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Summary: I fell in love with Socrates
Review: I searched a used bookstore for an 1 1/2 hours knowing that inevitably God would reveal a wonderful book before me. When I found Walter Mosely's novel, I knew it was 'the one.' I loved Socrates, the main character, in a way I have never loved a book's character. And I am especially looking forward to the follow-up novel, Walking the Dog. (Soon to be released!)
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Summary: One of my favorite books of the last few years
Review: This book so impressed me that I felt compelled to write and STRONLY recommend the book to anyone who will listen. I won't waste your time by reviewing the content (since most of the reviewers have already supplied such information). I will tell you, however, that Mosely's work is the best book I have read in the last few years. I am moved by his characterization; entertained by his storyline; intrigued by his personalities; and placed by his thick descriptions of context. While I am a big fan of his "Easy" series, this is far and away his literary masterpiece. READ IT TODAY!
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Summary: The better to hold you with
Review: That's what Socrates' big hands are good for - the better to hold you with, as is this riveting story. I loved this story. I'm a Walter Mosley/ Easy fan. I was prepared for this book to not be a mystery but I was expecting something more like a Gone Fishin, so I was caught flat with this story of pain and redemption and the high cost of self-control. Socrates walks a thin line between prisons, the one from which he was released and the one represented by the limited life forced on those who live in the Watts of the world. The wider prison of the outside world threatens to claim Socrates daily and daily he struggles against its claim on him, his dignity, and sanity. The reader is right there - a witness to the large pains and small triumphs of Socrates' life. Walter Mosley doesn't spare the reader but rather nakes you face the problems as Socrates would - head on. There is a quiet, desparate, dignity in Socrates that cannot be denied. It's amazing how much life is represented in these few pages. Walter Mosley proves he can write anything and write it well.
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Summary: A good, gritty book about a not-so-good, gritty world
Review: I'm new to Mosley and haven't read any of his detective novels, but I thoroughly enjoyed this quick, easy read. Each chapter told a poignant story, and though they don't come together as in a novel, they do tie together in a meaningful way. Many of the stories are mean and bittersweet, but they are ultimately honest and hopeful, and you can you feel the central character's, Socrates Fortlow's, often-conflicted emotions in dealing with a panolopy of hard choices and various (brought on often by an earlier life of crime) injustices, as well as his incredible determination to build a life out of less than nothing. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: Masculinist writing?
Review: For years, we've seen the growth of so-called feminist writing. In my opinion, this is about as close to masculinist writing as you can get. It explores the soul of a man who wakes up every day and knows that he did this to himself. It's about a man who strives to keep living another day, the best years of his life gone, trying to live up to a standard he failed years ago. It asks the question what is a man? Those who criticize it as predictable or formulaic forget that life itself is predictable and formulaic. It's what you do with it that counts. Most of us will never face the trials of Socrates, being shielded from his cold reality by the concerns of credit cards and will I have to go with cloth instead of leather seats. But in the end, we still face the same questions. I applaud Walter Mosley for such an honest look into the soul of man.
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Summary: Nice appetizer, where's the main dish?
Review: I have never read anything by Mosley before, so I can't compare this work to Easy Rawlins. I enjoyed this collection of stories, but I wanted it to turn into a novel (which might be next . . .) instead of a series of pat character sketches. I got tired of being introduced to the same character again and again. I know I shouldn't read a collection of stories as a novel, but I found Mosley's engaging writing hard to put down. So like a bag of potato chips, you can't have just one. Yet alas, like those chips, you wish for more substance. . .
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Summary: another five stars
Review: I can see there are plenty of raves for this book already, I'd just like to say Mr. Mosley has topped himself again and I really enjoyed following this new set of characters. Can't wait to get into his next one.
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Summary: suspense with strong character development. Great book.
Review: Mosley has a great knack for chatacter development and paints a plot that makes it hard o put this story down. Centered in L.A. with a pulp and "noire" touch, this is a must read and I can't wait to delve into Mosley's other works.
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Summary: Mosley Receives an A for imagery, incomplete for plot
Review: Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned is a collection of 14 stories revolving around Mosley's newest street hero, Socrates Fortlow, an ex-convict formerely convicted of a rape and double murder. The selections chronicle the tribulations that Fortlow faces after he is released from a twenty-seven year jail sentence. However, Mosley fails in his mission to present Fortlow as anything more than an ex-con. Absent are the sophisticated thought processes of the famous Ezekiel Rawlins, replaced by a character who seems to function merely on base instinct. Similarly, although these stories all seem to have a centralized theme, Mosley makes no Joyceian attempts to tie all of the stories together with a common theme that would create a larger (or at least more complete) picture of the persona of Socrates Fortlow. I do have to give Mosley kudos for his use of imagery. He makes the modern-day streets of Watts come alive with his particularly vivid descriptions. However, th! e grandiose backgrounds that Mosley paints are not enough to discourage us from discovering the largely disjointed foreground.
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Summary: Couldn't Put It Down
Review: This was a quick and easy reader. I finished it in a day. Still the characters were rich with personality and life. Despite his horrific history, I liked Socrates Fortlow and all of the other denizens of his neighborhood. My first, but definitely not my last Moseley novel. Interested to see the movie adaptation.
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