Review by C.J. Bunce
For someone whose work has become synonymous with fantasy author Terry Pratchett, illustrator Paul Kidby has made his own name with his distinctive creatures and style, creating imagery for Pratchett’s Discworld series since the 1990s. Their longtime relationship stands in parallel to Jim Henson and Brian Froud, whose illustrations for Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal form a similar body of fantasy work, and, indeed, Froud and Kidby have shown their work in galleries together. You can see similarities in these duos’ imaginations in the pages of the new chronicle, The Discworld Bestiary, available now at bookshops and here at Amazon from Ten Speed Press. In addition to the original paintings on Pratchett’s last 16 Discworld novel covers (and cover art for reprints of even more), Kidby explored Pratchett’s fantasy world and brought to life the creatures imagined in Pratchett’s humorous, satirical world with parodies of many fantasy tropes. Kidby’s art has graced UK galleries for decades, and this new book expands on Kidby’s artistry in his book The Art of Discworld, which featured the people, places, and lore of the Disc.
In addition to the fantasy creature books of Brian Froud, it’s easy to compare Kidby’s new book to those bestiaries of Dungeons & Dragons. Many a fan-created roleplaying game effort by Discworld fans has cropped up over the past 43 years, but an official partnership between D&D and Pratchett’s estate has yet to happen. They seem like an obvious pairing. As RPG bestiaries go, the only thing missing from Kidby’s new book is the stat block for each character.
The Discworld Bestiary immediately takes readers inside Discworld, and the end paper includes a stylized stamp showing your very book should not have been removed from the Unseen University Library. In that in-universe space, the book is a creation of Pratchett’s Ridcully the Brown and Rincewind, current adjunct professor of Perplexing Beasts and curator of its curiobiological museum. The contents are living treasures, exhibited on each page like a cross between the National Museum of Natural History and the National Zoo in Washington, DC–only if the world was not ours and was instead flat and supported on the backs of giant elephants.
Readers will revisit or meet for the first time characters with attitude (like Ravens) and a preponderance of Ducks–yes, there is a duck for every mal- and misadventure. You’ll find fantastical versions of familiar wild creatures, while you explore more of the mythological realm, Flying Pink Elephants, Dragons, along with the most excellent Critters, Cliches, and the behemoth Thesaurus (safe when observed from a distance). Don’t forget to study the Tricksters and the Stealer of Pencils. But the magic and natural worlds never collided and veered as found in the resulting seven named Expletive beings. The challenge will be pronouncing their names just right.
Kidby includes as his own favorite artists Arthur Rackham, Alphonse Mucha, Alan Lee, Norman Rockwell, Auguste Rodin, Mike Mignola, Gustav Klimt, Jamie Hewlett, J.W. Waterhouse, and Lucien Freud. As for his illustrations, Kidby typically works in acrylics or oils on illustration board or watercolor paper, with assists from his canine cohorts.
This is a great book with wit and imagination for kids of all ages. Fans of fantasy art won’t want to miss The Discworld Bestiary, available for the first time this month at bookshops and here at Amazon. It’s available in a colorful hardcover edition from Ten Speed Press.
