The Gnoll Credo

By Josh Stanton

Book Overview

"We are born and we die. No one cares, no one remembers, and it doesn't matter. This is why we laugh." There are no such things as gnolls, they never kill and eat people, and they can?t read or write... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0982667132
• ISBN13: 9780982667132
• Release Date: July 2010
• Publisher: 100 Watt Press
• Length: 178 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Amazing constructs and well written

Loved the book and its exploration of our worldview. The anthropologist-meets-hyena-creature was a perfect way to examine the foilbles of our culture. The style is accessible and thoughtful. It's a quick read, but demands attention. You won't want to be put it down until you've finished the whole story. The Epilogue was striking. The metaphors for Gryka and the King are still rolling around my brain. Well done!

A Case Study of Us

Western culture is getting busier and busier every day. More than that, it's also going global. With the world locking into a single mind-frame, it's time for a fresh perspective--a reality check. "Deal with humans too much, learn reading and writing, learn too much about us, you can easily start thinking that everything we do is important. It's not. Big, impressive, powerful, destructive, yes, but usually not important. We just got bored." Aidan O'Rourke set off on a case study of the gnoll species. Through Gryka--his subject--his study was quickly switched inward to a deconstruction of his own species. What follows is a life-changing event for Aidan. The philosophical lessons that are shined on Aidan are also presented to you--the reader. The lessons presented in this novel will stick with you and follow you around on your daily tasks just like the turtle shell of tools that you carry. The philosophy presented is like an epiphany from a deep meditative experience. If you believe you've already learned life's many lessons; I still recommend this one more.

If only we could talk to our cousins.

Ever wondered what it would be like to openly converse with another species? To have philosophical debates with a savage beast? J. Stanton created an amazing story where a highly educated human is given the ability to discuss life, tradition, and survival with a species that we would normally consider to be brutal and uncivilized and not worth attempting to understand. So is the arrogance of man. The book wraps much of what is learned from the Gnolls into a package of nostalgia and remembrance for humankind's journey from tree dwelling vegetarians to the societies you see around you today. It asks a great question about why, if so many of us are miserable in life - with all of it's complications, we can't return to a simpler time where the hunt, the kill, and the pack are most important. I do agree that all of us are guilty of filling our days with "nerga" or "needless complication". When you pick this book up, don't try to compare it to Tolkien or Eddings. If you do, you may be disappointed. I don't know that the book belongs in the fantasy section. But compare it to the great works of anthropologists Jane Goodall and Jared Diamond to see it's true importance. We are primates - the third chimpanzee. This is what scientists from many fields know and study every day. Striving to understand our wonderful planet, and how we ended up at this state of it's evolution, is never "nerga". The Gnoll Credo reminds us of that.

Powerfully told, blurs the line between fantasy and reality

The Gnoll Credo is a decidedly thought-provoking read. Aidan O'Rourke is an ethnologist who sets out to study gnolls (hyena-people). Gryka is a gnoll who has learned to read and write so that her pack can trade with humans. She agrees to help Aidan, and her response to his first question, "Do gnolls have a written religion or philosophy of life?" is the blunt, powerful Credo that opens the book. As Aidan works to master Gnollish and hammer out a meaningful translation of the Credo, his respect for their primal culture deepens. His objectivity wavers as he struggles with a growing friendship with Gryka, which is complicated by their differing species. What begins as scholarly research becomes Gryka's life story, told in crisp, episodic chapters. Several things set this book apart. There is the wonderfully compelling portrayal of Gryka, who accepts and embraces the stark reality of her savage, joyous life. Utterly lacking in self-pity and confident of her role in the gnolls' fiercely matriarchal culture, she shares with Aidan the customs and evolutionary strategies the gnolls have adopted to survive in a hostile world...and he is astounded. Gryka is competent, blunt, hearty, and thoroughly dangerous, altogether a beautifully drawn character. Presenting Aidan's research on hyenas and gnolls as an academic paper is a brilliant literary device that contributes to the blurring of fantasy and reality. It makes the "willing suspension of disbelief" easy for the reader. I enjoyed this seamless blend of fantastic and real world touchpoints. The characters are not just plot devices - they are genuine individuals, and their actions spring from their very natures. The Epilogue takes the reader from a medieval past into the present, recasting the story as an affirmation of the origin, nature, and future of humans. It takes a stand and will not be welcomed by every reader, but it is consistent with the central focus of the book. It is somewhat startling to realize that our fundamental nature and biology evolved long before the advent of agriculture in the celebrated Fertile Crescent of 10,000 years ago. A note of caution: the book begins charmingly and has moving, tender, and funny moments, but the strategies of survival and the ritual nature of death amongst the gnolls are realistically portrayed. Recommended for: Adults and mature high school students who enjoy a short, intense read that pushes boundaries and generates discussion. Also, a great read for women because of the vital, charismatic Gryka. Not recommended for: Youth (some violence and sex talk), or those expecting a typical fantasy genre book about gnolls.

A rare path to a meaninful discussion

The Gnoll Credo weaves a powerful and deep discussion of modern civilization and the nature of human life into a neat and entertaining storyline. An easy-reading yet intellectually provocative piece, it is a fine read for a long plane ride or a rainy weekend.