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Aug 03

Nooooo cruel world! Why didn't I evolve with opposable thumbs!?Click for full image

Audes Art Direction: Hey, we need dragons. What, no dragon art available ? Slap that one from the bunch we’ve licensed for cheap with the… what ? Anthropomorphic weapon-wielding lizards, yeah, nevermind that there aren’t any in the boo… Oh, and some snazzy font, you know, one of those that scream fantasy or sci-fi, whatever, make it bright and bold.
Published 1992

Many thanks to Aude!

Actually, that cover IS a classical work of art!I would touch it without protective gloves.I've seen worse. Far, far, worse.Interesting, but I would still read it in public.Middlng: Neither awful nor awfully goodWould not like to be seen reading that!Awful... just awful...That belongs in a gold-lame picture frame!Gah... my eyes are burning! Feels so good!Good Show Sir! (Average: 8.12 out of 10)
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22 Responses to “Terremer”

  1. SophaLoaf Says:

    this is awesome!

  2. SI Says:

    You are indeed correct SophaLoaf.

    This cover does in fact, Rock the Casbah!

    I would gladly read this in public with pride that a huge man lizard was roaring on the cover with a crossbow.

  3. cutmanmike Says:

    LIZARD WARRIORS. If they made a game it would top Halo. Probably because I’d buy out every copy.

  4. Tom Noir Says:

    I find it difficult to believe that that lizardman is able to correctly operate that crossbow.

  5. Richard Palmer Says:

    @Tom

    Indeed! I’m always suspicious of things with pointy teeth and sharp claws wielding iron tipped tools! It would seem to be pointless to learn how to do so and confer little evolutionary advantage.

  6. Brian B Says:

    Okay, here’s my obligatory comment because someone has to make it: I love Ms. Le Guin and her literary works. That said, this cover is awesome! It took me a while to realize that Terremer is the French title for Earthsea. When I think of themes like social alienation, internal moral struggle, and conflicting ideological worldviews the FIRST thing that comes to mind is crossbow wielding dinosaurs.

    Oh man I would pay money to hear what Ms. Le Guin has to say about this cover. Anyone know her? I sort of know a guy who has worked with her in his own scholarship; maybe I should turn him on this website.

  7. Queen Khentkawes Says:

    To top it all off, the printers flipped the picture. You can see that the artist’s name is backward! I’m sitting here trying to imagine how the picture looks reversed!

  8. Tom Noir Says:

    Ah, it’s French! That explains why I hadn’t heard of it. I’m a big Le Guin fan.

    I’ll have to go reread Earthsea now… I must have skimmed the chapter about crossbow wielding lizard folk, and the voyeuristic eyes that watch them.

  9. Phil Says:

    Love the big lizard eye behind all the scythes, crossbows and quivers.

    Pehaps the artist Ken Barr was a descendant of Leonardo. Mirror writing and all that.

  10. Kathleen Says:

    sparrowhawk probably knew the true name of the cross bow, so it wouldn’t fire at him.

  11. Nix Says:

    I dunno. I don’t think Le Guin would be quite as annoyed at this as at the myriad Earthsea covers which depict Ged as a blue-eyed white boy shooting blue flames from his hands. At least this is merely depicting a scene that never took place rather than directly screwing with the protagonist (to wit, making him seem like your typical Weber protagonist, only male).

  12. Brian B Says:

    On the photo flipping, I think I actually prefer it with the lead lizardman’s gapping maw turned to face the spine of the book rather than the other way around. Isn’t there some design principle about where your subjects should face on a book cover? Or in this case where to put the monster’s fang-filled mouth?

  13. Anita Says:

    What is that crossbow wielding Lizard-person wearing? An apron? A tank top? A short summer dress? Do lizard people dress year around, or just special occassions like raiding and pillaging? The mind boggles.

  14. Ked Says:

    Wow, I read that very book a decade or two ago. Seeing the cover I had the “hum. crossbows-wielding-dinosaur perplexed look” but the book itself was surprisingly good. In spite of its cover.

  15. A.R.Yngve Says:

    “AA-AND IIII-EEE-IIIIII… WILL AALL-WAYS LOVE YOUUU-UUU-UUUU…”

  16. Severian 67 Says:

    @Richard Palmer. Interviewer addressing rampaging lizard man: “So, Mr. Bokrug. Can you tell me why you bothered to learn how to wield that crossbow? It seems pointless to learn how to do so and confer little evolutionary advantage.” Bokrug: “Hey. dude. Quit harshing my buzz. Haven’t you ever done something just ’cause it was, like, fun? Look at my mad crossbow skillz”. [TWANG] “Oops. Sorry about that, man.”

  17. Tom Noir Says:

    “Hey! The sign says NO flash photography!”

  18. Anna T. Says:

    I really don’t remember the chapter where Ged (or maybe one of the other wizards) (forget that – it was probably Ged) magically created a crossbow-wielding dinosaur-iguana army. I’ll have to reread it and check, because that just screams “Crazy Awesome”.

  19. fred Says:

    This edgy My Little Pony adjacent never really caught on.

  20. drlemaster Says:

    I have to wonder if they misread ‘wizard’ as ‘lizard’.

  21. Bruce A Munro Says:

    Teenage mutant crusader dinosaurs!

  22. GSS ex-noob Says:

    @drlemaster: It’s the only explanation.

    Or they just had a random cover left over and slapped it on this, despite there not being any crossbow-wielding giant iguanas in the series. Or, AFAIK, in anything LeGuin wrote.

    Somewhere, there’s a French book that has all kinds of ripping yarns about dinosaurs that wield mighty weapons, but it has a cover of a kid in a sailboat.

    Also, I say “font problems” since the R looks like an A. TEAAEMEA.

    Maybe Teaamea is a lost Pacific island full of giant lizards, like Komodo dragons, only more so. With smelting technology and textiles.

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