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No Direction Home
A violent rock group with maniacal music boils up a craze for a nuclear blast. A man finds himself blown into a ghastly world by a bolt of lightning. A world exists where reality is psychedelic and a "straight trip" is a hideous bummer. A machine that induces the ultimate orgasm, a cosmic nightmare of pleasure, pain and death.Bone-chilling, mind-shattering science fiction that will take you into worlds where there is No Direction Home .No Direction Home (1971).Heirloom (1972).The Big Flash (1969).The Conspiracy (1969).The Weed of Time (1970).A Thing of Beauty (1973).The Lost Continent (1970).Heroes Die but Once (1969).The National Pastime (1973).In the Eye of the Storm (1974).All the Sounds of the Rainbow (1973).
238 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1975
9 people are currently reading
164 people want to read
About the author
Norman Spinrad
365 books217 followersBorn in New York in 1940, Norman Spinrad is an acclaimed SF writer.
Norman Spinrad, born in New York City, is a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science. In 1957 he entered City College of New York and graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree as a pre-law major. In 1966 he moved to San Francisco, then to Los Angeles, and now lives in Paris. He married fellow novelist N. Lee Wood in 1990; they divorced in 2005. They had no children. Spinrad served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) from 1980 to 1982 and again from 2001 to 2002.
Norman Spinrad, born in New York City, is a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science. In 1957 he entered City College of New York and graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree as a pre-law major. In 1966 he moved to San Francisco, then to Los Angeles, and now lives in Paris. He married fellow novelist N. Lee Wood in 1990; they divorced in 2005. They had no children. Spinrad served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) from 1980 to 1982 and again from 2001 to 2002.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 16, 2021
This is a good collection of Spinrad's early short fiction, a very au courant selection of stories that first appeared from 1969 to 1974. The title is from Dylan, so you knew it had to be cool, right? The Big Flash is a good rock'n'roll story, and I always liked The National Pastime and The Lost Continent. This first edition has one of those bizarre Charles Moll covers that reflected the New Wave quite well.
January 25, 2024
3.5 stars.
They say some books age like fine wine.... I'm glad that's not always the case. 'No Direction Home' screams 1970s anger and dismay through a bullhorn, protesting all the ills, illusions and bullshits of the Vietnam era. It was a pleasure reading Spinrad writing in that time period - as much nuance as a sledgehammer, obliterating the easy riders, mystical new waves, urban renewals, and the goodtime charlies. While the prose can be overweight in its delivery, at times outright clunky, this is finely preserved 1969-1975. Sprinrad put a stinkbomb in the whole Aquarian age, as pissed off as a skeptical revolution revolting its own cause. I find Spinrad to be the East coast version of Harlan Ellison. Bitter & bold, skeptical, overwrought, and imaginative off the usual grid.
'No Direction Home' - here the legalization of drugs shows how corporate greed feeds the idle masses. A slap in the face to Tim Leary's 'tune out, tune in' claptrap. Cynical as f**k.
Heirloom' - pacifist aliens don't want to fight the American army. What's the war room to do with a race that doesn't care of protecting themselves?
'The Big Flash' - hokey concept of the ultimate apocalyptic rock band playing for the final countdown. Thought it was silly but it grew on me just fine.
'The Conspiracy' - Spinrad takes a page from the cut-up textbooks of John Brunner & William Burroughs. Best line: "Partisans freed a gorilla from the world-famous Bronx zoo. The gorilla made its way, unnoticed, by subway, to New York's Central Park where it was brutally beaten to death by muggers..."
'The Weed of Time' - like 'The Big Flash', Spinrad really tries to describe the acid trip -- here not LSD but an alien plant brought to Earth by a soul and mind-shattered astronaut. Some descriptions work, some don't. Good story, though. The carousel of time is a bitch.
'A Thing of Beauty' - New York City is abandoned. A salesman tries to sell a Japanese tycoon Yankee stadium. Atmospheric at points, but a head-scratcher, as if Spinrad abandoned his own pitch. Not the strongest.
'The Lost Continent' - Again, New York City is abandoned, Manhattan covered in a blue gaseous and polluted bubble. Only a few hundred devolved 'new agers' live in the subway stations, fed by the same machinery that helped destroy America. Perhaps the best in the collection (featuring a wild Penn Station with an arcade of bones), only mired by black vs. white tensions that read like a curse-laden sitcom. Otherwise fascinating premise as a tour guide takes a group from Africa of the doomed and decayed urban landscape. That ending was tops.
'Heroes Die But Once' - here we have alien slugs with giant brains, and a mockery of two astronauts in love. Spinrad must drink his coffee with salt.
'The National Pastime' - what could have been a horrible metaphor of violence in sports is kind of funny. Done in the same shifting summerical viewpoint of the title story, this shows how gut-wrenchingly angry the country was in the early 70s....which makes me wonder, who in modern SF are today's Ellisons and Spinrads?
'In the Eye of the Storm' - Spinrad gets all horror with this one. Could have found a home in the 1980s horror boom. A biker drives through Denver, only to find him in a lightning storm, which of course, opens to a new dimension. Kind of fun and kind of gloriously stupid.
'All the Sounds of the Rainbow' - a porn producer tries to disgrace a spiritual cult leader, only to find his own enlightenments along the Santa Monica shores. Strange and cumbersome (how can one successfully translate out of body experiences for 30 pages?) but a very solid closing on this wholly American New Wave collection.
They say some books age like fine wine.... I'm glad that's not always the case. 'No Direction Home' screams 1970s anger and dismay through a bullhorn, protesting all the ills, illusions and bullshits of the Vietnam era. It was a pleasure reading Spinrad writing in that time period - as much nuance as a sledgehammer, obliterating the easy riders, mystical new waves, urban renewals, and the goodtime charlies. While the prose can be overweight in its delivery, at times outright clunky, this is finely preserved 1969-1975. Sprinrad put a stinkbomb in the whole Aquarian age, as pissed off as a skeptical revolution revolting its own cause. I find Spinrad to be the East coast version of Harlan Ellison. Bitter & bold, skeptical, overwrought, and imaginative off the usual grid.
'No Direction Home' - here the legalization of drugs shows how corporate greed feeds the idle masses. A slap in the face to Tim Leary's 'tune out, tune in' claptrap. Cynical as f**k.
Heirloom' - pacifist aliens don't want to fight the American army. What's the war room to do with a race that doesn't care of protecting themselves?
'The Big Flash' - hokey concept of the ultimate apocalyptic rock band playing for the final countdown. Thought it was silly but it grew on me just fine.
'The Conspiracy' - Spinrad takes a page from the cut-up textbooks of John Brunner & William Burroughs. Best line: "Partisans freed a gorilla from the world-famous Bronx zoo. The gorilla made its way, unnoticed, by subway, to New York's Central Park where it was brutally beaten to death by muggers..."
'The Weed of Time' - like 'The Big Flash', Spinrad really tries to describe the acid trip -- here not LSD but an alien plant brought to Earth by a soul and mind-shattered astronaut. Some descriptions work, some don't. Good story, though. The carousel of time is a bitch.
'A Thing of Beauty' - New York City is abandoned. A salesman tries to sell a Japanese tycoon Yankee stadium. Atmospheric at points, but a head-scratcher, as if Spinrad abandoned his own pitch. Not the strongest.
'The Lost Continent' - Again, New York City is abandoned, Manhattan covered in a blue gaseous and polluted bubble. Only a few hundred devolved 'new agers' live in the subway stations, fed by the same machinery that helped destroy America. Perhaps the best in the collection (featuring a wild Penn Station with an arcade of bones), only mired by black vs. white tensions that read like a curse-laden sitcom. Otherwise fascinating premise as a tour guide takes a group from Africa of the doomed and decayed urban landscape. That ending was tops.
'Heroes Die But Once' - here we have alien slugs with giant brains, and a mockery of two astronauts in love. Spinrad must drink his coffee with salt.
'The National Pastime' - what could have been a horrible metaphor of violence in sports is kind of funny. Done in the same shifting summerical viewpoint of the title story, this shows how gut-wrenchingly angry the country was in the early 70s....which makes me wonder, who in modern SF are today's Ellisons and Spinrads?
'In the Eye of the Storm' - Spinrad gets all horror with this one. Could have found a home in the 1980s horror boom. A biker drives through Denver, only to find him in a lightning storm, which of course, opens to a new dimension. Kind of fun and kind of gloriously stupid.
'All the Sounds of the Rainbow' - a porn producer tries to disgrace a spiritual cult leader, only to find his own enlightenments along the Santa Monica shores. Strange and cumbersome (how can one successfully translate out of body experiences for 30 pages?) but a very solid closing on this wholly American New Wave collection.
August 22, 2023
No Direction Home - 3/5 - A world where everyone legally uses psychedelics. We are shown some different perspectives from drug designers, parents and pediatricians, and religious leaders. It's semi-interesting in the Asimovian way of people talking a lot while not much actually happens. It's not too short but didn't overstay its welcome either
Heirloom - 3/5 - A man recounts a war story to his grandson regarding occupying an alien nation which completely ignored that the soldiers existed even when they committed atrocities against them. Sort of intriguing and probably has allusions to Vietnam
The Big Flash - 4/5 - A rock band gets a huge cult-like following with their hypnotic throbbing music that's all about setting off a nuclear bomb. Extremely unique stylistically and one of the better stories regarding the often tread subject matter of atomic bombs and radiation. Deserves a lot of credit for the way it describes the music being played. You can almost hear it in your head. However, it is relatively simplistic and primal. It's not exactly like trying to describe an orchestral suite
True Conspiracy - 3/5 - Seemingly a look at how different groups might view or have preconceived ideas regarding different bits of news. I used the word "seemingly" because it's super short and has no narrative so I'm not totally sure I got it. Might be one of those "of their time" stories
The Weed of Time - 5/5 - First person perspective of a person who has eaten an alien plant that enables them to experience the entirety of their lifespan at all moments. There is no looking into the future or past when they are not alive, but they also don't die in that they are always on their deathbed and always being born and always alive mentally. Pretty trippy and pretty incredible
A Thing of Beauty - 3.5/5 - A man from a now ruined United States is trying to sell some ancient landmarks to a rich Japanese fellow. Story itself is ok, but I wanted to know more about why America had gone to shit over the novelty of trying to sell a guy Yankee Stadium
The Lost Continent - 3/5 - Another story about a ruined USA. This time we have a white guy leading a tour of African tourists through a smog-poisoned New York City. While the whole world is less advanced than the "Space Aged America" of the past, Africa is at least prosperous and habitable and now a world power. The tour guide and one of the tourists are completely antagonistic towards each other. There is a slightly interesting dynamic of the past indiscretions of white Americans, yet the roles are now reversed where they no longer have much power and haven't for quite a while. There is a portion of Amero-Africans that still have resentment for white men but most have moved on. It feels like something that wouldn't be written today. It's not overly offensive but neither man is in the right and both look bad (and there are racial slurs). The ending is pretty wild and out of nowhere
Heroes Die But Once - 5/5 - Intense psychological first contact story that has horror vibes and a nice amount of pessimism to really suit my tastes
The National Pastime - 4/5 - TV executives create the Combat Football League to compete against the dominant NFL. Essentially it's football without pads and ultra-violence. Instead of cities, teams are based around races or groups so the fan bases adopt them in that way instead. The live events become essentially gang fights within the stands. Feels mostly like a trashy late-70s or 80s movie but there are some interesting bits of depth. Books and stories about sports really appeal to me
In the Eye of the Storm - 3.5/5 - A man is sent forward in time after being struck by lightning. What awaits him is a monster infested hellscape
All the Sounds of the Rainbow - 4.5/5 - A jaded pornographer tries to condemn a local guru as a conman who can naturally trigger extreme synesthesia in people, including his ex-wife who is using her alimony to pay him, to give them a natural high. Very unique and written very well. This is the kind of stuff I want from 70s science fiction
Heirloom - 3/5 - A man recounts a war story to his grandson regarding occupying an alien nation which completely ignored that the soldiers existed even when they committed atrocities against them. Sort of intriguing and probably has allusions to Vietnam
The Big Flash - 4/5 - A rock band gets a huge cult-like following with their hypnotic throbbing music that's all about setting off a nuclear bomb. Extremely unique stylistically and one of the better stories regarding the often tread subject matter of atomic bombs and radiation. Deserves a lot of credit for the way it describes the music being played. You can almost hear it in your head. However, it is relatively simplistic and primal. It's not exactly like trying to describe an orchestral suite
True Conspiracy - 3/5 - Seemingly a look at how different groups might view or have preconceived ideas regarding different bits of news. I used the word "seemingly" because it's super short and has no narrative so I'm not totally sure I got it. Might be one of those "of their time" stories
The Weed of Time - 5/5 - First person perspective of a person who has eaten an alien plant that enables them to experience the entirety of their lifespan at all moments. There is no looking into the future or past when they are not alive, but they also don't die in that they are always on their deathbed and always being born and always alive mentally. Pretty trippy and pretty incredible
A Thing of Beauty - 3.5/5 - A man from a now ruined United States is trying to sell some ancient landmarks to a rich Japanese fellow. Story itself is ok, but I wanted to know more about why America had gone to shit over the novelty of trying to sell a guy Yankee Stadium
The Lost Continent - 3/5 - Another story about a ruined USA. This time we have a white guy leading a tour of African tourists through a smog-poisoned New York City. While the whole world is less advanced than the "Space Aged America" of the past, Africa is at least prosperous and habitable and now a world power. The tour guide and one of the tourists are completely antagonistic towards each other. There is a slightly interesting dynamic of the past indiscretions of white Americans, yet the roles are now reversed where they no longer have much power and haven't for quite a while. There is a portion of Amero-Africans that still have resentment for white men but most have moved on. It feels like something that wouldn't be written today. It's not overly offensive but neither man is in the right and both look bad (and there are racial slurs). The ending is pretty wild and out of nowhere
Heroes Die But Once - 5/5 - Intense psychological first contact story that has horror vibes and a nice amount of pessimism to really suit my tastes
The National Pastime - 4/5 - TV executives create the Combat Football League to compete against the dominant NFL. Essentially it's football without pads and ultra-violence. Instead of cities, teams are based around races or groups so the fan bases adopt them in that way instead. The live events become essentially gang fights within the stands. Feels mostly like a trashy late-70s or 80s movie but there are some interesting bits of depth. Books and stories about sports really appeal to me
In the Eye of the Storm - 3.5/5 - A man is sent forward in time after being struck by lightning. What awaits him is a monster infested hellscape
All the Sounds of the Rainbow - 4.5/5 - A jaded pornographer tries to condemn a local guru as a conman who can naturally trigger extreme synesthesia in people, including his ex-wife who is using her alimony to pay him, to give them a natural high. Very unique and written very well. This is the kind of stuff I want from 70s science fiction
February 7, 2018
This was a fascinating short story. The narrator relates in it how he has taken Temp (tempus ceti), the "weed of time" referred to in the title, and then attempts to convey how it has affected his life.
In short, I think Spinrad does a brilliant job of showing the reader how the narrator is in all times at once, and how horrendous that could feel. Not an easy concept to convey, and yet I think he managed pretty well with this.
In short, I think Spinrad does a brilliant job of showing the reader how the narrator is in all times at once, and how horrendous that could feel. Not an easy concept to convey, and yet I think he managed pretty well with this.
November 6, 2025
A great collection of short sci-fi stories. Some that were quite brilliant such as "The Lost Continent" and "The Sounds of the Rainbow". Some out there stuff here, very weird and definitely in the new wave of sci-fi akin to Ballard, Delaney, etc. Glad I picked it up!
February 13, 2017
1st Read: March 11, 1997 - April 25, 1997
I'd begun to read this while I was also reading the Ramsey Campbell book, Incarnate which grew to be uninteresting for me. This one fell in the same category of being a mostly boring collection of short stories. There were a few moments in some of the stories that were alright, and a couple of the stories were enjoyable. Science Fiction is definitely a genre I particularly don't care for.
I) "No Direction Home"
Interesting....but no chubbie!
II) "Heirloom"
So so...predictable ending!
III) "The Big Flash"
Kept my interest...still no chubbie!
IV) "The Conspiracy"
What? short story? Hardly!!
V) "The Weed of Time"
Interesting...slightly confusing...but it wasn't that bad.
VI) "A Thing of Beauty"
So far, this has been the best.
VII) "The Last Continent"
Pretty long short story. Didn't enjoy it either.
VIII) "Heroes Die But Once"
Read it too quick. It didn't seem that interesting anyway.
IX) "The National Pastime"
Nothing too special.
X) "In the Eye of the Storm"
This was pretty good!
XI) "All the Sounds of the Rainbow"
I must have missed something!
I'd begun to read this while I was also reading the Ramsey Campbell book, Incarnate which grew to be uninteresting for me. This one fell in the same category of being a mostly boring collection of short stories. There were a few moments in some of the stories that were alright, and a couple of the stories were enjoyable. Science Fiction is definitely a genre I particularly don't care for.
I) "No Direction Home"
Interesting....but no chubbie!
II) "Heirloom"
So so...predictable ending!
III) "The Big Flash"
Kept my interest...still no chubbie!
IV) "The Conspiracy"
What? short story? Hardly!!
V) "The Weed of Time"
Interesting...slightly confusing...but it wasn't that bad.
VI) "A Thing of Beauty"
So far, this has been the best.
VII) "The Last Continent"
Pretty long short story. Didn't enjoy it either.
VIII) "Heroes Die But Once"
Read it too quick. It didn't seem that interesting anyway.
IX) "The National Pastime"
Nothing too special.
X) "In the Eye of the Storm"
This was pretty good!
XI) "All the Sounds of the Rainbow"
I must have missed something!
September 6, 2022
I read this collection years ago, but the eponymous short story really stuck with me. It's beautiful and horrifying at the same time, and I think of it whenever I see an advertisement for a new psychiatric medication. The standard explanation patients hear, "Your brain chemistry is out of whack and this medication will fix it" is a tired old lie. People with mental illness do often have abnormal brain chemistry, but when we take psychiatric medication it doesn't "fix" anything, it just makes our brain chemistry abnormal in a different way. There are many drugs that are effective in treating different disorders, but our concepts of how and why they work are still vague and primitive. "No Direction Home" is the story of a society that consciously and deliberately constructs new mental realities for its citizens, tailor-made to keep each person content and productive; the main difference in our world is that we have yet to admit that's what we're doing.
July 13, 2025
I kinda love it.
The few stories I read were very 60s pulp, over the top, and enjoyable. A stoner book for sure. groovy, man.
The weed of time, man! 🤙
My first Spinrad, it had me enjoying the ride from the first page. 100% one of the coolest book covers of all time.
The few stories I read were very 60s pulp, over the top, and enjoyable. A stoner book for sure. groovy, man.
The weed of time, man! 🤙
My first Spinrad, it had me enjoying the ride from the first page. 100% one of the coolest book covers of all time.
January 8, 2023
The Weed of Time is the best story in here. Everything else is forgettable or worse - cringe-inducing!
June 13, 2025
Eleven socially conscious stories, from 1969 to 1973, which reflect the dominant concerns of the times: ecological destruction in "The Lost Continent," where affluent Africans get a tour of the extinct space-age United States; violence in sports in "The National Pastime," which innovates combat football as the mob's circus; and the horror of psychedelic drug dependency in "No Direction Home." "The Big Flash" (Nebula Award nominee, 1969) has the U.S. government using a rock band to manipulate public opinion into using nukes in Vietnam, while "A Thing of Beauty" (Nebula Award nominee, 1973) has a gross American selling a refined Japanese the Brooklyn Bridge. Accurate mirrors for a distorted culture. Compare "The National Pastime" to Killerbowl, by Gary K. Wolfe. Compare "The Lost Continent" to Memories of the Space Age by J. G. Ballard. Compare "No Direction Home" to A Scanner Darkly, by Philip K. Dick.
May 14, 2021
Interesting idea, but not an interesting story. The rambling conceptual explanations are far more than the reader needs to understand what's going on, but become the entire text, leaving us without a story.
January 25, 2024
Probably my favorite short story collection I have read thus far. The story "The Big Flash" was my personal highlight, so freaking tense and cool!
Spinrad is great writer and I would categorize his work under literary (science) fiction. Do give him a try!
Spinrad is great writer and I would categorize his work under literary (science) fiction. Do give him a try!
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October 10, 2008Sex, and drugs, and Vietnam.
February 22, 2014
A well-narrated short story with a really neat sci-fi concept.
December 22, 2015
I read this in The Time Traveler's Almanac. I'm giving it one star only because I can't give it zero. I found it repetitive and pointless.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews