Anthropomorphism and Predators

lonestarlibrarian · Oct 29, 2009

I'm looking for some good reading suggestions in MG for books that juggled having Talking Predator Animals and Talking Prey Animals in the same book.

For example, in the Narnia books-- you have Talking Animals and the dumb beasts. So you can have a Talking Mouse and a Talking Leopard, and you know the Mouse is safe.

Or in the Jungle Book, Kipling was able to avoid having readers upset that likable characters were eating each other by making the monkeys unpleasant enough that you're not too invested in their welfare, and by shifting the focus of the scene when Kaa is about to eat them.

Most of the fiction I've seen avoids the issue by having one set of animals speaking solely with their own kind/other animals at their level in the food chain.

Any good reading suggestions on authors who were able to write those kind of delicate relationships well? Thanks!

MsJudy · Oct 29, 2009

Morris Gleitzman has some hilarious books about Australian Cane Toads. If I remember right, though, only the toads speak to each other. The other animals that might eat them don't have voices, and the animals they eat are mostly bugs, again, no speaking. Don't know if they are the kind of thing you have in mind, but they're great fun.

TOAD RAGE
TOAD HEAVEN

Kitty Pryde · Oct 29, 2009

In Winnie the Pooh everyone is far too simpleminded to think about eating each other.

In the Redwall books a few of the talking predators WILL eat the talking prey, and most of them are pretty evil, like owls and snakes. There are other predator animals, who are bad, but they mostly want to conquer or enslave the prey animals and they don't talk about eating them. Mostly they are like bandits or pirates, so they eat pirate food. A few of them do eat meat. The badgers are good guys, but I believe they are vegetarians. Basically the author only has them eating meat when he wants to show that they are really super evil.

Smish · Oct 29, 2009

To be honest, I can't think of a whole lot of MG novels with talking animals. However, I confess I prefer contemporary MG, and talking animals just aren't likely to pop up in those books.

So, the only novel I can think of with your specifications is Coraline, by Neil Gaiman. In the world of the 'other mother', there's a talking cat and talking rats. The cat is a friend to the MC (well, as much of a friend as a cat can be... Gaiman nailed feline behavior in that book!), and the rats are evil, so the reader doesn't mind that the cat hunts them...

Sorry I can't be more help.

Smish

Mungus · Oct 29, 2009

Smish said:
To be honest, I can't think of a whole lot of MG novels with talking animals. However, I confess I prefer contemporary MG, and talking animals just aren't likely to pop up in those books.

So, the only novel I can think of with your specifications is Coraline, by Neil Gaiman. In the world of the 'other mother', there's a talking cat and talking rats. The cat is a friend to the MC (well, as much of a friend as a cat can be... Gaiman nailed feline behavior in that book!), and the rats are evil, so the reader doesn't mind that the cat hunts them...

Sorry I can't be more help.

Smish

Yup. Great story and the cat is written really well.

Amarie · Oct 29, 2009

The Warrior series by Erin Hunter has talking feral cats. I haven't read them yet so I don't know if the rats in the book talk as well.

The Silverwing series by Kenneth Oppel has talking bats.

Finchlark · Oct 30, 2009

Anthropomorphism

BUT does anyone - anyone - please - know any publishers who are interested in talking animals? That is the problem I have, that talking animals are just not the trend.

I have just completed my second novel and it's talking birds. It's received great peer reviews but can't get it near a professional's desk.

Kitty Pryde · Oct 30, 2009

Talking Birds--Swordbird comes to mind, but that was a few years ago. Top 100 kid fantasy books on amazon includes the Warriors series and the Seekers series (like Warriors, only with bears). I was at the library yesterday looking at some other talking animal books: Bad Kitty series, Geronimo Stilton, Highway Cats, Mercy Watson series. They just made movies of Fantastic Mr. Fox and Desperaux. Talking animals are out there, they are just a little tired out and somewhat little-kiddish because of all the cartoons and movies featuring them.

lonestarlibrarian · Oct 30, 2009

Guardians of Ga'hoole is another talking bird book, with owls, that has a movie slated for 2010.

Good luck with yours!

Finchlark · Oct 30, 2009

Thanks lonestarlibrarian I have just had a look at Guardians of Ga'hoole. Got excited, then found the publishers are Scholastic. Can't get near them without an agent. Oh well......

Amarie · Oct 30, 2009

Finchlark said:
BUT does anyone - anyone - please - know any publishers who are interested in talking animals? That is the problem I have, that talking animals are just not the trend.

I have just completed my second novel and it's talking birds. It's received great peer reviews but can't get it near a professional's desk.

Are you querying agents or publishers? It's hard to go straight to publishers for anything beyond picture books or nonfiction. There's book coming out from Holiday House in fall 2010 about talking rats by someone here on AW. She had an agent sell it to them though.

Finchlark · Oct 30, 2009

Perhaps it might be worth approaching them. Thanks for the heads up.

MsJudy · Oct 30, 2009

Finchlark, please be careful about highjacking other people's threads!!! The original poster was looking for help with something. When you want help with your own problems, even if it's related, you really should start a new thread.

Finchlark · Oct 31, 2009

You're absolutely right. Many apologies. Got carried away, always do when talking about anthropomorphism. Sorry, lonestarlibrarian. As to your original query, you can't beat Watership Down.

Anthropomorphism and Predators

lonestarlibrarian

senior bean supervisor

MsJudy

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue

Smish

Reads more than she writes.

Mungus

Amarie

carpe libri

Finchlark

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue

lonestarlibrarian

senior bean supervisor

Finchlark

Amarie

carpe libri

Finchlark

MsJudy

Finchlark