MAGICAL BUNA AND UNICORN VARIATION BY ROGER ZELAZNY

 Hello! Today I'm taking you to recreational area Bunica aka Buna river. Buna is a settlement in vicinity of Mostar built around Buna river. I don't know if you have noticed, but Buna river is somewhat of a favoured destination on this little digital place to call my own. It has appeared on this blog about a hundred times. It's one of the first outdoor places where my husband has taken me ( back when we started dating), maybe even the first! Besides this lovely destination, we'll also do what we do best- some reviewing.

What is my reading recommendation of the day? Unicorn Variation, a short story by Roger Zelazny. It was originally published in Asimov's Science Fiction magazine. I'm currently reading the Unicorn Variations book, a short story collection. You can read it online by borrowing it from an online library or you can listen to it on online ( Youtube edition). Either way, I do recommend it, especially to fans of Roger Zelazny. Last Summer, I recommended Zelazny to you and now I'm doing it again. Interestingly, I wore almost exactly the same outfit in that post, only the location was different.

How's life been treating you? The school year ended, but I'd been busy with tutoring and chores. Moments like the ones captured had been somewhat rare in the late period.  Now, the situation is greatly improved. I'm finally on a vacation.  I do try to find time to practice mindfulness and relax every day. Life flies by so fast, it's important to remember to take a moment to breathe, reflect on our life or just chill. 

THE STORY OF MY OUTFIT

THE WHITE AND BLUE STRIPED OFF SHOULDER DRESS WITH RUFFLES

WORN LAYERED IN THIS POST

THE BROWN PLATFORM HEEL SANDALS  old- 53 WAYS TO WEAR HERE

THE BLUE PATTERNED SCARF (USED AS A HAIR SCARF)- gift from a student, not sure if I wore it before on the blog.

THE STORY OF A LOCATION - SUMMER 2023

LOCATION: BUNA NEAR MOSTAR

TWO LOCATIONS: BUNA AND MOSTAR

A SHORT VISIT TO BUNA 2020  & SPRING STYLING 2021 & ANNIVERSARY VISIT SUMMER 2021

OLD VISITS  TO BUNA  For example in 2013, I showed you a photograph I took of a beautiful bird Euroasian Hoopoe. The same year, I showed you the spring of river Buna that is said to be the most powerful spring in Europe.  If, you want to see more of this place, you can read about one of my earliest visits here (2013), you can see an outfit post with Buna in the background here (2013), you can read about spring time and my love of flowers here (2017), you can read about my most recent visit here (2017), you can read about winter magic in Buna revisited post here (2016), you can read about summer magic here (2015). Bellow you can find even more links to some of my older posts about Buna and my visits to this place:  April 6th, 2013, November 28th, 2016,  May 16th, 2017,  June 10th, 2018,  January 24th, 2018,  May 18th, 2018,  March 20th, 2019, March 27th, 2019

September 14th, 2019. 

*Poveznice (linkovi) za starije objave posvećene posjetima Buni u engleskom dijelu teksta. 

IF YOU ARE VISITING BUNA DON'T FORGET THAT BLAGAJ IS LOCATED A SHORT DRIVE AWAY!

WHAT TO SEE AND IN BLAGAJ? READ MY POST FROM 2019

VISIT BLAGAJ FORTRESS WITH ME!  READ MY POST FROM 2021

UNICORN VARIATION,  A SHORT STORY BY ROGER ZELAZY 4/5

I enjoyed reading this short story a lot! Not just because I love unicorns. It's a well plotted short story that revolves around a chess game played by the protagonist Martin and an unicorn. So, obviously this story has a fantastical element. The unicorn in question is a fantastic chess player. The protagonist Martin was inspired by George R.R. Martin. Being a reader of Martin's blog, I knew that the these two writers knew one another, but I didn't know that Zelazny devoted a story to Martin. 

Anyhow, unicorns are an important theme in Zelazny's writing and they play an important part in his Amber series. Like in his Amber series,  unicorns in this story story have powers as well. Powers they can use both for good and the bad.

The devastating effect the human kind has had on the environment as well as the disappearance (extinction) of species has left place for mythological beings from the 'morning land' to appear. Some mythological beings, such as Jeti, have begun to appear.

The protagonist of this story finds himself in an abandoned saloon after doing some wondering. There he happens upon an unicorn. Martin and unicorn get acquainted.  The unicorn is black and has an aura of power that fascinates Martin. Apparently, this unicorn enjoys chess games.

As they converse, the unicorn tells Martin that the end of human species might be near. The unicorn might play his hand at this. It is not exactly that the unicorn can destroy the humankind, but he can help the humankind destroy itself by aiding its efforts.

Martin convinces the unicorn to play a chess game with him. A game to save mankind. Martin pleads with the unicorn to let the mankind fix its errors. Thus a chess game begins! If you're in a mood for an interesting short story within the fantasy genre, look no further. 

I don't have time to write a really detailed review of this story. Maybe some time in the future. I leave you with some wiki information. 

Reception

"Unicorn Variation" won the 1982 Hugo Award for Best Novelette,^[1] and was ranked second for 1982's Locus Award for Best Novelette.^[2] The Japanese version won the 1984 Seiun Award for Best Translated Short Story.^[3]

Origin

In his 1983 collection Unicorn Variations, Zelazny explained the story's origin: he had been approached by Gardner Dozois, who was soliciting content for an anthology of stories about unicorns. Subsequently, he was approached by another editor, who was soliciting content for an anthology of stories set in bars. When Zelazny told George R. R. Martin of these encounters, Martin said that Fred Saberhagen was soliciting content for an anthology of stories about chess; he then jokingly suggested that Zelazny write a story about chess and unicorns in a bar, so that he could sell the story to all three anthologies.^[4] Zelazny went on to do exactly that and subsequently won a Hugo Award for the story. The game described is Halprin v. Pillsbury in Munich, 1900.

READ MORE OF ROGER ZELAZNY 

A ROSE FOR ECCLESIASTES, A SHORT STORY BY ROGER ZELAZNY

Originally published in 1963, this short story has been anthologized many times and it has gained a status of a SF classic. Having read it, I can understand why. This elegant vintage science fiction story set on Mars does not lack in character development and world-building. In fact, it is quite amazing in this sense, especially considering the format it is written. It is not often that you find such interesting world building and character development in such a short story. Moreover, its depiction of Mars as a dying but beautiful society is wonderfully melancholic and even poetical. Zelazny managed to really convey a feeling of an alien culture and world. The plot seems simple enough at first, but there is a nice twist towards the end that made me think of classical short story masters such as Maupassant and Chekhov. All in all, it's a fantastic little story that raises interesting philosophical questions. I read "A Rose for Ecclesiastes" about a month or so ago and really enjoyed it. The full text and audio of this story is available on https://escapepod.org/2014/02/28/ep437-rose-ecclesiastes/. 

MORE ROGER ZELAZNY READING RECOMMENDATIONS

https://modaodaradosti.blogspot.com/2023/07/roger-zelazny-novels-to-read.html

7 NOVELS TO READ BY ROGER ZELAZNY

1) THE ISLE OF THE DEAD 5/5

Published in 1969, it was nominated for Nebula award for the best novel. While The Isle of the Dead didn't win the Nebula award that year, it did win the French Prix Apollo in 1972. It is one of those science fiction novels that are worth the hype. I immensely enjoyed reading it and would recommend it (especially to the fans of this genre and writer). 

2) EYE OF CAT 5/5

 Set in future, Eye of Cat is centered on a Navayo protagonist Billy Singer.  Larger than life protagonists are what Zelazny writes best and Billy is certainly such a character.  A novel also needs a plot. Therefore, the galaxy's most celebrated and skilled hunter, i.e our Billy Singer, find himself faced with a challenging task. I'll go into more detail into my review, but for now I can say that I really enjoyed this novel. The only downside to this novel that I can think of is that it doesn't include a cat character. In that sense, the title is somewhat misleading. On the other hand, the intelligent alien character nicknamed Cat is quite cat-like in some ways, so feline lovers needn't be too disappointed.

 3) LORD OF LIGHT 5/5

This novel is basically a story of a human colonization of an unknown planet. A spaceship filled with human crew arrives to an untouched planed. The crew conquered the planet, labeling the intelligent life forms demons and establishing themselves as sole rulers. Their technology soon enables them to live forever and they model themselves after gods in Hinduism. Only one man stands in opposition and that man is one of the original crew. 

“His followers called him Mahasamatman and said he was a god. He preferred to drop the Maha- and the -atman, however, and called himself Sam. He never claimed to be a god, but then he never claimed not to be a god.”

4) THIS IMMORTAL 5/5

THIS IMMORTAL (SERIALIZED AS ....AND CALL ME CONRAD)

Originally this novel was abridged by Zelazny and published in The Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy in October and November 1965 under the title ...And Call me Conrad.  Most cuts made for the version published in installments were restored when it was published as a single novel under the title This Immortal. The author later on went to say that he preferred the original title. The novel is set in the future in which planet Earth numbers only 4 million human inhabitants and is filled with many dangers, such as mutant monsters and animals that often resemble those from Greek mythology. Earth's government is heavily influenced by an advanced alien race known as Vegans who see planet Earth as a tourist attraction.

This Immortal (aka ...And Call me Conrad) is a science fiction novel that manages to be subtly philosophical, delightfully funny and wonderfully poetical.  It's really a gem of a novel that gives an interest spin on classical science fiction theme of the first contact and the future of humanity. The mythological elements of the novel create an interesting link with human history and culture. 

5) A NIGHT IN LONESOME OCTOBER 5/5

Such a brilliant and unique book! The writing is simple but at the same time poetical. Narrated by a watchdog Sniff whose owner is Jack (the Ripper), the story is extremely engaging. Snuff makes for a fantastic protagonist of the novel. Right from the start, we learn that Snuff was something else prior to being 'summoned' by Jack to perform the duty of a watchdog- exactly what Snuff was is somewhat of a mystery. A demon or a mythological creature of some kind? I think this little detail Zelazny throws in right at the start makes all the difference. Snuff is very believable as a dog and it is great to follow the story from his perspective, but then when Snuff gets all poetical that makes sense too, because he is MORE than a dog.

6) IF AT FAUST YOU DON'T SUCCEED BY ROGER ZELANZY AND ROBERT SHECKLEY 4/5

If at Faust You Don't Succeed is a religious satire of sorts, so it might be offensive to some who are easily offended. That being said, I think it's a great novel. I do like how Roger can make fun of religious concepts but at the same time keep his writing intelligent and balanced. There is a lot of humour in this book, but it is well written and has a place within the story. Now, I'm not familiar with the other author Roger Zelazny collaborated with on this novel and that is Robert Sheckley but I believe they collaborated on some other works as well. Anyhow, their collaboration seems to be a success.  I can definitely recognize Roger’s signature touch to this story, though.

7) DAMNATION ALLEY, A NOVEL BY ROGER ZELAZNY

Originally envisioned and published as a novella in 1967, Damnation Alley was republished as a novel in 1969. Now, I haven't read the original novella so I cannot compare the two, but I did a bit of research before I started writing this review. What I found is that Zelazny decided to turn his novella into the novel Damnation Alley only on insistence from his publisher. It seemed Zelazny wasn't completely satisfied with it and preferred the novella.  As I said, I haven't read the original novella so I really cannot compare. Having read Damnation Alley in its novel form, however, I can say that it seemed to lack something. What exactly that would be, I cannot put my finger on with certainly. 

Thank you for reading and visiting!