah Ober

Robert L. O'Connell

Geoffrey Parker

Peter Pierson

Barbara N. Porter

Theodore K. Rabb

Elihu Rose

Stephen W. Sears

Dennis E. Showalter

Barry S. Strauss

Arthur Waldron

Tom Wicker

羅伯‧考利（Robert Cowley）

《軍事史季刊》（MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History）創刊編輯，曾參與多本書籍與雜誌的製作，是專研第一次世界大戰的權威，與本書另一位作者喬佛瑞‧帕剋（Geoffrey Parker）共同編有《軍事史讀者指南》（The Reader’s Companion to Military History），另編有《What If 2？：史上25起重要事件的另一種可能》（麥田齣版）