Threshold (The Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny)

I love Roger Zelazny's writing, and have for a few decades now. This is the first of six volumes that cover his entire writing career, and I plan to buy all six. It's the short stories I am after as much as the novels; though the Big Z was an excellent novelist, his short stories are often gems. Even the ones that are now too outdated to be believable as science fiction ("A Rose for Ecclesiastes" and "The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth" take place on Mars and Venus respectively, and Zelazny wrote them knowing that his window of opportunity to do so was closing) are readable, enjoyable, fifty years on. Zelazny was a well-educated person in terms of both fiction and poetry, and it shows in his work.If you are new to Zelazny, see if you can find a one-cent+$3.99 copy of "The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth," a collection of his short stories that includes both "Doors" and "Rose," and see what you think. If you liked it, this collection might be worth investing in.If not, well, I've kept my copy of "Doors" for almost 45 years now. It's falling apart. When it does, I'll find another copy, maybe, if I don't have all six of these volumes by then.Update: I bought two volumes and decided I'd had enough. The extremely extensive annotation of each story is annoying; the annotation of Zelazny's writing to other authors or editors about the stories...I guess I'm a fan of Zelaany's writing, and not really interested in Zelazny himself. I'll buy that second copy of "Doors" when I need it, and that'll be good enough.

The first and I would say the best of the 6 volume series - I've just finished the last of the volumes so can state an informed personal opinion. The volume contains some well-known classics, together with early works that show the development of Zelazny. It contains my favorite Zelazny story - He who shapes, together with some of his other best stories (Graveyard heart, Rose for Ecclsiasties, etc). There is more unpublished stories here than the later volumes - some are very good (On the road to Splendoba) while other stories show themes and directions that Zelazny was to follow more successfully later. In particular the previously uncollected Nine starships waiting featured a super-powered assassin who had lost his memory - not a great story but signs of things to follow. The poetry did little for me. The other features include commentary on all the stories, an explanation of some of the more unusual language used in each story, articles by and about Zelazny, and the the first part of the biography based mainly on his own words from articles and interviews. I thought this really placed the stories and novels in context although there was some repetition between the various sections.Just the idea of collecting all of an important writers works together allows the reader to make a full assessment. Even some of the lesser stories gain importance in the wider picture. This is a wonderful project and will hopefully keep the memory of Zelazny alive.

This is a fantastic look into his work. This book is the first of 6. At $30 each, it may seem steep, but they're worth every penny. I've got the first 4 now & am reading the second. It's hard to put down.There are excellent notes about allusions & metaphors in the stories as well as personal notes from Zelazny & other authors at the end of each story. When & where the story was published is also included. The order the stories are presented in is quite well done, too. It's not chronological by writing or publishing. They flow well.Many of the stories are unpublished or not readily available any more. As a whole, the work promises to include every short that he ever wrote. These are many of his early ones. A couple are partials, but most are complete & as Zelazny preferred them. There is discussion about Zelazny's versus editorial preferences.There is also a lot of his poetry, much of it previously unpublished. Several poems were published incorrectly, even in the hard to get, "PussyWillow" or "Views of Mt. Fuji". You'll find the corrected versions in this set.If you're a Zelazny fan, I think this is a must read. I have almost every book he's ever written or edited & there is a lot of material here I've never seen.

"Threshold" is the first volume in the six-volume set of "The Collected Stories of Roger Zanny" which pulls together all of Zelazny's short works together with commentaries from friends and colleagues and biographical material tracing Zelazny's life and career.Roger Zelazny was unquestionably one of the finest American science fiction writers of the last half of the 20th century. Delete the words "science fiction" and the statement is still true. Although widely praised are such such novels as "Lord of Light", many readers felt that his genius shone brightest in short stories, novellas, and novelettes. All of those published (and some unpublished) stories -- every one of them -- the well-known and the obscure -- are contained in this magnificent collection, with comments (often from the author) placing each work in context. The stories are arranged in approximate chronological order, with stories from the early Sixties in the first volume, "Threshold". Even at that early stage, Zelazny demonstrated an amazing mastery of his craft, his tales illuminated by language of great poetry.While the contents themselves would be more than enough to make this collection a "must have", the physical quality of the books is an additional inducement. Each volume contains over 500 pages of superbly legible text printed on hiqh quality acid-free paper. The six volumes are linked together into a single continuity by their dust jackets which together form a single image capturing many of the themes pouring out of Zelazny's words. The set makes an extraordinary handsome addition for any bookshelf.

Just a quick note to any one interested; you really need a copy of this beautiful volume.The presentation is excellent; good quality paper well bound and with a fine cover.The contents are unsurpassed; the first volume in a chronological presentation of Roger Zelazny's short fiction, illuminated with his own comments and including a long biographical essay.If you already know Zelazny's work then you should need no further urging to order this now; the stories are a treat and the supplementary material is extremely well chosen.My highest recommendation.