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For He Can Creep
A Tor.com original, Siobhan Carroll's For He Can Creep is a dark fantasy story of poetry, devilry, and cats in a battle of good vs. evil for the fate of humanity.
Nineteenth century poet Christopher Smart has been committed to St. Luke's Hospital for Lunatics believing God has commissioned him to write The Divine Poem. But years earlier, he made a bargain with Satan and the devil has come to collect his due--a poem that will bring about the apocalypse.
Saving Smart's soul, and the rest of the world, falls to Jeoffry, the poet's demon-fighting cat and a creature of cunning Satan would be a fool to underestimate...
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
30 pages, ebook
First published July 10, 2019
About the author
Siobhan Carroll
25 books38 followersSiobhan Carroll is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Delaware, where she specializes in British literature from 1750-1850 and in modern science fiction and fantasy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 376 reviews
January 9, 2021
Bumping up to all 5 stars on reread! This novelette was nominated for the Hugo and the Nebula. Full review, first posted on Fantasy Literature:
This story, told entirely from a cat’s point of view, is a must-read for feline fans! Jeoffry the catbelongs to owns a mad poet who is confined to an insane asylum in 18th century Great Britain. Jeoffry regularly battles the imps and demons who torment the inmates at the asylum. But when Satan himself enters the picture, planning to use the poet’s abilities to bring about the end of the world, Jeoffry just might be overmatched.
Siobhan Carroll drew me in with this whimsical and insightful tale. She tells this story from Jeoffry’s point of view, capturing the elusive essence of cats.
For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry. …
For God has blessed him in the variety of his movements.
For, tho he cannot fly, he is an excellent clamberer.
For his motions upon the face of the earth are more than any other quadruped.
For he can tread to all the measures upon the music.
For he can swim for life.
For he can creep.
This is one of the most appealing stories I’ve read on Tor’s website in a long time. It's here: https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
This story, told entirely from a cat’s point of view, is a must-read for feline fans! Jeoffry the cat
Siobhan Carroll drew me in with this whimsical and insightful tale. She tells this story from Jeoffry’s point of view, capturing the elusive essence of cats.
Jeoffry knows he is a good cat, and a bold gentleman, and a pretty fellow. He tells the poet as much, pushing his head repeatedly at the man’s hands, which smell unpleasantly of blood. The demons have been at him again.…There are so many marvelous elements to this tale, including some Turkish Delight that would have been better not eaten and a scene-stealing black kitten named the Nighthunter Moppet. Bonus if you’re familiar with the long religious poem “Jubilate Agno” written by the poet Christopher Smart around 1760, or at least with the “Jeoffry” section of the poem. Smart wrote this poem when he was committed to an asylum, with only his cat Jeoffry for company. A brief excerpt:
Jeoffry feels … not guilty exactly, but annoyed. The poet is his human.
For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry. …
For God has blessed him in the variety of his movements.
For, tho he cannot fly, he is an excellent clamberer.
For his motions upon the face of the earth are more than any other quadruped.
For he can tread to all the measures upon the music.
For he can swim for life.
For he can creep.
This is one of the most appealing stories I’ve read on Tor’s website in a long time. It's here: https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
July 27, 2019
A quick short story about a traditional face-off with the devil, but with a cat twist. An interesting narrative. Recommended for cat-lovers.
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
July 4, 2022
“It is true that the devil is bigger than the biggest rat Jeoffry has ever fought, and it is also true that he is Satan, the Adversary, Prince of Hell, Lord of Evil. Nevertheless, the devil made a grave mistake when he annoyed Jeoffry. He will pay for his insolence.”For those who, like me, had no idea that this novelette was based on a real historical personage, here’s what I learned. In the 18th century, there was a poet Christopher Smart who racked up many debts and the ire of numerous creditors (the man loved a lavish lifestyle, I guess). At some point, because of religious mania, he ended up in a lunatic asylum (where his cat Jeoffry kept him company), where he started one of his most famous works, Jubilate Agno, a 1200-line poem which features a 74-line section For I Will Consider My Cat Jeoffry — a poem about his cat Jeoffry, an ode to his many virtues and smarts, his Devil-fighting abilities and his dedication to God. Yes, seriously.
———————————————
This is the story of Jeoffry — the cat who fought the Devil.
“Jeoffry knows he is a good cat, and a bold gentleman, and a pretty fellow.”You see, the Devil is a cunning fellow who wants something from Jeoffry’s poet - a poem and a soul, and Jeoffry strikes an unwise bargain with the Devil, using his single-minded feline logic.
“Jeoffry does not like literature of any kind, unless it is about Jeoffry. Even then, petting is better. And eating. Are there treats now?”But you see, when tricked into an unwise and poorly considered bargain with the Devil, even Jeoffry is forced to reconsider his life choices and realize that there are battles that must be fought. Especially when his human’s soul is at stake.
“In that action (and here Jeoffry must think very hard, and lay his ears back) Jeoffry has been less than his normal, wonderful self. He may in fact have been (though this is almost impossible to think) a bad cat.”If there’s a way to convey a cat’s point of view - an annoyed, gruff, self-centered and all-important feline warrior who will take on mice and rats and demons and Satan — whoever crosses him, really — then this story is it. Jeoffry does not give a whisker about the apocalypse. But he is angry if you cross him. And cheat him out of treats. And harm HIS human.
“But Jeoffry shuts his ear to this voice. He has learned that there is more than one kind of devil, and that the one inside your head, that speaks with the voice of your own heart, is far more dangerous than the velvet coat–wearing, poetry-loving variety.”
A standoff between a good cat and a bad Satan is clearly not a fair fight. Because life itself, as any cat
“I thought you and I should have a chat,” Satan says. “I understand you’ve been giving my demons some trouble.”
Oh, and this: I AM! NIGHTHUNTER! MOPPET!
4 stars.
—————————————————
Read the short story here: https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
Read the excerpt from Jubilate Agno (starring Jeoffry) here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem...
———————
My Hugo and Nebula Awards Reading Project 2020: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
——————
Recommended by: Tadiana
December 20, 2020
My eye was tugged repeatedly by the arresting cover of this short tale -- novella or novelette, not sure of the word count -- so I finally tracked it to Amazon and bought it. The story is all the cover promised.
Told from the point of view of the cat. Which works.
It's sufficiently short and accessible, folks can be left to discover the rest for themselves. One of the many entries from tor.com which is making full and good use of the new possibilities for ala carte short fiction that e-publishing has opened up.
Ta, L.
Told from the point of view of the cat. Which works.
It's sufficiently short and accessible, folks can be left to discover the rest for themselves. One of the many entries from tor.com which is making full and good use of the new possibilities for ala carte short fiction that e-publishing has opened up.
Ta, L.
December 18, 2021
WELCOME TO DECEMBER PROJECT!
this explanation/intro will be posted before each day’s short story. scroll down to get to the story-review.
this is the FOURTH year of me doing a short story advent calendar as my december project. for those of you new to me or this endeavor, here’s the skinny: every day in december, i will be reading a short story that is 1) available free somewhere on internet, and 2) listed on goodreads as its own discrete entity. there will be links provided for those of you who like to read (or listen to) short stories for free, and also for those of you who have wildly overestimated how many books you can read in a year and are freaking out about not meeting your 2019 reading-challenge goals. i have been gathering links all year when tasty little tales have popped into my feed, but i will also accept additional suggestions, as long as they meet my aforementioned 1), 2) standards.
if you scroll to the end of the reviews linked here, you will find links to all the previous years’ stories, which means NINETY-THREE FREEBIES FOR YOU!
2016: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
2017: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
2018: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
reviews of these will vary in length/quality depending on my available time/brain power.
so, let’s begin
DECEMBER 1: FOR HE CAN CREEP - SIOBHAN CARROLL
On the second floor, above the garden, the poet is trying to write. He has no paper, and no pens—such things are forbidden, after his last episode—and so he scratches out some words in blood on the brick wall. Silly man. Jeoffry meows at him. It is time to pay attention to Jeoffry!
my own reading challenge goal has been a thorn in my side all year because for the first year since i can remember, i have abandoned my 'read a free tor short a week' practice. back in november, they stopped posting new ones for a while, and by the time they resumed—or by the time i realized they'd resumed, i was already out of the habit. bad news for my reading-goal, but good news for my advent calendar project, because now i have a TON of free tor shorts to choose between. this is the one i was most excited to read, because it is a CAT story, featuring the cat from christopher smart's poem Jubilate Agno, Fragment B, [For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry]
jeoffry is one rad cat. he has all the qualities one expects to find in a cat, and is clearly written by someone who has known and loved her share of cats. but he's also a secret hero-cat, able to overcome his feline self-centered tunnel-vision and save his man's soul from the devil's clutches.
here's some things you need to know about jeoffry:
Jeoffry does not like being dangled.
and also:
Jeoffry does not like literature of any kind, unless it is about Jeoffry. Even then, petting is better. And eating. Are there treats now?
but the most important thing to know about jeoffry is that he's not gonna tolerate any of satan's bullshit, not THIS cat!
the devil made a grave mistake when he annoyed Jeoffry. He will pay for his insolence.
sounds like a proper cat, yeah?
i'm glad to see the free tor short machine is still churning the good 'uns, and i'm looking forward to checking out what i've been missing this long sad year apart from them.
oh, and also: NIGHTHUNTER MOPPET!!!
read it for yourself here:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
*******************************************
THE STORIES:
DECEMBER 2: TAM-O'-SHANTER - DONNA TARTT
DECEMBER 3: TRASH BIRD - REZA FARAZMAND
DECEMBER 4: COLOR AND LIGHT - SALLY ROONEY
DECEMBER 5: SEONAG AND THE SEAWOLVES - M. EVAN MACGRIOGAIR
DECEMBER 6: KAIJU MAXIMUS "SO VARIOUS, SO BEAUTIFUL, SO NEW" - KAI ASHANTE WILSON
DECEMBER 7: BEWARE OF OWNER - CHUCK WENDIG
DECEMBER 8: THE TALE OF THE THREE BEAUTIFUL RAPTOR SISTERS, AND THE PRINCE WHO WAS MADE OF MEAT - BROOKE BOLANDER
DECEMBER 9: OUT OF SKIN - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 10: PROBABLY STILL THE CHOSEN ONE - KELLY BARNHILL
DECEMBER 11: THE HUNDREDTH HOUSE HAD NO WALLS - LAURIE PENNY
DECEMBER 12: GIRLS, AT PLAY - CELESTE NG
DECEMBER 13: MR. THURSDAY - EMILY ST. JOHN MANDEL
DECEMBER 14: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE - MADELINE ASHBY
DECEMBER 15: A FOREST, OR A TREE - TEGAN MOORE
DECEMBER 16: OUTFOXED: A FABLE - DYLAN MECONIS
DECEMBER 17: THEN LATER, HIS GHOST - SARAH HALL
DECEMBER 18: OH, WHISTLE, AND I'LL COME TO YOU, MY LAD - M.R. JAMES
DECEMBER 19: PREMIUM HARMONY - STEPHEN KING
DECEMBER 20: KNOWLEDGEABLE CREATURES - CHRISTOPHER ROWE
DECEMBER 21: THE HOLE THE FOX DID MAKE - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 22: MRS. FOX - SARAH HALL
DECEMBER 23: SEASONAL WORK - LAURA LIPPMAN
DECEMBER 24: THE PLAGUE - KEN LIU
DECEMBER 25: ANY WAY THE WIND BLOWS - SEANAN MCGUIRE
DECEMBER 26: BLOOD IS ANOTHER WORLD FOR HUNGER - RIVERS SOLOMON
DECEMBER 27: CIRCUS GIRL, THE HUNTER, AND MIRROR BOY - J.Y. YANG
DECEMBER 28: ALL ALONG THE WALL - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 29: SWEETNESS - TONI MORRISON
DECEMBER 30: DERIVING LIFE - ELIZABETH BEAR
DECEMBER 31: EVERY LITTLE THING - CELESTE NG
come to my blog!
this explanation/intro will be posted before each day’s short story. scroll down to get to the story-review.
this is the FOURTH year of me doing a short story advent calendar as my december project. for those of you new to me or this endeavor, here’s the skinny: every day in december, i will be reading a short story that is 1) available free somewhere on internet, and 2) listed on goodreads as its own discrete entity. there will be links provided for those of you who like to read (or listen to) short stories for free, and also for those of you who have wildly overestimated how many books you can read in a year and are freaking out about not meeting your 2019 reading-challenge goals. i have been gathering links all year when tasty little tales have popped into my feed, but i will also accept additional suggestions, as long as they meet my aforementioned 1), 2) standards.
if you scroll to the end of the reviews linked here, you will find links to all the previous years’ stories, which means NINETY-THREE FREEBIES FOR YOU!
2016: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
2017: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
2018: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
reviews of these will vary in length/quality depending on my available time/brain power.
so, let’s begin
DECEMBER 1: FOR HE CAN CREEP - SIOBHAN CARROLL
On the second floor, above the garden, the poet is trying to write. He has no paper, and no pens—such things are forbidden, after his last episode—and so he scratches out some words in blood on the brick wall. Silly man. Jeoffry meows at him. It is time to pay attention to Jeoffry!
my own reading challenge goal has been a thorn in my side all year because for the first year since i can remember, i have abandoned my 'read a free tor short a week' practice. back in november, they stopped posting new ones for a while, and by the time they resumed—or by the time i realized they'd resumed, i was already out of the habit. bad news for my reading-goal, but good news for my advent calendar project, because now i have a TON of free tor shorts to choose between. this is the one i was most excited to read, because it is a CAT story, featuring the cat from christopher smart's poem Jubilate Agno, Fragment B, [For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry]
jeoffry is one rad cat. he has all the qualities one expects to find in a cat, and is clearly written by someone who has known and loved her share of cats. but he's also a secret hero-cat, able to overcome his feline self-centered tunnel-vision and save his man's soul from the devil's clutches.
here's some things you need to know about jeoffry:
Jeoffry does not like being dangled.
and also:
Jeoffry does not like literature of any kind, unless it is about Jeoffry. Even then, petting is better. And eating. Are there treats now?
but the most important thing to know about jeoffry is that he's not gonna tolerate any of satan's bullshit, not THIS cat!
the devil made a grave mistake when he annoyed Jeoffry. He will pay for his insolence.
sounds like a proper cat, yeah?
i'm glad to see the free tor short machine is still churning the good 'uns, and i'm looking forward to checking out what i've been missing this long sad year apart from them.
oh, and also: NIGHTHUNTER MOPPET!!!
read it for yourself here:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
*******************************************
THE STORIES:
DECEMBER 2: TAM-O'-SHANTER - DONNA TARTT
DECEMBER 3: TRASH BIRD - REZA FARAZMAND
DECEMBER 4: COLOR AND LIGHT - SALLY ROONEY
DECEMBER 5: SEONAG AND THE SEAWOLVES - M. EVAN MACGRIOGAIR
DECEMBER 6: KAIJU MAXIMUS "SO VARIOUS, SO BEAUTIFUL, SO NEW" - KAI ASHANTE WILSON
DECEMBER 7: BEWARE OF OWNER - CHUCK WENDIG
DECEMBER 8: THE TALE OF THE THREE BEAUTIFUL RAPTOR SISTERS, AND THE PRINCE WHO WAS MADE OF MEAT - BROOKE BOLANDER
DECEMBER 9: OUT OF SKIN - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 10: PROBABLY STILL THE CHOSEN ONE - KELLY BARNHILL
DECEMBER 11: THE HUNDREDTH HOUSE HAD NO WALLS - LAURIE PENNY
DECEMBER 12: GIRLS, AT PLAY - CELESTE NG
DECEMBER 13: MR. THURSDAY - EMILY ST. JOHN MANDEL
DECEMBER 14: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE - MADELINE ASHBY
DECEMBER 15: A FOREST, OR A TREE - TEGAN MOORE
DECEMBER 16: OUTFOXED: A FABLE - DYLAN MECONIS
DECEMBER 17: THEN LATER, HIS GHOST - SARAH HALL
DECEMBER 18: OH, WHISTLE, AND I'LL COME TO YOU, MY LAD - M.R. JAMES
DECEMBER 19: PREMIUM HARMONY - STEPHEN KING
DECEMBER 20: KNOWLEDGEABLE CREATURES - CHRISTOPHER ROWE
DECEMBER 21: THE HOLE THE FOX DID MAKE - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 22: MRS. FOX - SARAH HALL
DECEMBER 23: SEASONAL WORK - LAURA LIPPMAN
DECEMBER 24: THE PLAGUE - KEN LIU
DECEMBER 25: ANY WAY THE WIND BLOWS - SEANAN MCGUIRE
DECEMBER 26: BLOOD IS ANOTHER WORLD FOR HUNGER - RIVERS SOLOMON
DECEMBER 27: CIRCUS GIRL, THE HUNTER, AND MIRROR BOY - J.Y. YANG
DECEMBER 28: ALL ALONG THE WALL - EMILY CARROLL
DECEMBER 29: SWEETNESS - TONI MORRISON
DECEMBER 30: DERIVING LIFE - ELIZABETH BEAR
DECEMBER 31: EVERY LITTLE THING - CELESTE NG
come to my blog!
September 2, 2020
The problem with reading a story about a brave cat fighting the devil is that I am currently on lockdown without my wonderful cat, Tony (also known under the pen names of 'grumpy old man', 'baby', and 'little bastard') and the cat protagonist of this made me miss him so much. The benefits, of course, are that this was a wonderful little story and brought me a lot of joy.
You can read this on Tor.Com here.
Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Spotify | Youtube | About |
You can read this on Tor.Com here.
Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Spotify | Youtube | About |
December 31, 2022
this is the second tale I've read this year featuring a religious cat. of all things. this particular cat is Jeoffrey, who lives in a madhouse and fights demons and Lucifer himself, when he attempts to take possession of his pet human. Siobhan Carroll is a droll writer with a light touch, and she certainly knows how cats think. in particular I enjoyed the scene where Jeoffrey shows his disdain for Satan by carefully studying a wall, which is much more interesting than some boring fallen angel. that's very cat. I also appreciated Carroll's understanding of how well cats can creep (between dimensions) and how hard it must be for a prideful cat to reach out to other cats in order to get their support in fighting the Adversary. totally been there, it's a struggle. but one must swallow one's pride and assemble a good fighting team if you truly want to beat the Devil.
read all about Jeoffrey for free:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
read all about Jeoffrey for free:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
August 1, 2020
Jeoffry does not like literature of any kind, unless it is about Jeoffry. Even then, petting is better. And eating. Are there treats now?
Another story told from the perspective of a cat.
The devil comes to the madhouse to collect a debt from a poet. A poem to bring upon the apocalypse? Yeah, that would be neat.
But, you see, this is not just any poet. It is Jeoffry's poet. And you shouldn't underestimate Jeoffry. Not even if you are Satan.
Yes, this is one of those stories about the face-off between the devil and a cat.
What makes this stand out is the fact that it incorporates parts of the biography of the English poet Christopher Smart and of his poem For I Will Consider My Cat Jeoffry. And it does so in the text as well as the cover. Nice. I like it.
It is an interesting idea that is well executed. But even without this context, what remains is still a story that captures the nature of cats very well, and has quite a few humorous bits to offer. Where it falls a bit short is with the actual plot. That wasn't all that interesting, I'm afraid.
3.5 stars. While I feel more like 3, the head says 4. And I gotta let it win once in a while, before it loses all hope.
You can read this Nebula 2019 and Hugo 2020 finalist for Best Novelette for free: https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
Christopher Smart's poem can be read here: https://poets.org/poem/jubilate-agno-...
_________________
2019 Nebula Award Finalists
Best Novel
• Marque of Caine by Charles E. Gannon
• The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
• A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
• Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
• A Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker
Best Novella
• Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom by Ted Chiang ( Exhalation)
• The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
• This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
• Her Silhouette, Drawn in Water by Vylar Kaftan
• The Deep by Rivers Solomon, with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson & Jonathan Snipes
• Catfish Lullaby by A.C. Wise
Best Novelette
• A Strange Uncertain Light by G.V. Anderson ( The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2019)
• For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll
• His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light by Mimi Mondal
• The Blur in the Corner of Your Eye by Sarah Pinsker ( Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019)
• Carpe Glitter by Cat Rambo
• The Archronology of Love by Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2019)
Best Short Story
• Give the Family My Love by A.T. Greenblatt (Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 149, February 2019)
• The Dead, In Their Uncontrollable Power by Karen Osborne (Uncanny Magazine Issue 27: March/April 2019)
• And Now His Lordship Is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas (Strange Horizons 9 September 2019)
• Ten Excerpts from an Annotated Bibliography on the Cannibal Women of Ratnabar Island by Nibedita Sen (Nightmare Magazine, Issue 80)
• A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde (Uncanny Magazine, Issue 26, January-February 2019)
• How the Trick Is Done by A.C. Wise (Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019)
Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction
• Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
• Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer
• Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee
• Peasprout Chen: Battle of Champions by Henry Lien
• Cog by Greg van Eekhout
• Riverland by Fran Wilde
____________________________
2020 Hugo Award Finalists
Best Novel
• The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders
• Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
• The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley
• A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
• Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
• The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
Best Novella
• Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom by Ted Chiang ( Exhalation)
• The Deep by Rivers Solomon, with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson & Jonathan Snipes
• The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
• In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire
• This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
• To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
Best Novelette
• The Archronology of Love by Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2019)
• Away With the Wolves by Sarah Gailey ( Uncanny Magazine Issue 30: Disabled People Destroy Fanatsy! Special Issue)
• The Blur in the Corner of Your Eye by Sarah Pinsker ( Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019)
• Emergency Skin by N.K. Jemisin
• For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll
• Omphalos by Ted Chiang
Best Short Story
• And Now His Lordship Is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas (Strange Horizons 9 September 2019)
• As the Last I May Know by S.L. Huang
• Blood Is Another Word for Hunger by Rivers Solomon
• A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde (Uncanny Magazine, Issue 26, January-February 2019)
• Do Not Look Back, My Lion by Alix E. Harrow (Beneath Ceaseless Skies Issue #270)
• Ten Excerpts from an Annotated Bibliography on the Cannibal Women of Ratnabar Island by Nibedita Sen (Nightmare Magazine, Issue 80)
Best Series
• The Expanse by James S. A. Corey
• InCryptid by Seanan McGuire
• Luna by Ian McDonald
• Planetfall series by Emma Newman
• Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden
• The Wormwood Trilogy by Tade Thompson
Best Related Work
• Becoming Superman: My Journey from Poverty to Hollywood by J. Michael Straczynski
• Joanna Russ by Gwyneth Jones
• The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick by Mallory O’Meara
• The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein by Farah Mendlesohn
• 2019 John W. Campbell Award Acceptance Speech by Jeannette Ng
• Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin, produced and directed by Arwen Curry
Best Graphic Story or Comic
• Die, Volume 1: Fantasy Heartbreaker by Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans, letters by Clayton Cowles
• LaGuardia, written by Nnedi Okorafor, art by Tana Ford, colours by James Devlin
• Monstress, Volume 4: The Chosen, written by Marjorie Liu, art by Sana Takeda
• Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker, letters by Joamette Gil
• Paper Girls, Volume 6, written by Brian K. Vaughan, drawn by Cliff Chiang, colours by Matt Wilson, letters by Jared K. Fletcher
• The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 9: "Okay" by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie, colours by Matt Wilson, letters by Clayton Cowles
October 31, 2019
The Devil wants to end the world. But what is new there? You ask. Well, that to do so, he needs the help of a poet. Long ago, the poet sold his soul to the Devil, not with a fancy contract to get fame and riches, but with a myriad of little bad acts, unkindness and dishonesty. Now the Devil has come to collect.
The poet, crazy as many poets turned after a while, lives in the crazy house, where other demons come to torment the residents. These demons leave him alone for the most part, why? You Ask. Well, because the poet has a cat: Jeoffry.
And, as it turns out, all that stands between the Devil, the poet and the end of the world is Jeoffry and his belief of being the center of the universe.
I loved this story. It was much more than I expected. The writing is beautiful, and different and innovative (so to say) and the story is simple but also rich in imagery and surprises.
Definitely worth the read. More, if you-unlike me-like cats.
The poet, crazy as many poets turned after a while, lives in the crazy house, where other demons come to torment the residents. These demons leave him alone for the most part, why? You Ask. Well, because the poet has a cat: Jeoffry.
And, as it turns out, all that stands between the Devil, the poet and the end of the world is Jeoffry and his belief of being the center of the universe.
I loved this story. It was much more than I expected. The writing is beautiful, and different and innovative (so to say) and the story is simple but also rich in imagery and surprises.
Definitely worth the read. More, if you-unlike me-like cats.
September 9, 2019
Cats are so much more than people give them credit for. I type this as my calico she beast paces around me because my review writing is cutting into her resting quietly time. I call her she beast lovingly because she truly is a terror on four paws and I adore her for it. Everything about this story reminded me of her and I couldn’t help but smile and think back on the 14 plus years of various moments she has permitted me to share with her. One of my favorite moments has to do with her reaction to a stray dog that was on our front porch one evening. I had opened the door to investigate not realizing she was there with me ready to strike. She saw it has her guard cat duty to chase the dog off and owned it like a boss as she strutted back in after completing the task.
The guard cat concept is the theme of this perfectly written short story and the she beast gives it four stretched out paws for pulling it off.
A huge thank you to the book friend that shared the link to this little gem.
Her review can be found here: carol.'s review
The guard cat concept is the theme of this perfectly written short story and the she beast gives it four stretched out paws for pulling it off.
A huge thank you to the book friend that shared the link to this little gem.
Her review can be found here: carol.'s review
September 25, 2019
Don't mess with the cats!
Especially not The Nighthunter Moppet!
You will lose!
Chi, thanks for sharing this one!
September 25, 2024
Fantastic!
Jeoffry is a cat! He is definitely proud of himself. He is graceful, ferocious and beautiful.
He lives in a mental asylum and he is in a fight with the devil. Will he win the battle?
One good way to find out is give the book a try.
Five happy stars. 💫💫💫💫💫
Jeoffry is a cat! He is definitely proud of himself. He is graceful, ferocious and beautiful.
He lives in a mental asylum and he is in a fight with the devil. Will he win the battle?
One good way to find out is give the book a try.
Five happy stars. 💫💫💫💫💫
September 27, 2024
I don't normally go out of my way for cat stories... but the quirky cover attracted me to the story on Tor.com (although I see I have been away from the website long enough for it to have changed its name!), then drawn in to find it is a short story based on an English poet from the 18th century who was put into a mental asylum, along with his cat Jeoffry, who becomes the star of this story.
Christopher Smart, the poet in question (1722-1771) wrote the religious poem Jubilate Agno, a small part of which is about his cat, containing the lines:
For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry.
For he is the servant of the Living God duly and daily serving him.
...
For he keeps the Lord’s watch in the night against the Adversary.
For he counteracts the powers of Darkness by his electrical skin and glaring eyes.
For he counteracts the Devil, who is death, by brisking about the life.
...
For he can creep.
And which forms the basis of this short story, in which Jeoffry, who guards he poet from the Devil is tricked into standing aside, while the poet makes a deal to write a poem for the Devil, and thereby lose his soul to him. Jeoffry must then engage the assistance of his cat friends to outwit the Devil and save his poet.
Read it here: For He Can Creep
4 stars
Christopher Smart, the poet in question (1722-1771) wrote the religious poem Jubilate Agno, a small part of which is about his cat, containing the lines:
For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry.
For he is the servant of the Living God duly and daily serving him.
...
For he keeps the Lord’s watch in the night against the Adversary.
For he counteracts the powers of Darkness by his electrical skin and glaring eyes.
For he counteracts the Devil, who is death, by brisking about the life.
...
For he can creep.
And which forms the basis of this short story, in which Jeoffry, who guards he poet from the Devil is tricked into standing aside, while the poet makes a deal to write a poem for the Devil, and thereby lose his soul to him. Jeoffry must then engage the assistance of his cat friends to outwit the Devil and save his poet.
Read it here: For He Can Creep
4 stars
August 3, 2019
It is 1763 and Mr. Smith, a poet, is in an asylum for lunatics. With him is his ginger cat Jeoffrey who protects the poet and other asylum patients by battling the demons that come out at night.
However, one night the Devil himself comes to have a parley with Jeoffrey and, unfortunately, a cat sometimes isn't any wiser than a human. Where the two differ is in how they make up for their mistakes and how fantastically one can battle with claws! But are sharp claws and teeth enough to win against Satan and save a soul?
Another one of those stories I would have never known about was it not for a few Goodreads friends reading and reviewing it.
It is indeed mostly for cat lovers - in fact, it is told from the point of view of the cat Jeoffrey - but I think it's also a great tale of courage and admitting your mistakes and working to make up for them.
A cute and funny tale with supernatural twists, the love of and for words, as well as purring (or growling) cats. Fantastic!
However, one night the Devil himself comes to have a parley with Jeoffrey and, unfortunately, a cat sometimes isn't any wiser than a human. Where the two differ is in how they make up for their mistakes and how fantastically one can battle with claws! But are sharp claws and teeth enough to win against Satan and save a soul?
Another one of those stories I would have never known about was it not for a few Goodreads friends reading and reviewing it.
It is indeed mostly for cat lovers - in fact, it is told from the point of view of the cat Jeoffrey - but I think it's also a great tale of courage and admitting your mistakes and working to make up for them.
A cute and funny tale with supernatural twists, the love of and for words, as well as purring (or growling) cats. Fantastic!
February 15, 2024
This cell is his, and this one. The whole asylum is his, and let no demon forget it! For he is the Cat Jeoffry, and no demon can stand against him.
What a delightful little story. Anyone who knows me already knows I'm an absolute cat lady through and through, so I'll never say no to a little kitty hero like Jeoffry, and he is written exactly the way I like best for feline companions: haughty, smug, and mostly quite confident, but also very fond of his human and protective at any cost. ♥
For He Can Creep is a surprisingly funny piece, too, especially once the Nighthunter Moppet is introduced! I can so easily picture this wild little murderous kitten with demon blood in her veins and I loved her. 😂
He has learned that there is more than one kind of devil, and that the one inside your head, that speaks with the voice of your own heart, is far more dangerous than the velvet coat–wearing, poetry-loving variety.
If you'd like to read this story, you can check it out for free here at Reactor Mag's website (or you can grab it from an ebook store for less than a cup of coffee)!
Buddy read with Misty 🐈
✨ Content warnings for:
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January 19, 2021
Do you have to be a cat lover to appreciate this? I don’t get the accolades.🤷♀️
October 15, 2022
Historia muy corta que cuenta la lucha en un manicomio del S. XVIII entre el narrador, Jeoffry, un gato naranja atigrado, y Satanás por el control del poeta Cristopher Smith, personaje histórico real que vivió enclaustrado en un manicomio con su gato Jeoffry como compañía.
Es un homenaje a la obra de este poeta "Jubilate Agno", poema religioso de 1200 versos, en concreto a la sección "For I will consider my cat Jeoffry", una bella oda a las virtudes de su minino y su dedicación a Dios.
Me atrajo de inicio la portada de esta atractiva obra, que me ha parecido muy bien escrita, encantadora y divertida. Especialmente recomendada para los amantes de los gatos.
"Porque él puede arrastrarse".
Es un homenaje a la obra de este poeta "Jubilate Agno", poema religioso de 1200 versos, en concreto a la sección "For I will consider my cat Jeoffry", una bella oda a las virtudes de su minino y su dedicación a Dios.
Me atrajo de inicio la portada de esta atractiva obra, que me ha parecido muy bien escrita, encantadora y divertida. Especialmente recomendada para los amantes de los gatos.
"Porque él puede arrastrarse".
August 9, 2021
I'll also put the name of the story here, in case Goodreads decides to merge it into some other work...
For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll - 4/5★
A Faustian short story with a cat as the narrator - I must say I enjoyed this a lot.
It's inspired from Christopher Smart's ‘For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry’ (1763), an extract of which can be read here.
The short story is found in Some of the Best from Tor.com, 2019 edition and can also be read on Tor.com.
For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll - 4/5★
A Faustian short story with a cat as the narrator - I must say I enjoyed this a lot.
It's inspired from Christopher Smart's ‘For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry’ (1763), an extract of which can be read here.
The short story is found in Some of the Best from Tor.com, 2019 edition and can also be read on Tor.com.
May 11, 2020
Re-read 11 May 2020
Yup. Still amazing.
---
Probably it's me (ah, who am I kidding? It is me!), but oftentimes, short stories are far too clever for me to grasp what is happening, and why.
This story though? This story was EPIC! So amazing. Yay Jeoffry, and all the resident cats!
Yup. Still amazing.
---
Probably it's me (ah, who am I kidding? It is me!), but oftentimes, short stories are far too clever for me to grasp what is happening, and why.
This story though? This story was EPIC! So amazing. Yay Jeoffry, and all the resident cats!
July 17, 2020
Cat vs Devil. I liked cat's perspective - the attitude captured very well imo - and the funny bits, but the story felt too surreal/metaphorical to draw me in.
February 2, 2020
Oh my, what a hilarious and charming story. I have a cat myself so I am definitely biased when reading a story from a cat's POV like this one. Oh how I shook with mirth from the beginning till the end. Very well written, evenly paced, topped with a strong finale.
April 27, 2020
CAT!!!! Of course cats can defeat Satan
September 25, 2019
I AM THE NIGHTHUNTER MOPPET!
What a marvelously original and amusing story! Short, but very sweet... and I've smiled through most of it, which is always a good sign.
What a marvelously original and amusing story! Short, but very sweet... and I've smiled through most of it, which is always a good sign.
January 1, 2021
3.5 stars. This entertaining short story is based on an actual poem by an actual poet of the same name as in the story. And he indeed had his beloved cat named Jeoffry with him in the madhouse. It reminded me a little too strongly of The Price - though this short story has a decidedly different tone, and point of view.
July 6, 2020
A Faustian kind of tale, told from the POV of a cat. Unusual, and very amusing.
July 29, 2019
Woa, nice art by Red Nose Studio.
A cat. A poet in an Asylum. And The Devil.
If the poet were sane, he might have thought better of his words. But madmen do not guard their tongues, and cats have no thoughts of the future. It’s true, something does occur to Jeoffry as the poet speaks—some vague sense of disquiet—but then the man scratches behind his ears, and Jeoffry purrs in luxury.
Sin duda Nighthunter Moppet se lleva los aplausos. Pero Jeoffry tiene lo suyo por lealtad , aunque parte sea orgullo felino.
Se puede leer: aqui
*Based upon the poem by Christopher Smart "Jubilate Agno" (1760s) and his cat Jeoffry.
{For he keeps the Lord's watch in the night against the adversary.
For he counteracts the powers of darkness by his electrical skin and glaring eyes.
For he counteracts the Devil, who is death, by brisking about the life.
For in his morning orisons he loves the sun and the sun loves him.}
A cat. A poet in an Asylum. And The Devil.
If the poet were sane, he might have thought better of his words. But madmen do not guard their tongues, and cats have no thoughts of the future. It’s true, something does occur to Jeoffry as the poet speaks—some vague sense of disquiet—but then the man scratches behind his ears, and Jeoffry purrs in luxury.
Sin duda Nighthunter Moppet se lleva los aplausos. Pero Jeoffry tiene lo suyo por lealtad , aunque parte sea orgullo felino.
Se puede leer: aqui
*Based upon the poem by Christopher Smart "Jubilate Agno" (1760s) and his cat Jeoffry.
{For he keeps the Lord's watch in the night against the adversary.
For he counteracts the powers of darkness by his electrical skin and glaring eyes.
For he counteracts the Devil, who is death, by brisking about the life.
For in his morning orisons he loves the sun and the sun loves him.}
April 9, 2020
A wonderful tribute to Christopher Smart's poem "Jubilate Agno" (c. 1763):
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem...
Bravo!
"For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry. . . .
For he can creep."
Update: Hugo nominee for Best Novelette, 2019. My pick. Yay!
Story link:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem...
Bravo!
"For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry. . . .
For he can creep."
Update: Hugo nominee for Best Novelette, 2019. My pick. Yay!
Story link:
https://www.tor.com/2019/07/10/for-he...
April 29, 2020
This is probably not my kind of story but I still found the idea of a bunch of cats fighting Satan to save a human’s soul very entertaining and unique.
March 6, 2020
This... was amazing? It's about cats fighting the Devil to protect a poet, full of delightful cat logic and very interesting cats (I'm sorry but I want an entire book about Nighthunter Moppet now). It doesn't take itself seriously at all but it talks about the nature of temptation in a way that doesn't feel too one-dimensional and yet makes sense even for a cat. I think I would have liked this even more had I been already familiar with Christopher Smart, but that was interesting to learn anyway.
February 20, 2020
I actually read this some time ago, but wanted to leave a review in light of its Nebula nomination. Beside the fact that it is ADORABLE and BRILLIANT, I also know the author in real life. I want to grow up and be her and write academically brilliant but also fun and heartwarming stories like this.
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