“Occasionally, there arises a writing situation where you see an alternative to what you are doing, a mad, wild gamble of a way for handling something, which may leave you looking stupid, ridiculous, or brilliant - you just don't know which. You can play it safe there, too, and proceed along the route you'd mapped out for yourself. Or you can trust your personal demon who delivered that crazy idea in the first place. Trust your demon.”
—Roger Zelazny“[The messenger collapsed on the steps of the Acropolis.] He delivered the news from Marathon before he died.”
—Roger Zelazny, from Roadmarks (thanks, colfaxstormmane)
Looking for something to read this Halloween?
A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny
This book right here is absolute literary crossover fun. It stars Jack the Ripper who teams up Sherlock Holmes and the Wolf Man to take on villains such as Dracula, Frankenstein and his creation, and a corrupt priest in a game to decide who gets to do what with the power to reawaken the gods from the H.P. Lovecraft mythos. No, I’m not joking.
The book’s chapters are put in “days”, as it leads up to a fullmoon on October 31st, and it’s told from the perspective of Jack’s dog Snuff as he meets up with the other familiars of the game’s players, such as a witch’s cat, and Dracula’s bat. The story is fun, lighthearted and a really great read with many twists and turns to keep you guessing who is on who’s side.
So in short:
Day 24- A book that you wish more people would read
The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny
(I’m only going to suggest the first 5 books, as the second five end with a sort of cliffhanger- though if you can live with that, I’d highly suggest reading the next five, too.) It’s supposed to be considered a fantasy classic, but even then people hardly read it. However, this is one of the most original fantasies I’ve had the pleasure of reading. And it’s still unique. I haven’t read anything quite like this, ever. (The closest was the last Narnia book, but that still fell waaaaaaay short, and was only similar with its singular shadow-world concept.)The ending was a surprise to me, despite it being probably the one that made the most sense out of all the possibilities. I loved all the characters, and the world(s)! The whole idea of shadows and then Amber itself- I can still remember exactly where I was when I finished reading the book, and I only ever do that with books I love. (Ironically, I’m sitting there now, which is weird as it’s a couple of states away from home, at my grandparents’ house.) The five books together are actually very short, for five books. So really, people. READ THIS SERIES!
How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran
m.wired.comAn oldie but still such a great read.
During the hostage crisis in Iran a small group of American’s managed to escape the American embassy and hide away in Tehran.
With the Ayatollah’s forces growing ever nearer a plan was hatched by the CIA to spirit them out of the country.
The plan? Use a fake film production (an adaptation of Roger Zelazny’s Lord of Light renamed Argo) to enter the country under the pretence of scouting locations. Then grab those in need before hightailing it.
Interesting aside Zelazny’s novel was all set to be filmed at one point and so concept drawings and material existed. The artist behind these designs?
Jack Kirby.
Oh, and yes, they ARE making a film about it.
