Time and the Riddle: Thirty-One Zen Stories

by Howard Fast

Howard Fast's renown as a compelling storyteller will come as no surprise to reader's of his best-selling novels, from "Freedom Road" and "Spartacus" to the recent California trilogy ("The Immigrants", "Second Generation" and "The Establishment"). What will surprise (and delight) these readers, as well as a whole new audience, is the blending of Fast's storytelling abilities with the speculative, whimsical, even fantastic subject matter of these tales. Delicately balanced between science fiction and philosophy, they show a zenlike propensity to trick the reader playfully into new levels of understanding. Howard Fast, in "Time & the Riddle", invites you to join him on thirty-one trips to fresh perspectives.

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy

490 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1975

About the author

Howard Fast was one of the most prolific American writers of the twentieth century. He was a bestselling author of more than eighty works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenplays. The son of immigrants, Fast grew up in New York City and published his first novel upon finishing high school in 1933. In 1950, his refusal to provide the United States Congress with a list of possible Communist associates earned him a three-month prison sentence. During his incarceration, Fast wrote one of his best-known novels, Spartacus (1951). Throughout his long career, Fast matched his commitment to championing social justice in his writing with a deft, lively storytelling style.

Pseudonyms: Walter Ericson, E.V. Cunningham

Reviews

[George]

I don't read much of Howard Fast's work, and I disagreed with his politics (Communist) - but for some reason I read this book long ago and loved it. I kept it in my library & occasionally re-read it. Some of the stories are classics (ex: The General Zapped an Angel). Read it!

[Fabian de Alwis Gunasekare]

"Time and the Riddle", I'm ashamed to admit, was another book that I misappropriated. I first read it in 2007, when I was just getting into Zen literature, and simply had to have a copy for myself. Not an excuse really. Since then I have read it numerous times, and each time the stories never cease to amaze me.

The stories are simply questions created for answers. Most stories are answers to a what-if scenario, but the short stories in this book take a different approach. As a genre, the stories are a combination of both sci-fi and low-fantasy, but they are presented as a modern form of a Zen koan, and the traditional method of enjoyment simply excludes the entire point the author is attempting to make, of which the author warns in the afterword.

"Echinomastus Contentii" and "The Trap" are my favorite stories in this collection.

A recurrent theme in most of the short stories is the human drive to kill or murder, without reflection, an action which the author depicts to be unnatural and something possessed only by humans, not by insects, "aliens" or any other creature.

Overall the book is really enjoyable and provides something to think about. It is not meant to be read in a single sitting.

[Fred Alexander]

Copyrighted in 1975 the short stories have aged well, they are querky and clever with no violence or disturbing images.

[Tanya Constantine]

Very interesting book of short stories. I'm particularly interested in one of them - The Trap - that is absolutely extraordinary. When I first read it, I believed it was a true story, and then I realized it wasn't. It's about an experiment done by some researchers, taking small children away from parents and environment, and keeping them in a place where no one would ever say "No!" to them, and seeing how they would develop, expecting they would become enlightened as they grew into this new state. I won't say more because you really need to read it to get the impact of it. I read it some years ago and re-read it several times, and I just love the premise.

[Roger]

Loved this book. Although written in 1975 the philosophical issues are current today. Very similar to my feelings on the human race, violent, self serving, fearful killers of all they don't understand. The stories are thought provoking and interesting. Highly recommend this book. Reads fast.

[Dominic Munsill]

I picked this up hoping for a collection of amusing science fiction and walked away having grown spiritually.

[Martin Denton]

This is a BIG book: 31 stories, several of them on the longish side (and one really a novella). They are all thoughtful and require (and merit) some thinking about; I read this at a leisurely pace, a few stories at a time, and that's the best way to digest this book I think.

The stories start out playful and provocative and fun and plumb deeper and more meditatively and more profoundly as the book progresses. I honestly liked all of the stories except the last one, and once I thought about that one for a moment I was able to appreciate not only what it was trying to do but why I didn't care for it.

The novella, "The Trap," is amazing. The stories veer toward a kind of science fiction, but mostly are paradoxes, hence the subtitle "31 Zen Stories." Fast says, in the Afterword, that the stories are questions without answers or answers without questions and that sums it up as well as I can imagine.

I won't do any synopses or pick favorites because that's pointless for a book like this. Here's a little excerpt from the second story that has stayed with me, to give you a sense of Time and the Riddle:

They [a pair of New York City cops] got a call, and McCabe explained that it was an accident in a house on 118th Street.
"It could be anything," Robinson said. "The floors collapse, the ceilings fall down, and the kids are eaten by rats. I grew up in a house like that. I held it against my father. I still hold it against him."
"Where can they go?"
"Away. Away is a big place."

[Endangered]

Well, there are some really really good stories in this collection. Then again, there are some real piles of dog shit in here also. I cannot express how frustrating it is when Howard decides to say fuck it.. and not create an ending. I feel like some stories end practically mid sentence. It's hard to explain, but once you get a couple of chapters in you'll understand.

Again, and to be fair.. there are some pieces in here they are truly incredible. There's no doubt that Howard is an outstanding writer with some really fine ideas. The fact that he bounces genres also helps to showcase his talent.

[Ruth]

12. Probably 25 too many for me. Always good at character stories there are very few in this anthology that were about nice people or happy events. Depressing and probably also a little dated.

[Ron Me]

This is a collection of science fiction stories. Maybe there's some touches of Zen, but much more noticeable is Sturgeon, Clarke and even Plato. Enjoyable, though not hugely.

[Sarah]

took me 5 years to get through the stories in this book but most (if not all) are gems. Can see where his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter got their talent from.

[Neven]

Not a bad book, but not a great one either. The stories are very lean, which I appreciate; but they're also quite flat and didactic, which I don't appreciate. They seem rushed, unfinished, obvious—someone like Bradbury could pull off a slice of surreal life by wielding magical poetry, but Fast just doesn't have those chops.

[Wendy]

One of my all time favorite collections.