I don’t recall cats featuring much in The Lord of the Rings. Has Rivendell a pet hospital?
P.S. Frodo sings of an ostler’s fiddle-playing cat at The Prancing Pony.
The ostler has a tipsy cat/ that plays a five-stringed fiddle
And up and down he runs his bow,
Now squeaking high, now purring low,
Now sawing in the middle.
“There, there, Faragon, just drink your catnip tea and take a nap.” (ASIDE: Little does Faragon ken I’ve slipped a mighty philtre into his catnip tea. And soon he will be madly in love with me.)
“Thanks.” (ASIDE: Hah. I know she’s trying to slip me a love potion mickey. That’s why I mixed it into the birdseed. Good luck, Lady Jane.)
I’m thinking this is every cat’s dream. The whole bed to yourself with lots of nice wood to sharpen your claws on, a fancy rug to cough up hairballs onto, a hooman slave only when needed, nice window with birdie. If one of the bedside elixirs is concentrated catnip, kitty is indeed living the dream.* My cats only have most of that.
How long did it take Gallardo to paint all those fiddly bits on the bedcovers and rug? He’s a dab hand at furnishings, not so much on cat or lady faces.
This was so beloved by LOTR fans that I don’t remember ever hearing about it. And I am quite the cat fan (have only been without one about 10% of my life) and read extensively during this period (no cable TV, no internet).
(googles) Bloody hell, that’s supposed to be an otter person! Explains why it doesn’t look like a cat. What do you expect from someone who can’t spell his own name, though?
Hint: if you’re going for faux-medieval at least try to make your damsel not look like Barbie’s anorexic cousin. (And of course don’t make your otter look like a cat.)
Good find, Ryan.
There are many cover illustrations on this site that try to be creepy or disturbing. This cover is, to me, one of the most creepy and disturbing, though I don’t think the artist was trying to be.
They were able to find otter-sized slippers, but not a child-sized bed?
For a while there every other fantasy series was comparing itself to The Lord of the Rings.
For something that sold over a million copies, it really seems to have vanished down the memory hole. I read a couple of books in that series a long time ago: very little remains in my brain (I think the Evil Overlord was female?) although when I try word association the words “baroque” and “twee” show up. I dunno if the series came to a conclusion or not, and I have never really been interested enough to find out.
@Tor Mented: I also had never heard of this author or series before my eyes were assaulted by these covers lovingly displayed in a Tucson bookstore.
Upon discovery that it really had sold millions of copies, research also revealed that the author wrote it with a Buddhist worldview to counter-act the Christian notions in JRRTolkien’s work(!). Wikipedia further indicates that the author used his experiences in the Vietnam war to inspire his writing, but assures us that none of the anthropomorphic animals wield automatic weapons or helicopters.
Sadly, I did not purchase these books, even though they rested briefly in my very hands. No doubt the stories are incredible, but once again, the ridiculous covers deflected any purchase. Je regrette.
Otter, huh? And a Buddhist to boot? Fooled me, I confess. Really interesting backstory stuff, thanks all. I am left only to ponder whether kept otters also need litter boxes.
With his last dying breath, Simba cursed Disney for his fate.
“They chewed me up and then they spit me out. Just another used-up animal. Damn them to hell!”
A missed opportunity for the blurbers: as the only Buddhist otter-themed fantasy* it is undoubtedly the most successful of its kind, justifying a comment along the lines of “Best-selling… fantasy series of all time”
(* a few minutes online failed to reveal any others and it’s a pretty specific search-parameter.)
“For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to – The Otter Limits.”
@Tat: another vote for the “otter people” tag to be applied, stat!
@BC: A quick google says you can kind of sort of try to box train otters, but not really. Because they excrete a LOT every day, all over. And they destroy everything, and need a large body of water, preferably running.
So I don’t think an elaborate medieval bedroom is ideal for an otter.
They don’t seem very Buddhist, either. Particularly not if they’re as baroque and twee as @Bruce remembers.
@Ray P, @Tor: GSS!
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January 28th, 2020 at 11:52 am
Well, the cat had a lot to prove with a name like that.
January 28th, 2020 at 1:44 pm
R.I.P. Fritz the Cat, 1959-2020
January 28th, 2020 at 1:56 pm
Kitty is hung over. Top up his mamosa and reheat that loaded potato.
January 28th, 2020 at 2:17 pm
Cat got slippers.
January 28th, 2020 at 3:41 pm
@Bibliomancer – Looking on the bright side: 8 more lives to go!
January 28th, 2020 at 3:59 pm
‘No, Gwyneth, no – not the vagina-scented candles!’
January 28th, 2020 at 4:11 pm
I don’t recall cats featuring much in The Lord of the Rings. Has Rivendell a pet hospital?
P.S. Frodo sings of an ostler’s fiddle-playing cat at The Prancing Pony.
The ostler has a tipsy cat/ that plays a five-stringed fiddle
And up and down he runs his bow,
Now squeaking high, now purring low,
Now sawing in the middle.
January 28th, 2020 at 4:34 pm
@Ray P: What are the violin strings made from?
January 28th, 2020 at 5:13 pm
@Tat …Hobbit foot hair
January 28th, 2020 at 7:00 pm
When the cat found out, he took to his bed.
January 28th, 2020 at 8:15 pm
“There, there, Faragon, just drink your catnip tea and take a nap.”
(ASIDE: Little does Faragon ken I’ve slipped a mighty philtre into his catnip tea. And soon he will be madly in love with me.)
“Thanks.”
(ASIDE: Hah. I know she’s trying to slip me a love potion mickey. That’s why I mixed it into the birdseed. Good luck, Lady Jane.)
January 28th, 2020 at 10:08 pm
@B.C.: Lol.
That would require a “weird pecks” tag.
January 28th, 2020 at 10:28 pm
@Tor M— 😉
January 29th, 2020 at 12:12 am
I’m thinking this is every cat’s dream. The whole bed to yourself with lots of nice wood to sharpen your claws on, a fancy rug to cough up hairballs onto, a hooman slave only when needed, nice window with birdie. If one of the bedside elixirs is concentrated catnip, kitty is indeed living the dream.* My cats only have most of that.
How long did it take Gallardo to paint all those fiddly bits on the bedcovers and rug? He’s a dab hand at furnishings, not so much on cat or lady faces.
This was so beloved by LOTR fans that I don’t remember ever hearing about it. And I am quite the cat fan (have only been without one about 10% of my life) and read extensively during this period (no cable TV, no internet).
(googles) Bloody hell, that’s supposed to be an otter person! Explains why it doesn’t look like a cat. What do you expect from someone who can’t spell his own name, though?
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/sci-fi-fantasy/the-completely-bonkers-world-of-niel-hancocks-circle-of-light/
GSS to THX, fred (above link agrees with you), BC, and Tor
* Presumably the litter box is hidden behind the bed; don’t want to show that on the cover. Likely just below the random ornate carving on the wall.
January 29th, 2020 at 1:15 am
Hint: if you’re going for faux-medieval at least try to make your damsel not look like Barbie’s anorexic cousin. (And of course don’t make your otter look like a cat.)
January 29th, 2020 at 2:26 am
Good find, Ryan.
There are many cover illustrations on this site that try to be creepy or disturbing. This cover is, to me, one of the most creepy and disturbing, though I don’t think the artist was trying to be.
January 29th, 2020 at 2:27 am
So many good cat jokes wasted on an otter!
They were able to find otter-sized slippers, but not a child-sized bed?
For a while there every other fantasy series was comparing itself to The Lord of the Rings.
For something that sold over a million copies, it really seems to have vanished down the memory hole. I read a couple of books in that series a long time ago: very little remains in my brain (I think the Evil Overlord was female?) although when I try word association the words “baroque” and “twee” show up. I dunno if the series came to a conclusion or not, and I have never really been interested enough to find out.
January 29th, 2020 at 2:47 am
@Tag Wizard: does this therefore merit the rare distinction of the ‘otter people’ tag?
January 29th, 2020 at 3:19 am
@Tor Mented: I also had never heard of this author or series before my eyes were assaulted by these covers lovingly displayed in a Tucson bookstore.
Upon discovery that it really had sold millions of copies, research also revealed that the author wrote it with a Buddhist worldview to counter-act the Christian notions in JRRTolkien’s work(!). Wikipedia further indicates that the author used his experiences in the Vietnam war to inspire his writing, but assures us that none of the anthropomorphic animals wield automatic weapons or helicopters.
Sadly, I did not purchase these books, even though they rested briefly in my very hands. No doubt the stories are incredible, but once again, the ridiculous covers deflected any purchase. Je regrette.
January 29th, 2020 at 7:56 am
Otter, huh? And a Buddhist to boot? Fooled me, I confess. Really interesting backstory stuff, thanks all. I am left only to ponder whether kept otters also need litter boxes.
January 29th, 2020 at 9:51 am
With his last dying breath, Simba cursed Disney for his fate.
“They chewed me up and then they spit me out. Just another used-up animal. Damn them to hell!”
January 29th, 2020 at 2:58 pm
A missed opportunity for the blurbers: as the only Buddhist otter-themed fantasy* it is undoubtedly the most successful of its kind, justifying a comment along the lines of “Best-selling… fantasy series of all time”
(* a few minutes online failed to reveal any others and it’s a pretty specific search-parameter.)
January 29th, 2020 at 3:20 pm
Well, I don’t recall otters playing a part in The Lord of the Ring of Bright Water.
January 29th, 2020 at 9:49 pm
“For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to – The Otter Limits.”
January 30th, 2020 at 3:55 am
GSS, @Tor Mented!
I think Mole and Ratty get transported there in one section of “The Wind in the Willows.”
January 31st, 2020 at 2:27 am
@Tat: another vote for the “otter people” tag to be applied, stat!
@BC: A quick google says you can kind of sort of try to box train otters, but not really. Because they excrete a LOT every day, all over. And they destroy everything, and need a large body of water, preferably running.
So I don’t think an elaborate medieval bedroom is ideal for an otter.
They don’t seem very Buddhist, either. Particularly not if they’re as baroque and twee as @Bruce remembers.
@Ray P, @Tor: GSS!