Doorways in the Sand by Roger Zelazny
Participants: A. T., Carol, Karen, Shirley, Nancy Loomis, Benjamin Iglauer, Ken Tolliver, Ruben, Mona, Denman, Hudson, Joan, John
- Started the book: 11
- Finished the book: 11
- Read before this year: 5
- Audio: 1
- Digital: 10
- Paper: 4
- Read the author before: 10
- Met the author: 3 (maybe 4)
- Had dinner/lunch with: 2
Reports are that Zelazny was nice guy. Heavy smoker.
Ben: Read it in high school. Didn’t remember much beyond character as professional college student; thought that was great. This time reading it, noticed. Read Amber series, Lord of Light, Jack of Shadows, Changeling, Dilvish the Damned, etc. in high school and college. Hadn’t read Zelazny in decades when he started this. Lots he didn’t notice when young, even though he was a great fan. This time noticed lots of allusions (e.g., Shakespeare, Raymond Chandler). Interesting insight into the literary aspect of Zelazny (as opposed to sword and sorcery). This is the first book of Zelazny he’s read that didn’t have a mythological/folkloric inspiration. More reminiscent of Hitchhiker’s Guide, Space Opera, etc. with disguised aliens. Also reminiscent of Rudy Rucker with mobius strip. Enjoyed the humor. Enjoyed rediscovering Zelazny at a later stage in his reading career. Dated aspects: few to no significant women in the story. Liked fast-talking, swashbuckling, wisecracking protagonist. Character is doing something like parkour pre that word being available. Liked it a lot. Fun book. Interesting re-read. Almost felt like a first read since it had been such a long time since he first read it. Liked that it was short (typical SF of the period was ~200 pages).
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