Threshold - Volume 1: The Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny
Threshold: The Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny, v.1. By Roger Zelazny. Ed. by David G. Grubbs and others. Apr. 2009. 576p. NESFA, $29 (9781886778719).After introductory essays from Robert Silverberg and Zelazny's childhood friend Carl Yoke, the range of Zelazny's stories unfolds, from early work first published in a high-school literary magazine to the masterpiece, "A Rose for Ecclesiastes." Everything fascinates, especially for die-hard Zelazny fans, not least because his growth as a storyteller is so apparent between "Youth Eternal" (one of the high-school pieces) and the novella "He Who Shapes," published 10 years later in the standard-setting sf magazine Amazing. The range of Zelazny's literary background becomes evident in the notes accompanying each story, with their citation of influences from Saint-ExupÃ©ry to mystical religion. Sf history isn't the main interest here, though, for many of these stories have aged shockingly well. "Circe Has Her Problems" is a space-traveling take on the Homeric sorceress. "Nine Starships Waiting" strangely remains Cyril Tourneur's Jacobean Revenger's Tragedy (the subject of Zelazny's MA thesis). "The Graveyard Heart" tackles immortality among the party set, and in "The Stainless Steel Leech," even robots have their vampires. Poetry is scattered throughout, and some unfinished fragments fill out the volume. Zelazny (1937--95) remains fascinating, not least because the way he tells stories makes them unique. -- Regina Schroeder --American Library Association