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Crosstown to Oblivion
The Gift of Fire / On the Head of a Pin: Two Short Novels from Crosstown to Oblivion
New York Times bestselling authorWalter Mosley delivers two speculative tales, in one volume, of everyday people exposed to life-altering truths. The Gift of Fire In ancient mythology, the Titan Prometheus was punished by the gods for bringing man the gift of fire€”an event that set humankind on its course of knowledge. As punishment for making man as powerful as gods, Prometheus was bound to a rock; every day his immortal body was devoured by a giant eagle. But in The Gift of Fire, those chains cease to be, and the great champion of man walks from that immortal prison into present-day South Central Los Angeles.On the Head of a Pin Joshua Winterland and Ana Fried are working at Jennings-Tremont Enterprises when they make the most important discovery in the history of this world€”or possibly the next. JTE is developing advanced animatronics editing techniques to create
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
22 people are currently reading
386 people want to read
About the author
Walter Mosley
206 books3,905 followersWalter Mosley (b. 1952) is the author of the bestselling mystery series featuring Easy Rawlins, as well as numerous other works, from literary fiction and science fiction to a young adult novel and political monographs. His short fiction has been widely published, and his nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times Magazine and the Nation, among other publications. Mosley is the winner of numerous awards, including an O. Henry Award, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, a Grammy, and PEN America’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
July 4, 2012
Thank you Pretentious Universe for Walter Mosley. He settles my soul.
September 30, 2020
A couple years ago I had the pleasure of attending a lecture/book signing by Mr. Mosley. Soft-spoken, articulate, knowledgeable man, who in his literature deals with racial issues within mystery novels (The Easy Rider stories, for one: I’d certainly recommend watching “Devil in a Blue Dress,” starring Denzel Washington). However, Mr. Mosley has also taken on more speculative/SF fiction, under the umbrella of “Crosstown to Oblivion.” There are three (so far) such books, all with two novellas in them. In addition to the current volume, there are also “Merge/Disciple” and Stepping Stone/Love Machine. In the current volume, Mr. Mosley takes on mythological figures, notably gods and men-playing-God, also addressing racial concerns. So, being a fan of SFF, I purchased this book, which he autographed, and I happily shook his hand. This book consists of two novellas (one printed upside-down from the other, just like some of those old pulp SF novels).
The first story, “The Gift of Fire,” concerns Prometheus, a Titan, the Roman god of fire, who had been punished by the higher-order gods for giving humans fire, by which they have achieved knowledge and understanding, threatening the gods’ control over them. While all humans have the rudimentary Gift of Fire, which brings understanding, there is a deeper “Second Fire,” by which humans and the gods can become connected. For this sin, Prometheus suffers having an eagle eat out his innards on a daily basis. Makes Sisyphus look like a sissy (Sissyphus?). In this story, Prometheus escapes from the eagle and comes to Earth.
Arriving on Earth, Prometheus takes on an ordinary human form, calling himself “Prospect Foreman” He promptly gets arrested for vagrancy and meets up with meets up with a poor African-American ne’er-do-well named Nosome, through whom he meets Nosome’s sister Mary Reddy and her blind son, “Chief.” Foreman imbues Chief with the “Second Fire,” after which Chief becomes a healer and purveyor of goodwill. He gains a great deal of celebrity as “Chief Redd” and even has a cadre of loyal followers known as “the Redds.” However, Chief Redd suffers the shortcomings and pitfalls of child celebrity, which he can’t handle.
In the meantime, the god Mercury comes to Earth to convince a serial killer, that Chief Redd must be destroyed. It all comes together at a large gathering, more of a revival. The results are tragic, but complex. Thus, the story is rather satisfying, if sad, and with hope. Mr. Mosley weaves an intriguing interplay between the gods and humans, as well as bringing in racial themes, struggles and identity.
The second novella, “On the Head of a Pin,” is much different in its format but takes on “playing God” and the existence of racial memories (to which the psychoanalyst Carl Jung refer in his description of the Collective Unconscious”) In this story, Joshua Winterland, is an African-American technical writer for an ambitious conglomerate called Jennings-Tremont Enterprises (JTE). JTE is involved in the development of computer-based holographic images. Joshua is part of a team which has developed a gargantuan “green screen” called “The Sail,” in which old, dead movie stars may be able to “come to life.” The experiment goes awry when the Sail displays images of primitive man in verdant rain-forests, as well as images from the future. Joshua gets sucked into the screen images.
As the story unfolds, Joshua comes to learn that the Sail contains all human memories and experience; he finds out that humans are only the latest intelligent species, for there have been at least three previous such species. He meets a woman, Thallo, an “Alto,” one of a race which…well, don’t want to give away too much, but it’s a heck of a story!
A complication is that the Sail is at least partially funded by Congress and thus could potentially be used as a weapon, rather than the object of pure research as Joshua and his team would have it. One of the characters says, “I didn’t know that God was meant to reside in the halls pf politicians.” And at another point, “Modern man worships anthropomorphic deities rather than the ether of their being.” The fate of the Sail is somewhat predictable, but there’s a coda to the story in which it plays a part. Again, a fine, complex story with a satisfying ending.
I thought the first story, “The Gift of Fire,” was better written and caught my attention more grippingly than “On the Head of a Pin.” Nonetheless, both are very intriguing and readable, five stars for each, and plan to read the other books in this series.
The first story, “The Gift of Fire,” concerns Prometheus, a Titan, the Roman god of fire, who had been punished by the higher-order gods for giving humans fire, by which they have achieved knowledge and understanding, threatening the gods’ control over them. While all humans have the rudimentary Gift of Fire, which brings understanding, there is a deeper “Second Fire,” by which humans and the gods can become connected. For this sin, Prometheus suffers having an eagle eat out his innards on a daily basis. Makes Sisyphus look like a sissy (Sissyphus?). In this story, Prometheus escapes from the eagle and comes to Earth.
Arriving on Earth, Prometheus takes on an ordinary human form, calling himself “Prospect Foreman” He promptly gets arrested for vagrancy and meets up with meets up with a poor African-American ne’er-do-well named Nosome, through whom he meets Nosome’s sister Mary Reddy and her blind son, “Chief.” Foreman imbues Chief with the “Second Fire,” after which Chief becomes a healer and purveyor of goodwill. He gains a great deal of celebrity as “Chief Redd” and even has a cadre of loyal followers known as “the Redds.” However, Chief Redd suffers the shortcomings and pitfalls of child celebrity, which he can’t handle.
In the meantime, the god Mercury comes to Earth to convince a serial killer, that Chief Redd must be destroyed. It all comes together at a large gathering, more of a revival. The results are tragic, but complex. Thus, the story is rather satisfying, if sad, and with hope. Mr. Mosley weaves an intriguing interplay between the gods and humans, as well as bringing in racial themes, struggles and identity.
The second novella, “On the Head of a Pin,” is much different in its format but takes on “playing God” and the existence of racial memories (to which the psychoanalyst Carl Jung refer in his description of the Collective Unconscious”) In this story, Joshua Winterland, is an African-American technical writer for an ambitious conglomerate called Jennings-Tremont Enterprises (JTE). JTE is involved in the development of computer-based holographic images. Joshua is part of a team which has developed a gargantuan “green screen” called “The Sail,” in which old, dead movie stars may be able to “come to life.” The experiment goes awry when the Sail displays images of primitive man in verdant rain-forests, as well as images from the future. Joshua gets sucked into the screen images.
As the story unfolds, Joshua comes to learn that the Sail contains all human memories and experience; he finds out that humans are only the latest intelligent species, for there have been at least three previous such species. He meets a woman, Thallo, an “Alto,” one of a race which…well, don’t want to give away too much, but it’s a heck of a story!
A complication is that the Sail is at least partially funded by Congress and thus could potentially be used as a weapon, rather than the object of pure research as Joshua and his team would have it. One of the characters says, “I didn’t know that God was meant to reside in the halls pf politicians.” And at another point, “Modern man worships anthropomorphic deities rather than the ether of their being.” The fate of the Sail is somewhat predictable, but there’s a coda to the story in which it plays a part. Again, a fine, complex story with a satisfying ending.
I thought the first story, “The Gift of Fire,” was better written and caught my attention more grippingly than “On the Head of a Pin.” Nonetheless, both are very intriguing and readable, five stars for each, and plan to read the other books in this series.
April 29, 2012
Two great novels. very gripping i could not put it down... thanks goodreads. I received this book as part of goodreads first read giveaways.Never read a walter mosley book.. glad this was my first.
March 13, 2012
Two Fine Fantasy and Science Fiction Novels from Walter Mosley
Walter Mosley’s substantial talents in writing fine prose and storytelling are abundantly evident in his brief novels “The Gift of Fire” and “On the Head of a Pin”. Having once said that Afro-Americans should embrace and write science fiction as a literary genre, Mosley’s two short novels are memorable examples demonstrating why Afro-American writers should become interested in writing science and fiction and fantasy; however, with regards to their ideas, plotting, and literary craftsmanship, both novels aren’t nearly as compelling as recent work by the likes of Nalo Hopkinson and N. K. Jemisin or classic works written by the likes of Octavia Butler and Samuel Delany which demonstrate far greater thought and literary art than what I have seen from Mosley’s oeuvre in science fiction and fantasy. Of the two novels, “The Gift of Fire” is most compelling, as a lyrical homage to the ancient Greek myth of Prometheus, with the demigod descending upon contemporary Los Angeles and transferring his godlike powers to a bedridden Afro-American boy, who, immediately upon his cure, begins a Christ-like ministry across the United States, preaching a message of love and tolerance and healing the sick. “On the Head of a Pin” recounts a young Afro-American man’s employment in an animation firm that has developed a new means of animation that is an unexpected door into another, parallel, reality that coexists with the present.
(Reposted from my 2012 Amazon review.)
Walter Mosley’s substantial talents in writing fine prose and storytelling are abundantly evident in his brief novels “The Gift of Fire” and “On the Head of a Pin”. Having once said that Afro-Americans should embrace and write science fiction as a literary genre, Mosley’s two short novels are memorable examples demonstrating why Afro-American writers should become interested in writing science and fiction and fantasy; however, with regards to their ideas, plotting, and literary craftsmanship, both novels aren’t nearly as compelling as recent work by the likes of Nalo Hopkinson and N. K. Jemisin or classic works written by the likes of Octavia Butler and Samuel Delany which demonstrate far greater thought and literary art than what I have seen from Mosley’s oeuvre in science fiction and fantasy. Of the two novels, “The Gift of Fire” is most compelling, as a lyrical homage to the ancient Greek myth of Prometheus, with the demigod descending upon contemporary Los Angeles and transferring his godlike powers to a bedridden Afro-American boy, who, immediately upon his cure, begins a Christ-like ministry across the United States, preaching a message of love and tolerance and healing the sick. “On the Head of a Pin” recounts a young Afro-American man’s employment in an animation firm that has developed a new means of animation that is an unexpected door into another, parallel, reality that coexists with the present.
(Reposted from my 2012 Amazon review.)
October 7, 2014
This book contains two novellas - the first more of a fantasy story, the second science fiction. If you've mostly read Mosley's mysteries (which are enjoyable too), consider broadening your interests. His writing is wonderful. I never get tired of it, and I'll always be envious of his gift. I usually love his plots too, but these two didn't feel as strong as some of his other books I've read.
I enjoyed the first book more than the second. In The Gift of Fire, Prometheus manages to escape the punishment of the gods for giving humans fire. After his escape, he wanders into modern-day Los Angeles with plans to give us a second gift of fire - greater enlightenment. Not everyone is ready for that gift, however, and we learn of the travails of his disciples.
On the Head of a Pin is an interesting story of scientists working with a new digital technology that suddenly goes far beyond what they expected. It reminded me of the style of stories from an earlier age of science fiction - say the 1940s or 1950s. I have a hard time with that style. The science is often a bit vague and sometimes it's more mystical. At times, that's the way this story felt to me.
I enjoyed the first book more than the second. In The Gift of Fire, Prometheus manages to escape the punishment of the gods for giving humans fire. After his escape, he wanders into modern-day Los Angeles with plans to give us a second gift of fire - greater enlightenment. Not everyone is ready for that gift, however, and we learn of the travails of his disciples.
On the Head of a Pin is an interesting story of scientists working with a new digital technology that suddenly goes far beyond what they expected. It reminded me of the style of stories from an earlier age of science fiction - say the 1940s or 1950s. I have a hard time with that style. The science is often a bit vague and sometimes it's more mystical. At times, that's the way this story felt to me.
March 9, 2012
Walter Mosley is a very good story teller. I like him because he fires my imagination. He is rightly noted for his detective fiction featuring Easy Rawlins, but as shown in these two stories, he seems to know no boundaries. "On The Head Of A Pin" deals with the consequences of being able to see into the past and the future. The other story tells the tale of an attempt to lift man from the dregs of our society to the heights our souls were meant achieve. While both stories are very imaginative and well written, I definitely preferred the story,"On The Head Of A Pin",for it's imaginative theme combined with more believable characterizations. Mosley can take you from the heights of a mountain to the depths of your soul. He can help us count the the angels sitting on a pin or give our souls the gift of fire. Book provided for review by the well read folks at Amazon Vine and Tor publishing.
August 8, 2012
I'd rate this as more of a 2.5. It had it's moments but overall, I was underwhelmed.
June 6, 2021
The Gift of Fire – a thinly-veiled imagining of some kind of socialist or communist revolution, fomented through the ministry of a young boy – Chief Red – who acquires special powers from the literal god Prometheus, who makes an Earthly appearance as a seven-foot-tall vagrant to kick off the story. As usual, Mosley works racism and/or race into the story in ways that are at once bracingly matter-of-fact, and unsettling in their grim insolubility.
On the Head of a Pin – very science-fiction-ey, revolving around the invention of a “Sail” that mysteriously establishes a portal into future and past, through which one may not only see images, but also viscerally experience the scene. One seems as likely to experience the past/future world form the perspective of a bird of prey, or a dinosaur, or even an ant, as one is to have a human experience. Our narrator, Joshua Winterland, has a unique talent for interacting with the Sail.
As seems usual for a Mosley story, there is some gratuitous sex.
The inevitable White racist expresses himself in terms that seem depressingly realistic:
He changed buses and talked to people one-on-one because, even though he was on holiday, he was still driven to spread the word. On the Wiltshire bus, he sat down next to a mild-looking white man who wore glasses with dark rims, and whose eyes were deep, dark holes. He wasn’t despairing or in pain, but, rather, empty: a blank slate set to hide a rage so great as to dwarf that of Zeus himself. Looking down at the man’s hands, Chief saw their alter image: the metaphor of their intentions. The fingers were steeped in blood. Ragged skin of a hundred victims were packed under his manicured, claw-like nails, and for the first time, Chief knew real fear. This man was a Red-slayer – a beast in disguise.
On the Head of a Pin – very science-fiction-ey, revolving around the invention of a “Sail” that mysteriously establishes a portal into future and past, through which one may not only see images, but also viscerally experience the scene. One seems as likely to experience the past/future world form the perspective of a bird of prey, or a dinosaur, or even an ant, as one is to have a human experience. Our narrator, Joshua Winterland, has a unique talent for interacting with the Sail.
As seems usual for a Mosley story, there is some gratuitous sex.
The inevitable White racist expresses himself in terms that seem depressingly realistic:
Just to get this straight,” he said, “I don’t have anything against Black people in general. It’s just that they’re always feeling that they’ve been given a hard time, when I’m working just as hard to survive as they are.” “Who are? Me?” “Yah, you. Here you’re taking up a job that doesn’t even mean anything, getting all upset with me just because I have what I worked for.” “I don’t want your job, man. And I didn’t make up the position I have. I read about it in the paper. The only reason I ever give you any grief is that you are always talking about me like I’m a card-carrying member of some group that’s in your head. If you stop talking about ‘my people’ I would never give you a hard time again.” “So now you want to limit my freedom of speech.” Talking to Faula, I realized the breadth of a Universe I hadn’t suspected, and talking to Pinkus, I understood there was also a smallness that could not expand.The portrayal of racism is where Mosley troubles himself to write with the real world in mind; as to the functioning of the Sail, not so much:
“I think it is some kind of meeting of energies that causes what we see, and that part of those energies emanate from our life forces, our minds. In a small way, any one, or a group of us, will call out to certain images…”The “Faula” mentioned above is a central figure, stemming from a fascinating future history where humans of the 23rd century create a super-race called the “Altos”, by blending the most desirable (and “Caucasian”) genetic materials. Ironically (I think it’s ironic, as opposed to just horrible), the Altos immediately and peremptorily put an end to the human race, but not before storing the entire human culture by vivisection of several hundred millions. After that, they feel bad. Also, the humans (in new, mechanized, post-human form) fight back. The ending is enigmatic and portentous, with Faula and the Altos preparing to come (how, is not mentioned) to this Earth.
May 2, 2012
Walter Mosley, creator of the best-selling Easy Rawlins mystery series, releases a pair of pseudo-science fiction/fantasy novellas. In The Gift of Fire, the fantasy novella in this pairing, Prometheus, the Greek titan condemned to suffer for eternity for providing mankind with the gift of knowledge (in the form of the eternal flame), thus sacrificing some of the gods’ control, is unexpectedly released from his chains. He escapes his imprisonment and makes his way… to present-day South Central Los Angeles:
He found himself upon a hilltop. To his right rolled the waves of a great ocean and to his left sprawled a mortal city with its temporary structures and its people who lived and died without suspicion of the knowledge that the partially comprehended but never knew. The smell of their smoke and feces filled his nostrils and burned his eyes. It was ever this way when gods and Titans mingled among humans. Mortals were like animals to those of the higher planes, snuffling and snorting and spraying urine to mark their domain.
Los Angeles was to Prometheus like a dung hill is to a swan—dirty and diseased, stinking of mortality—and yet these were the fallow grounds for the possibility of life.
The titan is immediately imprisoned as a suspected drug- or booze-addled homeless person (of surprising size and presence). Through his imprisonment in a mortal jail, he claims the name Foreman Prospect for himself and befriends a wino named Nosome—and through Nosome, a child, an invalid named Chief Redd, whom Prometheus heals and designates his vessel on Earth. As the knowledge and curative properties of Prometheus’s touch spread, miracles are brought into existence, minds cured—or damaged beyond repair—from trauma’s felt and inflicted. Through the vessel of Chief Redd, Prometheus is able to continue to spread knowledge, slowly gathering a cult-like swath of followers and transforming the gutters of South Central Los Angeles and the lives of those tossed in them.
On the Head of a Pin is the science fiction half of this double feature. Josh Winterland is a writer hired to document the findings of scientific research firm Jennings-Tremont Enterprises. When the completion of a project known as a Sail—a intricately woven fibre optic creation capable of accessing unforeseen energies—opens a window into what appears to be another realm, Josh is connected with a being that escapes conventional description:
I didn’t have to turn around to know that the memory he was experiencing was being represented on the screen.
I opened my eyes just in time to see Cosmo hurrying into the room.
“How did you do that?” Zintel was asking.
“It’s the Sail,” I said, exhaustion moving through my limbs. “It, it… Everything that ever happened, everyone and everything that ever lived has left an impression. This screen can connect with those impressions.”
“Like ghosts?” Zintel asked. There was no vestige of the official left. A deep experience had yanked him by the roots of his mind and he was moved.
“Yes,” I said. “I believe so.”
What the Sail has opened is a communication pathway with a conceptual multiverse (a familiar concept to physicists and comic book geeks alike). Through the collective memories of our world and an infinite number of others, Josh is witness to atrocities he can barely comprehend, and a degree of love he never thought possible. To those outside the experience looking in—government and military officials—the Sail is a potential weapon of untold power.
The pairing of these two stories is an interesting decision, one that I’m not sure works as well as the author might have intended. On the surface, they are relatively simple, interesting parables of knowledge—of the potential when faced with the prospect of omniscience, and the threats revealed when ignorance is embraced. In The Gift of Fire, the primary threats are those below the base ethical line society has drawn in the sand: murderers, rapists, and gang leaders among others. Through the touch of Prometheus, they are able to experience the full comprehensive details of the pain they’ve dealt to others, which in turn, is capable of driving these already deranged souls mad. However, in On the Head of a Pin, the threat is the control of knowledge by those seeking to keep a leash on what does and does not make it into the world at large. The two extremes of the economic/class structure are represented as being equally incapable of handling the knowledge given to them, due either to the actions they’ve already taken, or those they can only imagine will be available to them in the future. To this degree, the pairing of these narratives is certainly intriguing. Where they struggle to find cohesion, however, is strangely enough in their more direct similarities.
Religion (faith) and society (class and race): both stories deal directly with these concepts. With respect to religion, The Gift of Fire treats the coming of Prometheus as less a purveyor of knowledge and more of a direct Christ allegory, a concept made clear as Chief Redd’s influence grows and the once barely-alive child develops a following of worshippers and acolytes. Though seemingly benign in their endeavours, the President of the United States (under advisement of another Greek god in disguise) begins to see the threat of Prometheus/Redd’s growing influence. The spreading of knowledge is thus treated less like a source for ideas and action and more as a poor man’s simulacrum of total and unquestioning faith. Conversely, On the Head of a Pin uses religion to a more personal degree, detailing one man’s change of heart (with respect to race, which I’ll get to later) and how what he has seen through the science-made-magic of the Sail has convinced him to take dangerous, deadly action to keep knowledge form the hands of those who seek to take it and hide it away—the government and the military.
While both stories use religion in somewhat contrasting ways, the simplistic one-to-one of religion and knowledge is what pushes these stories apart, with respect to their potential impact. Instead of being Yin and Yang to one another, they tread all too similar ground, which in turn hurts the stories’ representations of knowledge, its power, and its purpose. This is also apparent when dealing with race and class issues in each story. Both employ such divisive concepts to further sketch a world seemingly without wisdom and in desperate need of it, but do it in such similarly hand-to-nose ways as to damage their individual and communal potential. In both stories, the power of black men is to be feared—be it by an authoritative presence in The Gift of Fire or a single misguided individual, as is the case with the zealot of On the Head of a Pin. The issue of race is tackled with claw-hammer delicacy, as the President is advised of the threat of a black man with followers, and a co-worker sees Josh (a black man) as less than human—until he is touched by “the divine”—and once more the promise of these two stories of contrasting genres approaching a similar conceit from two individual and unique perspectives is lost.
Perhaps this is a question of expectations. As I read the two stories, I found myself more intrigued by how the author presented knowledge as a fulcrum around which the details spun into their own independent directions, dependent on the genre and scope at play. But while these basic plot elements did in fact contrast (the science versus the fantasy; the homeless versus the scientists, both fighting the government), they were drawn in to one another all over again by Mosley’s inability to truly push the ideas of race, class, religion, and knowledge into far reaching corners at the opposite ends of the spectrum, which is what the differing set-ups seem to promise at the outset of each story.
Taken individually, both stories are somewhat amusing, if occasionally frustrating, takes on familiar science fiction and fantasy tropes. The Gift of Fire is certainly the stronger of the two in terms of plot and character development, though the character of Prometheus is all too quickly abandoned for the less strenuous Christ allegory. But together, laced as they are with socially pertinent themes that are simply not given their chance to develop into unique approaches to what is in the end very familiar subject matter, The Gift of Fire and On the Head of a Pin just don’t reach far enough.
He found himself upon a hilltop. To his right rolled the waves of a great ocean and to his left sprawled a mortal city with its temporary structures and its people who lived and died without suspicion of the knowledge that the partially comprehended but never knew. The smell of their smoke and feces filled his nostrils and burned his eyes. It was ever this way when gods and Titans mingled among humans. Mortals were like animals to those of the higher planes, snuffling and snorting and spraying urine to mark their domain.
Los Angeles was to Prometheus like a dung hill is to a swan—dirty and diseased, stinking of mortality—and yet these were the fallow grounds for the possibility of life.
The titan is immediately imprisoned as a suspected drug- or booze-addled homeless person (of surprising size and presence). Through his imprisonment in a mortal jail, he claims the name Foreman Prospect for himself and befriends a wino named Nosome—and through Nosome, a child, an invalid named Chief Redd, whom Prometheus heals and designates his vessel on Earth. As the knowledge and curative properties of Prometheus’s touch spread, miracles are brought into existence, minds cured—or damaged beyond repair—from trauma’s felt and inflicted. Through the vessel of Chief Redd, Prometheus is able to continue to spread knowledge, slowly gathering a cult-like swath of followers and transforming the gutters of South Central Los Angeles and the lives of those tossed in them.
On the Head of a Pin is the science fiction half of this double feature. Josh Winterland is a writer hired to document the findings of scientific research firm Jennings-Tremont Enterprises. When the completion of a project known as a Sail—a intricately woven fibre optic creation capable of accessing unforeseen energies—opens a window into what appears to be another realm, Josh is connected with a being that escapes conventional description:
I didn’t have to turn around to know that the memory he was experiencing was being represented on the screen.
I opened my eyes just in time to see Cosmo hurrying into the room.
“How did you do that?” Zintel was asking.
“It’s the Sail,” I said, exhaustion moving through my limbs. “It, it… Everything that ever happened, everyone and everything that ever lived has left an impression. This screen can connect with those impressions.”
“Like ghosts?” Zintel asked. There was no vestige of the official left. A deep experience had yanked him by the roots of his mind and he was moved.
“Yes,” I said. “I believe so.”
What the Sail has opened is a communication pathway with a conceptual multiverse (a familiar concept to physicists and comic book geeks alike). Through the collective memories of our world and an infinite number of others, Josh is witness to atrocities he can barely comprehend, and a degree of love he never thought possible. To those outside the experience looking in—government and military officials—the Sail is a potential weapon of untold power.
The pairing of these two stories is an interesting decision, one that I’m not sure works as well as the author might have intended. On the surface, they are relatively simple, interesting parables of knowledge—of the potential when faced with the prospect of omniscience, and the threats revealed when ignorance is embraced. In The Gift of Fire, the primary threats are those below the base ethical line society has drawn in the sand: murderers, rapists, and gang leaders among others. Through the touch of Prometheus, they are able to experience the full comprehensive details of the pain they’ve dealt to others, which in turn, is capable of driving these already deranged souls mad. However, in On the Head of a Pin, the threat is the control of knowledge by those seeking to keep a leash on what does and does not make it into the world at large. The two extremes of the economic/class structure are represented as being equally incapable of handling the knowledge given to them, due either to the actions they’ve already taken, or those they can only imagine will be available to them in the future. To this degree, the pairing of these narratives is certainly intriguing. Where they struggle to find cohesion, however, is strangely enough in their more direct similarities.
Religion (faith) and society (class and race): both stories deal directly with these concepts. With respect to religion, The Gift of Fire treats the coming of Prometheus as less a purveyor of knowledge and more of a direct Christ allegory, a concept made clear as Chief Redd’s influence grows and the once barely-alive child develops a following of worshippers and acolytes. Though seemingly benign in their endeavours, the President of the United States (under advisement of another Greek god in disguise) begins to see the threat of Prometheus/Redd’s growing influence. The spreading of knowledge is thus treated less like a source for ideas and action and more as a poor man’s simulacrum of total and unquestioning faith. Conversely, On the Head of a Pin uses religion to a more personal degree, detailing one man’s change of heart (with respect to race, which I’ll get to later) and how what he has seen through the science-made-magic of the Sail has convinced him to take dangerous, deadly action to keep knowledge form the hands of those who seek to take it and hide it away—the government and the military.
While both stories use religion in somewhat contrasting ways, the simplistic one-to-one of religion and knowledge is what pushes these stories apart, with respect to their potential impact. Instead of being Yin and Yang to one another, they tread all too similar ground, which in turn hurts the stories’ representations of knowledge, its power, and its purpose. This is also apparent when dealing with race and class issues in each story. Both employ such divisive concepts to further sketch a world seemingly without wisdom and in desperate need of it, but do it in such similarly hand-to-nose ways as to damage their individual and communal potential. In both stories, the power of black men is to be feared—be it by an authoritative presence in The Gift of Fire or a single misguided individual, as is the case with the zealot of On the Head of a Pin. The issue of race is tackled with claw-hammer delicacy, as the President is advised of the threat of a black man with followers, and a co-worker sees Josh (a black man) as less than human—until he is touched by “the divine”—and once more the promise of these two stories of contrasting genres approaching a similar conceit from two individual and unique perspectives is lost.
Perhaps this is a question of expectations. As I read the two stories, I found myself more intrigued by how the author presented knowledge as a fulcrum around which the details spun into their own independent directions, dependent on the genre and scope at play. But while these basic plot elements did in fact contrast (the science versus the fantasy; the homeless versus the scientists, both fighting the government), they were drawn in to one another all over again by Mosley’s inability to truly push the ideas of race, class, religion, and knowledge into far reaching corners at the opposite ends of the spectrum, which is what the differing set-ups seem to promise at the outset of each story.
Taken individually, both stories are somewhat amusing, if occasionally frustrating, takes on familiar science fiction and fantasy tropes. The Gift of Fire is certainly the stronger of the two in terms of plot and character development, though the character of Prometheus is all too quickly abandoned for the less strenuous Christ allegory. But together, laced as they are with socially pertinent themes that are simply not given their chance to develop into unique approaches to what is in the end very familiar subject matter, The Gift of Fire and On the Head of a Pin just don’t reach far enough.
July 24, 2020
Two novellas in one.
The gift of fire (4 stars)
This little novel contains a grand, heroic tale worthy of Homer, with sacrifices made to lift up the downtrodden from their crushed existence imposed upon them by selfish powers. It is rich with Mosley's signature theme of the oppressed rising up to overcome entrenched power-brokers that want to keep us playing their game, a game where they are the only winner. Read it!
On the head of a pin (3 stars)
This is a nice little tale reminiscent of Richard Matheson. Science fantasy with a social edge so sharp it will cut you if you aren't careful.
If you have only read Mosley's mystery stories you should try these.
The gift of fire (4 stars)
This little novel contains a grand, heroic tale worthy of Homer, with sacrifices made to lift up the downtrodden from their crushed existence imposed upon them by selfish powers. It is rich with Mosley's signature theme of the oppressed rising up to overcome entrenched power-brokers that want to keep us playing their game, a game where they are the only winner. Read it!
On the head of a pin (3 stars)
This is a nice little tale reminiscent of Richard Matheson. Science fantasy with a social edge so sharp it will cut you if you aren't careful.
If you have only read Mosley's mystery stories you should try these.
February 19, 2018
Meh, this Mosley book wasn’t my cup of tea. One story was based on the mythological story of Prometheus (with a heavy dose of socialism in the storyline). The second story was science fiction and kinda off the rails.
I did like the physical layout of the book. The first story you read front to back, and then flip the book upside down and read the second story back to front. So kind of a neat printing of two short stories.
I did like the physical layout of the book. The first story you read front to back, and then flip the book upside down and read the second story back to front. So kind of a neat printing of two short stories.
November 16, 2018
Two short novels - both narrators were wonderful. Both stories were not the usual Walter Mosley that I've read before. Never read any of his fantasy/ sci fi stuff and not crazy about his Easy Rawlins books. I like the Leonid McGill books.
Both were quite imaginative and kept my interest. One (Goodreads) reviewer said they thought it reflected socialism - frankly I didn't get that angle. Thought-provoking was my take. If that's "socialism" well, I guess I'm into it.
DD@Phila
Both were quite imaginative and kept my interest. One (Goodreads) reviewer said they thought it reflected socialism - frankly I didn't get that angle. Thought-provoking was my take. If that's "socialism" well, I guess I'm into it.
DD@Phila
December 7, 2018
I fell in love with Mosley's 1950's noir characters, especially Socrates Fortlow and Ptolome Gray and Fearless Jones. Now I am fanning out to read some of his stories that have nothing to do with these characters. This book contains two short novels, both dedicated to PKD. And for good reason. These are PKD-quality stories set in a different world at different times and asking what is is to be human.
October 29, 2020
A master of noir, Walter Mosley shows himself to be equally adept at other pulp forms with these paired novellas -- specifically fantasy and sci-fi. "The Gift of Fire" concerns a young prophet seeking to rekindle the inner flame of mankind with a little help from Prometheus; "On the Head of a Pin" imagines a portal to other planes of reality by way of a technical advancement in animation. Both books tickle the brain and seek out the soul. I had no idea Mosley could go here!
February 8, 2018
There was plenty to like about this book, but there were too many times were something really heavy would happen with not enough build up for it to be rewarding. For example at one point in On the Head of a Pin he made contact with the higher being and all of a sudden he understood the history of all religions. Or something bananas, along those lines.
September 25, 2017
3 stars for The Gift of Fire, it started out so well. By the end it was just shades of Stranger in a Strange Land, Messianic entitlement. 5 stars for On the Head of a Pin. Lovely imagery. My first Mosley book, will definitely not be the last
November 10, 2018
I read gift of fire, the story line was a bit out there for me but I finished it and was disappointed.
The head of a pin, I just couldn't finish nor get into the story, it was too far out there for me to even want to comprehend, just a strange strange story.
The head of a pin, I just couldn't finish nor get into the story, it was too far out there for me to even want to comprehend, just a strange strange story.
September 5, 2017
Meh. A few interesting ideas but mostly just socialism.
June 18, 2018
I really like how uncompromisingly Mosley writes about police and policing. I frequently struggle with how he describes women.
June 6, 2020
Really good SF from a gifted writer.
January 16, 2022
I personally enjoyed On the Head of a Pin more than The Gift of Fire, but both were quite enjoyable in an upsetting kind of way.
May 2, 2012
Walter Mosely brings us two novels in one: The Gift of Fire and On the Head of a Pin. Both are science fiction/fantasy novels that are a joy to read. 'm not a fan of science fiction novels, and I don't think that will change, however, I was intrigued and entertained by these two novels. They were well-written, and in the 100 or so pages of each novel, I found myself sucked into that world.
In The Gift of Fire, the god Prometheus, tired of being tortured, walks in to the mortal world to find a suitable vessel for the second gift of fire (enlightenment). Found wandering around the streets of South Center LA, Prometheus is arrested. While in jail, he makes a connection that leads him to a young crippled boy, Chief Reddy. Chief becomes the carrier of the light and the enemy of the gods.
In On the Head of a Pin, Joshua Winterland works as a record keeper for JTE and their ground breaking project, the Blank Page. It starts out as a way to have current and past actors perform together during any period of time. One evening the Sail (the screen of the Blank Page) takes on a life of its own depicting images even when the screen is not connected. Josh becomes astutely attuned to the screen making him not only an important man to the government, but an important man to race of people hundreds of years in the future.
Both novels are thought-provoking and eye-opening. Each novel raises questions about love, religion, time, life, death, souls, and spirituality. I am a fan of Walter Mosely, and he does not disappoint with these two novels.
In The Gift of Fire, the god Prometheus, tired of being tortured, walks in to the mortal world to find a suitable vessel for the second gift of fire (enlightenment). Found wandering around the streets of South Center LA, Prometheus is arrested. While in jail, he makes a connection that leads him to a young crippled boy, Chief Reddy. Chief becomes the carrier of the light and the enemy of the gods.
In On the Head of a Pin, Joshua Winterland works as a record keeper for JTE and their ground breaking project, the Blank Page. It starts out as a way to have current and past actors perform together during any period of time. One evening the Sail (the screen of the Blank Page) takes on a life of its own depicting images even when the screen is not connected. Josh becomes astutely attuned to the screen making him not only an important man to the government, but an important man to race of people hundreds of years in the future.
Both novels are thought-provoking and eye-opening. Each novel raises questions about love, religion, time, life, death, souls, and spirituality. I am a fan of Walter Mosely, and he does not disappoint with these two novels.
May 18, 2015
I didn't like this pair of tales as much as Mosley's other Crosstown to Oblivion novella collection: Merge/Disciple. While Merge/Disciple had a footing in very weird aliens, TGoF/OtHoaP went in completely different directions.
Both stories still fall well within the same Post-9/11 Science Fiction genre as Merge/Disciple, with a dominating, officious, and ultimately fearful overseer class who shred the Constitution in misguided attempts to protect the homeland.
TGoF imagines a world where the Greco-Roman gods are real, and Prometheus comes down and bestows a twist on his classic gift to an invalid child in Los Angeles. While the tale was unmistakably Mosley-written, the arc is less-Science Fiction and more a new-age Messiah-has-arrived story which is conspicuously absent of anyone holding actual Christian beliefs.
OtHoaP takes a look at a tech startup who builds a neural network that bridges reality, time, and thought. While the premise is solid, the weirdness inherent to the CtO series gets the better of this tale. I think dumping the metaphysical elements could've made this a really special, though more straightforward, science fiction story.
Not recommended, especially if you dislike graphic sex and violence.
Both stories still fall well within the same Post-9/11 Science Fiction genre as Merge/Disciple, with a dominating, officious, and ultimately fearful overseer class who shred the Constitution in misguided attempts to protect the homeland.
TGoF imagines a world where the Greco-Roman gods are real, and Prometheus comes down and bestows a twist on his classic gift to an invalid child in Los Angeles. While the tale was unmistakably Mosley-written, the arc is less-Science Fiction and more a new-age Messiah-has-arrived story which is conspicuously absent of anyone holding actual Christian beliefs.
OtHoaP takes a look at a tech startup who builds a neural network that bridges reality, time, and thought. While the premise is solid, the weirdness inherent to the CtO series gets the better of this tale. I think dumping the metaphysical elements could've made this a really special, though more straightforward, science fiction story.
Not recommended, especially if you dislike graphic sex and violence.
February 14, 2013
This is a book comprised of two novellas. In “Gift of Fire,” Mosley brings to life one of mythology’s characters, the Titan Prometheus. Prometheus was punished by the gods for giving man the gift of fire. His sentence is, having an eagle devour the innards of his immortal body. He escapes, however, to the streets of modern Los Angeles. There he begins a movement, saving souls and reforming the masses into doing good. He is transferred into the body of an ailing youth who goes on to become the savior. Like other saviors in history, however, this one will meet his fate.
“On the Head of a Pin” has scientists developing technology that creates movies that are not distinguishable from real action. Stars of yesterday can act alongside with contemporary ones. Then enter the government…
This one is mixed for me. I enjoyed “Gift of Fire,” which contains Mosley’s hard-boiled style that I like. It is fast paced and held my interest. While “On the Head of a Pin” moves quickly, I could not get into the story despite its potential. For me, the characters were mere names that filled slots. Mosley typically is an action type of guy. Not in this case, however. The story moved with dialog, and despite its length, I felt there were too many extraneous items.
“On the Head of a Pin” has scientists developing technology that creates movies that are not distinguishable from real action. Stars of yesterday can act alongside with contemporary ones. Then enter the government…
This one is mixed for me. I enjoyed “Gift of Fire,” which contains Mosley’s hard-boiled style that I like. It is fast paced and held my interest. While “On the Head of a Pin” moves quickly, I could not get into the story despite its potential. For me, the characters were mere names that filled slots. Mosley typically is an action type of guy. Not in this case, however. The story moved with dialog, and despite its length, I felt there were too many extraneous items.
February 18, 2016
I love Mosley's detective fiction, and I would have liked to be as impressed with these two stories, but this work just didn't seem as strong to me. The premise of The Gift of Fire seems like it should be a great foundation for a novel, but the story really fell flat for me as the characters seemed to be going through motions playing parts in a parable. The main characters come off as pieces being moved around by fate (or the needs of the plot?), the antagonists are not really fleshed out as characters, and the nature of the "second fire" bestowed by Prometheus is a vague mashup of early New Testament Christianity and utopian socialism. I don't have a problem with the political philosophy implied, as such, but it didn't really seem as miraculous and revolutionary as the story required.
I liked the second story, On the Head of a Pin, better. The characters were better defined, felt like they had more agency, and the premise was developed in a more interesting way. I still didn't feel like it was as good as other, more grounded, works by this author, but I liked it well enough to up my review from 2 to 3 stars by the end.
I liked the second story, On the Head of a Pin, better. The characters were better defined, felt like they had more agency, and the premise was developed in a more interesting way. I still didn't feel like it was as good as other, more grounded, works by this author, but I liked it well enough to up my review from 2 to 3 stars by the end.
November 17, 2013
Mosley delivers again! The prose itself is beautiful, almost poetic, and definitely harkening to another great like Hemingway. The ideas abound in both short novels, though The Gift of Fire probably benefits a little bit more from having a personal interest of mine, Prometheus, in it. The weakness of both short novels, however, was the ending; the endings of both felt perhaps, a bit truncated or rushed, as though the engine ran out of gas rather than the stories having reached their natural conclusion.
There are two warnings in relation to these short novels, however. First, while in my opinion both are very good, The Gift of Fire is definitely fantasy, not science fiction, and On the Head of a Pin does walk a very fine line close to the border of science fiction and fantasy. Second, the novels do bend the genres quite a bit away from the normal conventions of science fiction or fantasy. This didn't bother me, but it may others.
In all, though, definitely a worthwhile read. I believe I'll be riding the Crosstown to Oblivion again.
There are two warnings in relation to these short novels, however. First, while in my opinion both are very good, The Gift of Fire is definitely fantasy, not science fiction, and On the Head of a Pin does walk a very fine line close to the border of science fiction and fantasy. Second, the novels do bend the genres quite a bit away from the normal conventions of science fiction or fantasy. This didn't bother me, but it may others.
In all, though, definitely a worthwhile read. I believe I'll be riding the Crosstown to Oblivion again.
December 15, 2015
I didn't care for "The Gift if Fire". Prometheus, bound to a rock and tortured every day for giving humans the gift of fire, finally breaks free and sets out to complete his task. Disheartened by what man had become, Prometheus searches for someone who will be able to receive his second flame without being destroyed by it. He finds what he's looking for in a bedridden 14 year old. While an interesting story, it becomes redundant and kind of boring. I kept checking to see how many pages I had left.
I did like "On the Head of a Pin". Josh Winterland is hired at JTE for the sole purpose of recording a new research project involving never before seen animatronics editing software. A special screen is constructed on which to view the footage. This screen (the Blank Page, the Sail) is more than anyone bargained for; a portal of sorts. A window into the past, present, and your soul. Each person sees different images. Josh has the strongest connection to the Sail. Of course the government wants to know how to weaponize it, and it's all downhill from there.
I did like "On the Head of a Pin". Josh Winterland is hired at JTE for the sole purpose of recording a new research project involving never before seen animatronics editing software. A special screen is constructed on which to view the footage. This screen (the Blank Page, the Sail) is more than anyone bargained for; a portal of sorts. A window into the past, present, and your soul. Each person sees different images. Josh has the strongest connection to the Sail. Of course the government wants to know how to weaponize it, and it's all downhill from there.
July 6, 2012
As with "Blue Light" and "The Wave," Walter Mosley demonstrates his talent as a science fiction author. I have read many of Mr. Mosley's novels, and have enjoyed them all. He has a talent for breathing life into his characters, especially the protagonists. You get a feel for them and their stories in a few short lines of narrative.
These two novellas, present in the same book but flipped so that they are upsidedown from each other are amazing.
"The Gift of Fire" is about the Greek God Prometheus escaping his chains and escaping to the mortal world. He gives his gift of fire to a small disabled child, and the world is never the same again.
"On the Head of a Pin" is about a piece of technology that is so disruptive that it will change the world. Designed as a revolutionary video production technology called the Sail, it goes much deeper, and taps into our racial memory.
Both these stories are great. Read it.
These two novellas, present in the same book but flipped so that they are upsidedown from each other are amazing.
"The Gift of Fire" is about the Greek God Prometheus escaping his chains and escaping to the mortal world. He gives his gift of fire to a small disabled child, and the world is never the same again.
"On the Head of a Pin" is about a piece of technology that is so disruptive that it will change the world. Designed as a revolutionary video production technology called the Sail, it goes much deeper, and taps into our racial memory.
Both these stories are great. Read it.
February 14, 2014
I really like short stories and I really love these Walter Mosley two for one specials. The first one I read "On The Head Of A Pin" was my favorite of the two stories. I liked the science fiction element of it. Some of it was a bit too grody, but on the whole it was okay. Both stories have a sort of short story problem where certain characters can come off terribly underdeveloped and they can be interpreted rather poorly. I feel like there is a female character in each book that just comes off really bad. I don't mind the character of each book, but the descriptions of them and their actions sound bad, when they should probably have an added paragraph or two to make the story not feel so much like it wants one character to be a badguy (even though with context from the rest of the story I don't see anything wrong with their actions) and the other character to seem miserable (though again, I don't particularly think they were so bad.
March 4, 2012
Two short novels, a bit of SF, a bit of fantasy, set up like the old Ace Doubles. You know, read a novel, flip it over, there's a second novel.
In ON THE HEAD OF A PIN, the SF, a small start-up company is working on software that can recreate past actors so perfectly, that movies made with them will be as real movies as the films they actually made.
What they get is-a gateway?-no one knows exactly what they have. It brings the government in when the owner takes it to them. To disasterous results.
THE GIFT OF FIRE finds Prometheus escaping from the rock he's eternally chained to to go down to Earth. He has a second gift of fire to give to humanity, one that angers the Gods of Olympus once more.
He must find an uncorrupted soul to give it to and thus save humanity from the path it's headed.
He finds that soul.
liked both of these.
In ON THE HEAD OF A PIN, the SF, a small start-up company is working on software that can recreate past actors so perfectly, that movies made with them will be as real movies as the films they actually made.
What they get is-a gateway?-no one knows exactly what they have. It brings the government in when the owner takes it to them. To disasterous results.
THE GIFT OF FIRE finds Prometheus escaping from the rock he's eternally chained to to go down to Earth. He has a second gift of fire to give to humanity, one that angers the Gods of Olympus once more.
He must find an uncorrupted soul to give it to and thus save humanity from the path it's headed.
He finds that soul.
liked both of these.
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