Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned

The only mystery here is why I thought I going to read a whodunnit after having the book brought to my attention by a friend's reviews. And, of course, the author, Walter Mosley, best known for his mystery series staring Easy Rawlins, the first of which is the remarkable [b:Devil in a Blue Dress|37100|Devil in a Blue Dress (Easy Rawlins, #1)|Walter Mosley|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1336545202s/37100.jpg|1344080] (made into a movie with the remarkable Denzel Washington). Once I got over my surprise that I was reading a collection of linked short stories, I settled in to enjoy Mosley's evocative writing and unique voice.

"Socrates made Darryl sit in the chair while he turned over the trash can for his seat. He read the paper for show more half an hour or more while the rooster simmered on the hot plate. Darryl knew to keep quiet. When it was done, Socrates served the meal on three plates--one for each dish. The man and boy shoveled down dirty rice, green beans, and tough rooster like they were starving men; eating off the same plates, neither one uttered a word. The only drink they had was water--their glasses were mayonnaise jars. Their breathing was loud and slobbery. Hands moved in syncopation; tearing and scooping."

Socrates Forlow, formerly of Indiana Penitentiary, is the center of fourteen short stories, set in Los Angeles and plotted around such things as a starving young kid, a group deciding street justice, black invisibility, a dying friend, persistence, finding a home, attraction and friendship, a black-owned bookstore, God, being a man, and so on.

"There seemed to be music in the room. Music in the way the chairs faced each other, music in the sounds from elsewhere in the building. Socrates wanted to dance for the first time in his fifty years."

Mosley has done well with the form; each story is well contained, and together they cover a very interesting period as Socrates navigates post-incarceration life. They were often moving, and usually powerful. I wasn't really tempted to devour the whole book at once, instead treating it like a rich and filling meal that needed pauses for digestion.

"Socrates walked for miles on the curving beaches. The surface of the sand was hot from the sun but cool when his foot sank to the layer of moisture below. He went north past Malibu and on toward the blue of the water and sky. He stayed close to the ocean remembering his aunt's sermons about how God was always beyond reach but how people were always trying to get there."

A great read, straying from 5 stars only because it isn't one I want to add to my library. But certainly fabulous and insightful. show less

This selection is hard to categorize---it isn't really a novel, but it isn't exactly a collection of short stories either. Whatever we call it, it works. Socrates Fortlow is a man who lives with violence and poverty, yet he finds life not only harsh, but beautiful as well. After serving 27 years in prison for a double murder, he has paid his debt to society, but hasn't let himself off the moral hook. His sense of right and wrong direct everything he does, and while some acts might fall outside the Law, Socrates has a keener definition of those terms than most inhabitants of his neighborhood--Watts in the 1990's. He is a man to be feared and respected, most especially when he is struggling to find a way to respect himself.
June 2012

I sit here shaking my head. This guy writes atmosphere and dialogue so raw that it bleeds from the page, while he slips in characters that live and breathe and move and sweat. Nothing wrong with the narrative either:

'Socrates imagined all of the sweet knowledge buried in her hello. It made him happy.'

'Brenda Marsh spoke in her own fashion, as usual, pronouncing each word separately as if it had come in its own individual wrapper.'

'Her soft voice was ethereal, like the voice of ghosts in old black-and-white movies.'

'Her good-night handshake was like a handful of icy feathers in a dream.'

I will likely finish this series first, sample another or two, then move back to Easy Rawlins.

Shockingly, I think I’ve only read two other Walter Mosley books. The first was the Easy Rawlins prequel ‘Gone Fishin’’, which I read years ago. The second was ‘Down the River Unto the Sea’, which I read earlier this year and reviewed here. Neither of those books came even close to preparing me for the brilliance of ‘Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned’. It’s a staggeringly good book.
What makes it great is hard to put your finger on. Partly, it’s the structure: it’s a series of short stories about the same character that come together into a book that doesn’t necessarily have the narrative arc of a novel, but is just as satisfying a whole.
Partly, it’s the protagonist: Socrates Fortlow is fantastic character. show more An ex-con determined to go straight and make a new life for himself in Los Angeles after decades of incarceration. He strides through the stories like a force of nature. His moral code is unshakeable and the violence within him constantly feels in conflict with his zen-like calm and wisdom. He reminded me a little of Ogami Ittō, the vengeful but strangely peaceful samurai hero of the ‘Lone Wolf and Cub’ manga series. Fortlow is far from innocent, but his struggle for redemption is inspirational.
And partly it’s Mosley’s searing analysis of racism in America. He covers the LA riots, the inherent bias of the justice system, the civil rights movement and the casual bigotry of the dominant society. Fortlow and the other characters represent the struggling underclass of the modern world. Living hand to mouth in a city famous for its millionaires, and pulling themselves through each day through sheer force of will.
Taken together these parts make for an incredibly good book. The prose has the terse punchiness of the best crime fiction, the sense of place is superb and Socrates Fortlow is the most memorable hero I’ve met in years. show less

After reading this book, I feel as if I knew the character of Socrates Fortlow better than some of my own friends and relatives. Mosley's seemingly simple, straightforward prose is powerfully evocative and multilayered, leaving much to reflect on. The sense that this is an honest expression of authentic experience is pervasive even though that experience is so unlike my own that I have almost no points of commonality with which to validate it.

These separate but intimately linked narratives depict a man putting all he's got into living right after having lived very wrong. Their clear-eyed disclosure of the ordinary and the sublime in a man's everyday struggle to preserve and fulfill his humanity inevitably holds a mirror up to the show more reader. As the very best stories will do, I felt that this book changed something in me. show less

I've always tried to shy away from Walter Mosley. I'm not sure why. I've always thought I wouldn't read anything worthwhile and different from the rest of the pack. This time I've decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did.

Mosley fully captures the rhythms of people's lifes in South Central LA, resulting in a haunting look at a life bounded by lust, violence, fear, and a ruthlessly unsentimental moral vision.

I was also impressed with Mosley's efforts to bring philosophy back. The book is also full of moral dilemmas.

In spite of the bleak vision Socrates' character ultimately offers, he represents a vital moral wisdom. His role far surpasses the expectations for an ex-convict or anyone with his childhood background.

After finishing the book, show more I got the feeling John Ford could have directed it, changing the western landscape for the urban jungle, but using instead a gun-slinging mythology of street justice.

While this is a collection of short stories, it's not a straightforward anthology. Each of these stories builds on the events of the previous story, and certainly reads as well as any constructed novel. Socrates (aka Socco) is a fascinating character, and it's revealing to see the directions that his wounded pride takes him.

This was a very unpredictable and satisfying read, with moments where it got really sad and touching.

NB: Walkin' the Dog", the follow-up, is already on my TBR list... When my reading stack whittles down a bit, I'll read it." show less

Like Michael Connelly's Hieronymous 'Harry' Bosch and John Connolly's Charlie Parker, Walter Mosley's Socrates Fortlow has a name to live up to, and like them, he certainly does.

Socrates is not a young man; he's survived twenty seven years in jail for murder, and he now aims to spend his days trying to be helpful, to do good and not to be violent any more to help atone for his wrong-doing. However that violence is always still simmering underneath, and he's not afraid to use it in self-defence or defence of his friends. He tries hard to make ends meet, finds a job, and mentors young Darryl who would otherwise be in a gang, and he's a good peacemaker - even if he has to administer a punch or two to get it!

This is a series of short show more stories, some previously published in other sources. They may belie this by each having a few similar sentences to establish Socrates' situation at the outset, but they all entwine and work beautifully as a chronological cycle of tales too. Socrates is a classic hard man with a soft centre, a good friend to those who know him well and a sympathetic hero with real depth. Absolutely fantastic. show less