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When trying to describe his work, do you associate Roger Zelazny more with fantasy or science fiction? I suspect most fans would lean towards fantasy. Certainly the person designing the cover for The Last Defender of Camelot thinks so as it says "fantasy" on the spine for categorisation. But in fact, the title story in this collection is pretty much the only outright fantasy. Most of the stories pass the "I know it when I see it" definition of science fiction. Since most of his novels lean to the fantasy side, this makes for an interesting contrast.
The collection is taken from a long stretch of his career but excluding the early days. In other words, the come from the time when he was primarily writing novels to make a living and shorter works were a rarity in his output. Despite that he won a number of awards for his short fiction. As well he should - there is tremendous quality here. Match this volume with "The doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth" and you have comprehensive coverage of the skills of Zelazny.
I have a couple of thoughts about the science fiction verses fantasy balance between his shorter and longer works. The first is that there is a playfulness of style in these stories - experimentation in writing, form and setting including a few homages to other writers. Perhaps writing short stories was more of a fun activity and perhaps fun meant science fiction for Zelazny. Or maybe it is just that Bob Silverberg did the story selection for the anthology and this reflects his tastes. Or my personal choice - both. Whichever, it is worth the read.
The collection is taken from a long stretch of his career but excluding the early days. In other words, the come from the time when he was primarily writing novels to make a living and shorter works were a rarity in his output. Despite that he won a number of awards for his short fiction. As well he should - there is tremendous quality here. Match this volume with "The doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth" and you have comprehensive coverage of the skills of Zelazny.
I have a couple of thoughts about the science fiction verses fantasy balance between his shorter and longer works. The first is that there is a playfulness of style in these stories - experimentation in writing, form and setting including a few homages to other writers. Perhaps writing short stories was more of a fun activity and perhaps fun meant science fiction for Zelazny. Or maybe it is just that Bob Silverberg did the story selection for the anthology and this reflects his tastes. Or my personal choice - both. Whichever, it is worth the read.