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Clifford the Big Red Dog. Hagrid's Fluffy. Pegasus.

This week, you are looking out for an animal that is unusually large. Some people are interpreting this prompt to mean a "normal" (non-magical) animal that is large in the novel, while others are going an easier route that uses any exceptionally large animal.

ATY Listopia: /list/show/1...

What are you reading for this prompt, and how does it fit the "unusually large animal"?

I'm going to read Eldest . I read the first one for the "Here be Dragons" prompt in 2022.

I tried The Master and Margarita before, but didn't get far with it. I'm giving it another try - it contains an unusually large cat.

I think for this prompt I'm going with the KIS option of a book with any big alive thing. I'm tentatively planning on Escaping Exodus by Nicky Drayden, which is a sci-fi novel with a bioship.

Children of Time, since I own it, but I’ll need to get past the giant spider.
Remarkably Bright Creatures.

Suggestions:
The Friend - a quiet, realistic novella about a woman who takes in a friend’s huge dog after his death.
The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fjord is fun, edgy, and adventurous. Think Jessica Rabbit.
Master and Margarita (with a man who turns into a man-sized cat) is a classic, but parts are nightmarish.

FYI- in How to Train Your Dragon, I’m pretty sure the dragon was unusually small for his kind, not unusually large.

Add Hound of the Baskervilles

LeahS wrote: "I tried The Master and Margarita before, but didn't get far with it. I'm giving it another try - it contains an unusually large cat."

I read it this year. Some describe it as very funny, but I couldn’t quite get in that mindset.* Some chapters are really interesting Brilliant, but some of the craziness was hard to take. It would be better on paper than audio, so you can skim through the crazier pages.

Added: The social commentary about Russia, conformity, and art made it worthwhile for me. The parts about Pontius Pilate were mesmerizing. I would have liked it better if I was in a different mood.

@Leah- It has really high ratings, and you might love it the next time you try it. * Looking back, I read this during a time when my sense of humor was “challenged� so to speak.

I'm going the exceptionally large animal route and planning on Remarkably Bright Creatures.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll or Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll or Charlie And The Great Glass Elevator by Roald Dahl

Nancy wrote: "I'm going the exceptionally large animal route and planning on Remarkably Bright Creatures."

That sounds good - octupuses/octupi? are such intelligent animals.

I have a couple of 2023 releases I want to read that I suspect will be perfect for this, The Mirrored Heavens by Rebecca Roanhorse and The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill.

Nancy wrote: "I'm going the exceptionally large animal route and planning on Remarkably Bright Creatures."

Thanks for reminding me about this one! I've been wanting to read it AND I've been stumped on this prompt, so it's perfect!

Wow I am surprised to find I do have a book on the listopia for this prompt - The Essex Serpent. I had that penciled in for this year's gothic elements but I may switch it out for something else after this discovery.

I thought I would 100% have to cheat on this one and was going to either go for a human character with a smaller animal's name (e.g. The Way of All Flesh - Raven) or just an oversized animal on the cover (e.g. Freedom).

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt is wonderful. It will likely remain my favorite book of the year. I’d highly recommend it to anyone.

LeahS wrote: "I tried The Master and Margarita before, but didn't get far with it. I'm giving it another try - it contains an unusually large cat."

Oh, thank you for this information! I was going to reread The Color of Magic from Discworld because I couldn't think of anything else, but this is on my TBR and I'd like to get it done.

Remarkably Bright Creatures sounds great. I have it earmarked for another prompt. Is the Octopus an unusually large one?

NancyJ wrote: "Remarkably Bright Creatures sounds great. I have it earmarked for another prompt. Is the Octopus an unusually large one?"

Copied from Google � The common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) is 12 to 36 inches (30.5 to 91.4 centimeters) long and weighs 6.6 to 22 lbs. (3 to 10 kilograms). The giant Pacific octopus (Enteroctopus dofleini) is the largest octopus. They typically grow to 16 feet (5 meters) long and weight around 110 lbs�

The octopus in the story is a giant Pacific octopus. It is likely more of a KIS since option.

Yeah, for sure it's KIS.

At this point, with this prompt, I'll take the KIS option lol. That *seems* like an unusually large octopus compared to all the other octopi I've seen!

Just about any book from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series should fit

I'm reading Dogs of War by Adrian Tchaikovsky. The blurb says "My name is Rex. I am a good dog. Rex is also seven foot tall at the shoulder...". That's an unusually large dog (and I'm counting it even if there's twist that Rex isn't really a dog!).

Ooh that's on my TBR too! This is a great thread!

NancyJ wrote: "I’m definitely reading Harvey! A friend of ours is the director of a community theater group and they are putting on the play Harvey this Spring. I should also read [book:Children of ..."

Of course! Harvey! I picked up a copy this year and it's waiting for me to read it. Happy to be able to use it for this challenge!

A topic on my discussion board today jogged my memory about something. I had not really considered sea monsters for this prompt. A lot of oceanic horror is basically 'the terrors of the deep, but BIGGER' so if anyone is in the mood to read science fiction or horror, that might be a fruitful avenue to pursue. Here's some lists:
Sea Monster Books!
Oceanic/marine science fiction
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water!

Melissa wrote: "Just about any book from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series should fit"

I haven’t read any of his books yet. Should they be read in order, or are there some favorites?

Nancy wrote: "Yeah, for sure it's KIS."

Jillian wrote: "NancyJ wrote: "Remarkably Bright Creatures sounds great. I have it earmarked for another prompt. Is the Octopus an unusually large one?"

Copied from Google � The common octopus (Oc..."

I’m confused - why would this be a KIS if it’s so large?

It sounds good enough for me.

NancyJ wrote: "Melissa wrote: "Just about any book from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series should fit"

I haven’t read any of his books yet. Should they be read in order, or are there some favorites?"

There are differing opinions on this. I think starting at the beginning is best, but read the first two as if they were one - The Colour of Magic takes while to get going, but the story goes straight into The Light Fantastic, and they're fairly short.

I'm leaning toward The Kaiju Preservation Society
The blurb mentions the Kaiju are "universe's largest and most dangerous panda " so hoping that works?!

Sheena wrote: "...the Kaiju are universe's largest and most dangerous panda..."

Dangerous pandas?!? But. But. They're so cute and rolypoly! Haha.

I wonder if anyone here has read the last book in the series about Ayla by Jean M Auel? I'm thinking about the sixth book The Land of Painted Caves. It has been a few years now since I read the fifth and I'm longing for the last one. I wonder if there's a saber-toothed tiger or a huge cave bear there somewhere so that I can chose this book for this prompt. (All other prompts are either filled or not suitable.)

I just recently was recommended the book Borne, which I had never heard of before. The plot summary mentions a giant bear, so that might be what I'll go with for this prompt. Otherwise, I have no good ideas! (Though I'm glad that I can always fall back on Discworld, just in case.)

I would strongly recommend Children of Time, even if you hate spiders and think you don't want to read about giant spiders. (Oh! I guess I could use Children of Ruin.) The other thing that comes to mind is a middle grade/YA book series I really enjoyed as a kid: Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld. It's an alternate history book about WWI, where the Allies have biological hybrid warships that are basically like giant floating octopi and whales.

Nike wrote: "I wonder if anyone here has read the last book in the series about Ayla by Jean M Auel? I'm thinking about the sixth book The Land of Painted Caves. It has been a f..."

Oh my gosh! I read Clan of the Cave Bear in the 80s and had NO idea there were new books being published!! I might have to revisit the series.

Sheena wrote: "Nike wrote: "I wonder if anyone here has read the last book in the series about Ayla by Jean M Auel? I'm thinking about the sixth book The Land of Painted Caves. It..."

Do that! 🙂

Marie wrote: "There are differing opinions on this. I think starting at the beginning is best, but read the first two as if they were one - The Colour of Magic takes while to get going, but the story goes straight into The Light Fantastic, and they're fairly short...."

I'm one of those who doesn't advise starting from the beginning because I don't like those first two books all that much. I probably would've missed out if I'd started there and dismissed Discworld as not for me. My first Discworld was Pyramids which is fairly standalone, then I went and read the Death books, before I made an effort to read the rest in order.

Hi, does anyone know if The Phantom Tollbooth fulfills this prompt?
It's not on the Listopia, but there does seem to be a large dog (or rabbit?) on the front cover. Not sure if it's misleading, such as if the person is actually small rather than the animal being big, or if it's an inanimate clock and not an actual animal)

Irene wrote: "Hi, does anyone know if The Phantom Tollbooth fulfills this prompt?
It's not on the Listopia, but there does seem to be a large dog (or rabbit?) on the front cover. Not sure if it's misl..."

Hi Irene. I happen to have a first edition copy of The Phantom Tollbooth from when I was a kid. I don't really remember reading it as a child (I'm sure I must have), but I do remember reading it to my kids when they were young. The animal on the cover IS a dog. I pulled out my copy to see how he was described, and it says he is a "large dog", although unusual in that he has a very large clock as part of his body.

I don't know if he would be considered "unusually large" as Clifford the Big Red Dog would be, but he is certainly one of the larger breeds of dog.

If you don't read it for this prompt, I hope you find another reason to read it at some point. It's one of those books that is great to read to kids because they enjoy it, but really a lot of the humor is better understood by adults.

The Phantom Tollbooth definitely would work for this prompt! Regardless of whether Tock the dog is large enough to count (I think he is), there are several other unusually large animals in the story, including a very big bee and an anthropomorphic bug.

Irene wrote: "Hi, does anyone know if The Phantom Tollbooth fulfills this prompt?
It's not on the Listopia, but there does seem to be a large dog (or rabbit?) on the front cover. Not sure if it's misl..."

As others have said, it is a very large dog. I think you could also use this book for the “route of travel� prompt.

Thank you Tracy, Hannah, and Heather!! Will add it to the Listopia as well :)

I think I will add The Phantom Tollbooth to my list of possibilities as well. Thank you for suggesting it as I would never have thought of it.

I just finished King's latest Fairy Tale and it has large versions of many animals in the parallel word much of the story is set in. The Snab is a cricket the size of cat and there are many other mentions huge bats, butterflies, rats, etc.

Hannah wrote: "I just recently was recommended the book Borne, which I had never heard of before. The plot summary mentions a giant bear, so that might be what I'll go with for this prompt. Otherw..."
Borne entirely works. There is a massive bear and something else, which I won't mention as a spoiler but very much works.

Nancy wrote: "I'm going the exceptionally large animal route and planning on Remarkably Bright Creatures."

This book was SO good!

Sheena wrote: "I just finished King's latest Fairy Tale and it has large versions of many animals in the parallel word much of the story is set in. The Snab is a cricket the size of cat and there ..."

That's good news. I have it pulled into this prompt!

There are all kinds of cryptids and/or 'monsters' to consider for this prompt! I'll read something about Sasquatch // Yeti // Bigfoot // The Big Guy
My likely pick is Bigfoot Terror in the Woods: Sightings and Encounters since it is free on KU and I heard a sampling of it read aloud on a Sasquatch Chronicles episode (#473, Terror in the Woods) and it piqued my interest.

Side note: If you're looking for an entertaining, well produced podcast, check out Sasquatch Chronicles () - you won't be disappointed!

A few other ideas:
Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre
Abair Road: The True Story
Next of Kin Next Door: How to Find Sasquatch a Stone's Throw Away
The Mothman Prophecies
Loch Ness Monsters and Raining Frogs: The World's Most Puzzling Mysteries Solved
The Untold Story of Champ: A Social History of America's Loch Ness Monster

Cryptid Listopia

Not an easy prompt, but I'll try one of these:

Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Small Favors by Erin A. Craig
The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

Sheena wrote: "Nike wrote: "Oh my gosh! I read Clan of the Cave Bear in the 80s and had NO idea there were new books being published!! I might have to revisit the series."

I finally finished the series last year. I read that Ms. Auel had a stroke after the fifth book, and honestly, the sixth book is not up to the same level as the other five. I'm still glad I read it, but it might be good to go into it with not so high expectations. I do think her writing suffered after her health problems. I think the book is still worth reading though. FWIW - I don't remember any particularly large animals in it.

I just finished reading Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky and it works for this. One of the characters is a very much oversized/large magical crow! Plus there's John Henry!

I thought I had also mentioned Crenshaw which is an amazing children's book!

I read The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame

As Old as Time


This is what i have picked. It is a retelling of the classic Beauty and the Beast.