Hegira

by Greg Bear

Hegira is a huge, unmapped planet, home to hundreds of tribes and dozens of exotic cities. And scattered across Hegira are giant monoliths, holding all the knowledge humans brought to Hegira. In a stunning coming-of-age story, a young man and his two companions travel Hegira on a journey of discovery.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Greg Bear was an American writer and illustrator best known for science fiction. His work covered themes of galactic conflict (Forge of God books), parallel universes (The Way series), consciousness and cultural practices (Queen of Angels), and accelerated evolution (Blood Music, Darwin’s Radio, and Darwin’s Children). His last work was the 2021 novel The Unfinished Land. Greg Bear wrote over 50 books in total.

(For a more complete biography, see Wikipedia.)

Reviews

[Isaac · Rating 3 out of 5]

First novel syndrome alert.

Bear has a cool idea: an entire planet's culture is based around what they can read of massive obelisks on which is written the complete history and sum of humanity's knowledge.

Interesting questions arise.
What are the obelisks? Where are the human beings that placed them there? Will anyone ever find a way to read the whole text (the obelisks are thousands of miles high).

To answer these questions, an ex military general, a psudeo-Islamic servant, and a pseudo-Christian
flagellant go on a massive journey across the whole planet. They go through a lot - like kidnapping, sailing, getting chased, and visiting prostitutes. And the whole thing vaguely symbolizes the Islamic migration concept that gives the book its title: Hegira.

All this could make a great novel with someone who actually knows how to write a novel.

Similar to another first novel I've read (Robert Reed's The Leeshore) the promising ideas are constantly dragged down with a terrible understanding of how to write suspense and a glacially slow paced narrative. Not enough happens. There is not enough variation in prose style and POV. The dialogue is too brusque to feel natural. It feels emotionless. But the real problem (as with many first novels) is that this is a novella in novel's clothing.

I don't want to bash too hard because I finished it and I enjoyed the ending - solid payoff.
I recommend it to Sci-Fi or fantasy readers who enjoy the travelogue writing style and are prepared to go through a little dullness to get to a fairly good story.

[SheriC · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Book Genie picked an old paperback that I found at a Friends of the Library sale, and I can see why it was a giveaway. I could not last even my usual minimum 50 pages before giving up on this 40 year old Sci-Fi snoozer.

NEXT!

[Jamie Rich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hegira (Kindle Edition) by Greg Bear

A quick novella with a lot of suspense.

Tighjtly written, and neatly woven. The characters are each quite well layered and have their own individual quirks and foibles. Our not so merry band of heroes set on a quest, but soon discover that the journey changed them each.
The very end is, however, a bit contrived, but still does well.

[Bron · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a long time ago, probably in the early 80s, and I had forgotten what a good story it is. (Reading it has also solved one of those odd questions which has been plaguing me for some time now - which sci fi book had "fire doves" in it!). Having recently read Hull Zero Three by the same author, I can see similarities in the themes - a group of people in strange circumstances on a journey to find out the truth about their world. But Hegira is on a much grander scale somehow. The plot rattles along at a great pace as Kiril, Bar-Woten and Barthel travel thousands of kilometres by land and sea. Each country or city they pass through shows a different facet of how a human community might develop given slight differing versions of the basic information provided by the obelisks. A major disaster pushes them on to their goal and Kiril at least learns the secret - which is huge so I won't spoil the ending for others.

[Laura Walton Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

While mystery can be a good thing in science fiction, I feel like Greg Bear withheld a bit too much in this one. Too much is revealed too late, and the particulars of an otherwise intriguing futurescape feel rushed-- I didn't have time to really enjoy absorbing them, coming as late in the book as they did. I liked the characters enough to stick with it, though. All in all, it's an enjoyable read, even if it isn't one of Bear's best.

[Tentatively, Convenience · Rating 3 out of 5]

review of
Gred Bear's Hegira
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - June 15-17, 2018

This occupies that netherworld of bks that seem like fantasy at 1st but then prove to have an SF subtext. I've read Bear's fantasy entitled The Infinity Concerto (my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ) & declared it "dagnabbit-all-to-heck'n'tarnation excellent". I wasn't quite so fired up about this one but there's never a Bear bk that doesn't have substance.

The epigraph beginning the bk consists of this:

""I had a dream, which was not all a dream.
The bright sun was extinguish'd, and the stars
Did wander darkling in the eternal space,
Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth
Swung blind and blackening in the moonless air;
Morn came and went—and came, and brought
no day . . ."

"—Darkness, by Lord Byron" - p 5

I was immediately reminded of William Hope Hodgson's The Night Land, one of the most tedious things I've ever read but not completely w/o interest (see my review here: "The Night Soil: The Sleep Crust & the Mantel of Gloom": https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/... ). That & a quarter won't buy you a cuppa. Still, it seemed like a strange coincidence given that I'd just read The Night Land in the past mnth. I mean, what's up w/ no sun n'at?

""What can you tell me about Kristians?"

""My country had a few, Bey. But I am of the Momad persuasion myself, as you understand, and we avoid intercourse with the unfaithful. Except for yourself, sir, who shine like a light . . ."" - p 8

Given that fantasy usually hearkens 'back' to a sortof alternate reality Middle Ages of limited technology, much superstition, & rule by violence, this one's 'classic' insofar as the 3 main characters are a religious pilgrim, a retired conquering soldier & 'his' freed slave. BUT, there're mysteries that hint that things might be a little less obvious. The soldier meets the penitent & 'saves him from himself'. They talk:

""I'm starving now. It brings me close to my goal."

""And what is your goal?"

""To live in the light of God, not the mud of the world."

""What's your name?"

""Jacome. Yours?"

""Bar-Woten."

""A peculiar name."

""I'm an Ibisian. I picked the name up when I killed a bear fifteen years ago. He clawed out an eye before he died. Bear-killer. One-eyed. Bar-Woten.["]" - p 20

As they travel, they ponder the strangeness of their environment & the practice of calling its inhabitants the "Second-born":

""Wind and water did this," Bar-Woten said. "Hegira has to have been here for millions of years."

""Been here?" Kiril asked. "Ah, if you're going to be profound, where is here?"

""Wherever, it is not the land of the First-born. It has no stars, no sun, and no moons. Scrittori, can your learning explain that?"" - p 49

While there's no sun or stars there is a cyclical light source:

"His neck hair prickled, and he sat down on his knees wanting to run. It was near dawn—soon the sky would be green at the zenith as it always had.

"But ten minutes passed and the dark remained. Two fire doves twinkled pink and orange just above the northern horizon. A third, bluish in color, hovered above the western mountains.

"They winked out.

"Thousands were sitting awake, watching the sky as he was. A low moan rose from the city, the sound of distant screams and wailing." - p 84

"For the first time in memory of anyone living, starshine visibly brightened the land." - p 85

Given that there were ordinarily no stars or sun but that they knew about such things one gleans that they learned of them from reading the OBELISKS that are scattered around the planet.

"The ship would soon be midway between Obelisks, where the ocean air would be cooler and the weather less predictable." - p 96

"Navigation on Hegira, they explained, was entirely different from navigation as described by the Obelisk texts. There were different objects to be sighted and different problems to be dealt with. The meteorology of Hegira was radically different from old Earth, and there were no stars or sun or moon to use as guides. Instead the paths of certain fire doves were charted, and each fire dove was given a name according to its peculiar qualities. In all there were at least five hundred different fire doves, two dozen of which were easily discernible." - p 98

The Obelisks are a mystery for our heros to ponder:

""That means the Obelisks have light and heat on top," he concluded. "That explains why some deep canyons are dark the same way all the time and others aren't."" - p 105

The Obelisks are a stable center of reality on Hegira until..

"The Obelisk was tilting and falling.

"He was enough of a seaman now and had studied the charts enough to know that anything of such size falling would wreak havoc along that distant sea and coastline. The result would be more quakes, and something he had never imagined until now, but knew was inevitable.

"The sea would rise from the collision of world and spire like an unleashed monster." - p 114

""They have come to read the Obelisk. They have requested our help in digging out the buried portions—as much as possible—and reading and deciphering. The admiral tells me this is a monumental task, enough to fill decades, perhaps centuries. In that time the Northerners will support us, help rebuild, re-establish our economy—apparently making the Obelisk the center of all business and trade.["]" - p 168

My edition of the bk came w/ a pop-up Obelisk that seems to be several miles high. When I got to this page it popped erect & ripped thru the roof of my house but then sealed immediately. It's even more crowded inside now but it looks like it may have a working elevator so if I suddenly stop writing this review it'll be b/c I've figured out how to open the doors.

""I'm beginning to piece together this stuff about the Wall of the World," Bar-Woten said, regaining his breath with even, deep inhalations. "It's five thousand kilometers from here, to the north, which explains why there are no more Obelisks visible no matter how far north you travel. From what I understand the Wall itself gives off a glow at the top. There may be smaller Obelisks there or normal ones just beyond it."

""How tall is it?" Kiril asked. Barthel stood beside them and leaned on his cimbing pack, his face red and sweaty.

""At least as tall as an Obelisk."

"Kiril looked down the Northern slope and saw a helicopter landing on a broad rock outcrop. It looked like a bee setting down on a stony gray flower. "Is it true there's writing on the Wall, too?"" - pp 170-171

"The three had to pass beyond the Wall. It was a dead certainty that what lay beyond the Wall was the Land Where Night Is a River." - p 172

""We have a pretty good idea of the history of the First-born to the middle of the twentieth century anno Domini," he said, pointing to the end of the Obelisk. "Information here could already give us a lifetime of study and development, since we come across complicated philosophies, whole new brands of physical science, and vast, important literatures. But now we need to know how we are related to the First-born and what sort of world Hegira is. With this knowledge we might begin to find some meaning in our ex

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting old school science fiction started out thinking it was a fantasy. Story is more about the journey than the destination.

[Stuart Lutzenhiser · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, solid work, although very early for Greg Bear. I'm not sure he had quite found his footing yet as influences from Dune and the Riverworld novels was pretty obvious. Written in 1979, it tells of 3 mens journey/quest/hegira (meaning flight or migration) from their current areas to the ends of the earth, literally. The main character Kiril is a writer who has lost his beloved and there is a prophecy that our loved ones can be returned to those who make this journey. What they find on their way and what happens to them, it would cause too many spoilers to say but the wikipedia article on the book lists AI and cyclic time as themes - and to say that it is influenced by the Riverworld books is probably enough to tell you what you might expect.
I did like it quite a bit - not his strongest work - but very good considering how early it is for him.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad for 1979 (revised in 1987). I like the way Bear forces the reader to piece together the story. There is no elaborate description of the environment to interfere with the imagination. I'm not done with it yet.

Some things I like:
-The columns are tall and by inference, so is the environment. I imagine a Jupiter sized sphere entirely man-made with an encapsulated atmosphere.
-The variety of societal mores. Some areas are very libertine, others conservative.
-The way knowledge progresses geographically towards the wall.

Most of all I like that it inspired me to write my first review

[Doug Armstrong · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written, entertaining adventure. If you read a lot of sci-fi there won't be anything new, but I appreciate an author who can take familiar ideas and build an engrossing novel out of them (kinda like the same author did with Eon). I read it all in a couple days as it was paced perfectly so that there weren't any boring stretches; something interesting was always happening to the three main characters.

It was a good book, definitely worth reading. It won't blow your mind or anything, but you'll definitely enjoy trying to piece together the answers to what is going on.

[Jonathan Harbour · Rating 5 out of 5]

An all-time favorite (and I'm overdue for a re-read!). The story of an alien world colonized by humans whose origins are lost in myth and legend, except for the stratospheric monuments dotting the landscape. The higher you are capable of getting into the sky, the more you'll learn from the writings on the monuments. Fantastic sci-fi.

[A.B. B. Lucian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story had a great premise and wonderful characters, but it felt too stretched out in the middle and too compressed at the end.

[Budge Burgess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gets an average 3 star because it's basically pretty mediocre - a mediocrity of a curate's egg ... when it's good it's not particularly good, when it's bad it's not really much differnet from when it's good.
A quest in which a pair of Samaritans rescue the third member of their party - to be fair, it's more of a wake than a party, but I've never really been a party animal.
They are chased, they visit cities, they even visit a brothel - it is neither the bar in Mos Eisley nor the Prancing Pony, just an excuse to introduce a bit of sex. The sex, by the way, is tame - of the nudge-nudge variety ... no anatomical baedeker, the characters discreetly disappear offstage and reappear washed and dressed. Told you it was mediocre.
It's an alien world, but it contains Christian and Moslem influences - which is pretty boring if you're an atheist and hope fantasy or sci-fi will take you somewhere different, ask the right questions, challenge the religious clichés. But we get a medieval magical industrialised agrarian world with science and technology and superstition, but none of it developed enough to have any real relevance to the storyline.
You just know that our heroic trio will reach some distant destination, there will an epiphany or two or several ... and ... well, apparently we're spared the prospect of there being a sequel. I gather there wasn't. This wasn't the first of an endless series - you don't have to read another dozen tomes in the hope one of them will throw light on what you've just read in Book 1. It's safe to read this one and forget about it ... because it is forgetable.
No memorable characters - I've forgotten their names already. No storyline or action which will haunt your dreams and have you phoning your best friends to instruct them, "You must read this!" It's not a book which will frighten either your horses or servants, you can leave it lying around, no one is going to insist you go for a psychiatric assessment, nobody will notice it, it won't get you laid.
Essentially tame, and fortunately quite short.

[Koen · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Hegeria” is written by Greg Bear.
Original text Copyright 1979, Revised text copyright 1987.
ISB number 1-85798-902-3, this edition published in 1999 by Millenium.
Cover design by Blacksheep.

On the back the flowing description is given:
Against three-quarters of a million miles around, Hegeria has, against all laws of physics, Earth normal gravity; it’s different races have a common history; all the accumulated knowledge of the First Born, graven on giant Obelisks which rise up out of sight to the sky, beyond mankind’s powers to reach and read. But as knowledge advances, so the enigma’s of Hegeria’s nature become steadily more impossible to explain or to understand.
The ill-assorted trio who embark on their personal quests know little of their planet’s oddities and care less… until Hegeria’s changeless mysteries begin to alter; until the first great Obelisk tumbles.

The idea of Greg Brear that it is possible to have a singularity inside a planet is stunning and speaks of a true science fiction writer with a mind-blowing imagination.
There are not only Obelisks with the writing of the First Ones, there are also walls reaching to the heavens with the old knowledge written upon. There are also holes in the wall and if you are worthy, it is said that crossing over to the lands on other side of wall, is possible.

Three companions are on a quest which will bring them end at the nearest wall:
• Bar-Woten, Ibisian warrior
• Barthel, Bar-Woten’s aide from Khem and formally known as Amma bin Akka.
• Kiril, a scriber and formally penitent by the name Jacombe.

Other Characters:
• General Sulay
• Captain Prekari of the ship the Trident.
• Avra, deck officer of the Trident.
• Ula Punapilhe, the woman who chooses Kiril.
• Vice admiral Gyorgi Lassfal, in command of Ocean Restauration fleet and formally in command of the Weggismarshe Merchant Navy.
• Orshit, Camp director of the People of the Wall.
• Jury, Pilgrim of the Wall.

[Rhiannon Paterniti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost wanted to give this book a 4 immediately after I finished reading, but when I thought of the book as a whole, I just don't think I can rate it that highly.

The best way I can relate the experience of reading this book is to poor cooking. All the ingredients are there, they're all good quality, they all sound delicious, but the technique is lacking to bring the individual parts together and bring out their full potential. I was very intrigued by the ingredients that went into this book, but the completed dish was a disappointment, unfortunately.

It's a pretty bad sign that about 2/3rds into the book, even the main characters admit they aren't motivated to continue the quest that is supposed to be driving the plot forward. I'd say the middle half of the book does nothing meaningful to drive the plot forward except explain the logistics of the protagonists moving from point A to what they hope will land them roughly in the direction of point B.

While none of the characters bothered me, I never felt like we got to know them. We get a very brief physical description (rough age, body type, maybe one or two facial features), a name, and an archetype and we're off to the races. Each of their motivations are very unclear and barely explored.

On the positive side, it's not overly long (roughly 150 pages), so if you have a few hours and are just curious to be introduced to some intriguing concepts, go for it! I enjoyed the ideas that were introduced, just disappointed they weren't more developed within the story.

[Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange novel indeed. It begins as a quest, owing a small debt to the likes of Conan stories, LoTR, and other similar sword/wanderer tales, but then it veres off into more metaphysical/philosophical terrain and ends up feeling like 2001: A Space Odyssey. The end reveal is somewhat perplexing and one that definitely benefits from being able to discuss its ramifications with other readers. To add to the overall strangeness, much of the novel is clouded in mystery, which is confusing and frustrating, but at the same time puts you in the mind/shoes of the characters, who are just as confused and frustrated in their journey and what it uncovers (or fails to uncover); in many ways the book felt like it was the sequel or prequel to another novel (i.e. it felt unfinished or slightly hap-hazard in places as if there were another accompanying tome to clarify and expand on the mythology unfurled here). The fact that it stradles several genres (sword/sorcery; space opera; alien invasion; steam-punk; A.I.), not to mention that it feels like 2 separate incomplete novels smashed together, makes it feel a bit schizophrenic. Still, author Greg Bear has a way with words and creates an engaging, albeit meandering tale.

the Wikipedia enty on the book sheds some serious light on the concept, especially for those of us who are a bit slow on the uptake when it comes to hard science: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hegira_...

[Alien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seit 20 Jahren dient Bar-Woten dem General Sulay auf seinem Erkundungsfeldzug über den Riesenplaneten Hegira, wo alle 5000 km einer der mysteriösen, tausend Km hohen Obelisken steht. Nun ist der General alt und seine Riesenarmee aufgerieben. Er beauftragt Bar-Woten, allein weiter zu machen.

Dies ist Greg Bears erster Roman und so überrascht es nicht, dass er einige Mängel hat. Trotzdem hat er mich länger (gedanklich) beschäftigt als andere "mängelbehaftete" SF-Romane.

Der Einstieg war etwas schwierig, denn Bear übertreibt es mit dem Zurückhalten von Informationen. Dann gefiel mir die Schilderung der Reise von Bar-Woten und seinen 2 Gefährten recht gut, ich konnte mich da gut reinversetzen.

Später wandelt der Roman sich von Fantasy zu SF. Die Auflösung des Geheimnisses von Hegira ging zwar in die Richtung, die ich erwartet hatte, war aber weit gigantomanischer als ich dachte. Das gefiel mir nicht so gut.

Stilistisch gibt es einige schwere Holperer, v.a. gegen Ende, wahrscheinlich hat auch der Übersetzer Karl-Ulrich Burgdorf seinen Anteil.

Die Charakterisierungen hätten tiefgründiger sein können. Bei nur 3 Hauptpersonen hätte es dazu genug Gelegenheit gegeben.

Noch eine letzte Meckerei: Bear hat in seinen Erstling viel zu viele Ideen reingepackt, die er dann nicht richtig ausführen konnte. Ein Fehler, der nicht unüblich ist bei Erstlingswerken.

[Kevin Phyland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hegira is a giant planet with Earthlike gravity. It has huge relic obelisks over a thousand kilometers high inscribed with ancient knowledge if it can be read. Three travellers, Kiril (a religious acolyte), Bar-Woten (a soldier) and Barthel (his bondsman) journey across the sea to find answers to the mystery of the missing knowledge. Some lands are medieval while some have hydrofoils and others flying machines so when an obelisk falls and can be read entire it offers a rare chance to get answers. It's a shame that the book itself isn't as interesting as the synopsis makes it seem.
It's Bear's first novel and he gets a lot better.

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recent Rereads: Hegira. Greg Bear's 1979 novel packs an epic into under 200 pages. Three men flee the disintegration of a warrior horde, only to start on a new journey that will reveal the secrets of their giant world. Tipleresque SF, in the same vein as Zebrowski's Macrolife.

[Gary Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic Greg Bear novel. I love the writers imagination in coming up with these worlds, people, cultures and adventures. Have not read anything by the author for a while, but after this read I will definitely be searching out another book of his!

[Adam Meek · Rating 3 out of 5]

A novella in the mode of Heinlein's Universe.

[Rog Petersen · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of those fantasy novels that slowly reveals itself to be science fiction.

[Daniel Bensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A penitent, a warlord, and a slave team up to explore their world and learn where it came from. There are some really good personal moments, and as always with Greg Bear, the worldbuilding details are many and beautiful. They don't quite make sense, though, and the big reveal at the end doesn't hold together. Still, I enjoyed the methane-powered steam-ship.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this book with low to zero expectations. That proved to be a good strategy because the rather slow start and getting to know the people and world took a little patience. This is a very early novel, possibly the first for Greg Bear. My copy of the book shows it was originally written in 1979 and revised in 1987. I read quite a bit of Greg Bear in the 1980's and a smattering in later years but never this one.

I was quite satisfied with the book by the end. This is not a book to reveal plot points in a review since it would potentially completely spoil the read for the reader. The story takes place on a world where all of human history is inscribed on huge obelisks erected across the world which the populace strive to read and learn from. Society seems to be in something like a mixed 17th-mid 20th century level. At the very beginning we see a Christ cult that flagellates itself and so on trying to achieve enlightenment since the story of "This Heisos Kristos - or Yesu as we knew him - is mentioned on all the Obelisks I have ever known and his story is always the same." We follow the journey several men are taking across their immense world in an attempt to learn what it is all about.

The biggest complaint one can have is that the book feels a little derivative of other science fiction but that is hardly new. It just seems a little more obvious here, but it is put together in an interesting way and I enjoyed the book.

[Chris Aldridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I was quite apprehensive that what appeared to be a story of a soldier in a primitive society, albeit set on an interesting exoplanet, would remain just that. But the addition of a servant and a pilgrim on the run soon upped the pace of the adventure and revealed the mystery of the obelisks and the parallel one of those who had created this vast and unlikely planet. As the travellers encountered more advanced societies I became hooked and although not overwhelmed overall I enjoyed this flawed but imaginative first novel.

[Rod Hyatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a wondering story about a wondering journey. The cool sci fi stuff gets interesting at the end. I wanted there to be more at the end. He could have made the ending more fullfilling. I know that this is early work for Bear. It's got some good story telling but not the best. Still a fun mistical thriller. Bear's latter stuff, the talent in writting gets better. This was an easy fast read.

[Binit · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting and rather early work by Greg Bear. The story revolves around a pilgrimage (the Hegira is the name for the journey taken by Prophet Mohammad) and ends with a rather esoteric explanation of things. The ending seems somewhat hurried though the book as whole is a good and enjoyable read.

[Robert Hepple · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable early SF novel from Greg Bear. Not perfect by any means, it comes across all too obviously for what it is, a short story/novella based around a fun concept that has been expanded to novel length with a lot of added ideas that don't always improve the result. Not the first SF novelist to do this...

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those novels where I appreciated the craftsmanship, but ended up not liking the story or the characters. Every sentence on every page felt like it was beautifully crafted, but it was like eating a vegetable you don't like, cooked perfectly.

[Larry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the first Bear book I read and it was so long ago I need to re-read it to refresh my memory!