Tailchaser's Song

By: Tad Williams

Narrated by: Alex Kydd

Length: 13 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

More than 35 years ago, a young author surprised and enchanted audiences with his first novel - the story of Fritti Tailchaser, a courageous tom cat in a world of whiskery heroes and villains, of feline gods and strange, furless creatures called M'an.

The book was Tailchaser's Song, the author was Tad Williams. The legend was born.

©1985 Tad Williams; Introduction copyright 2000 by Tad Williams (P)2021 Tantor

Good first novel

Tailchaser's song is a rather good, if not great, book. It has some very interesting and very creative ideas, however it does lack a little in some of the characters and character development. Basically, it has the feel of an author's (good) first book.

Cat lovers delight!

I had my reservations but this book exceeded my expectations. Being told by a wild cat's view, with their own culture is a great tale.

beloved story from many years ago brought to life!

beloved story I read many years ago brought to life!
I would only change the volume of the individual "speakers" as there were so many instances where Pouncequick would say "oh Tailchaser" at what felt like a shout as I listened to the overall story at a reasonable volume.

A favorite story...

I have loved this story since I discovered it in elementary school, but I agree that this narrator wasn't the best choice for it. I'm sure he is good at what he does but is not a good voice/reader here. I was very happy to begin Tailchasers story but I will not be continuing it. I will simply reread it myself rather than allow it to be changed in my mind by an incorrect narrator.

good narration of a classic

i liked the various voices done here. I find it a bit weird as an adult to come back and hear the descriptions of the cats read out loud 😅 the whole book just strikes an odd chord to me now.

I also can't stand how he uses poor Pouncequick as a punching bag throughout the entire novel! Oh the poor little guy!

Overall though Tailchaser takes a lot of inspiration from various authors like Tolkien and Eliot and the cats are just .. so catlike sometimes. I'm surprised how serious and dark the book gets towards the end, especially in the cat version of h&!l. It's a classic and the audio is a good way to revisit the story

Finally an audiobook

I found this book many years ago. It is my go-to book when I need a warm fuzzy blanket wrapped around me. I am on my second copy of the book, the first is falling apart. When I saw that there was finally a recording, I was overjoyed.
The story is wonderful, a cat’s biggest adventure with many vibrant characters.
Recording is good but not perfect. I sped up to 1.2x and found it agreeable. Occasionally volume dips, not sure if that’s editing or narration.
Overall enjoyable and will keep it in my library for those rainy days and Mondays.

Not well written

I wanted to like this book as I love cats. However, there were so many inaccuracies that I just couldn’t do it. The first error was that tortoise shell cats are male…they are never male. I liked the concept of the book but it wasn’t well written from a cats point of view.

Lord of the Cats

I’ve wanted to read this book since I was a kid and mesmerized by its eye-catching cover. When I saw that they'd finally made an audiobook, I knew it was time.

THE GOOD

Lord of the Cats: This book has more world building and mythology than a book about talking cats has any right to. Of course, this is Tad Williams, who forced the publishing industry to invent a new binding system because his books were so long and epic, so that should come as no surprise. So expect an Epic Fantasy about cats and you won’t leave disappointed.

Language: I particularly like the cat language that is sprinkled in here and there, much like Watership Down, that makes this world feel more lived in and believable.

Cats to a T: Clearly a lover of cats, the author captures the feline self-centeredness as well as their generous natures. I felt like this was a love letter to cat owners everywhere.

THE NOT-SO-GOOD

Pacing: Meandering pacing is something the author is known for, and this being his first book is perhaps even more pronounced. I often felt my attention wander during the long sections where nothing much happens.

Narrator: I listened to the audiobook version. While certainly not BAD by any means, the narrator was rather “no frills”. I didn’t feel like he was able to give the different characters much individuality. In fact, the vast majority of the characters simply used his natural speaking voice. While his voice is smooth and easy on the ears, I would have liked to see (hear?) him try a little harder to give individuality to the characters. Perhaps some accents? As it was, I think he only really used three “voices” throughout the entire book: his speaking voice, a snooty aristocratic voice for bad guys, and a slightly higher voice for females.

THE VERDICT

I believe this book predated the term “YA”, but I would say this falls firmly in the YA category.

An entertaining story, especially if you are a lover of cats and Epic Fantasy, and would like to see the two mashed together.

one of my favorites

Tad Williams' first book is a beautiful little story, but it's his first and you can tell. I wish he could rewrite it, maybe not even return to the world, but tall hope.
One of my favorite stories of cats in the likeness of Watership Down. I recommend the story but not really the audio version. the reader's voice wasn't the best fit but for an unknown book I'm not surprised.
still, I would recommend this with my full heart, a heart full of cats.

Not sure

I read this first in my 20’s and loved it. I was excited to revisit this in audiobook format.

It wasn’t bad, but I had a hard time being pulled into it. I don’t know if it is because I’ve outgrown it, if the narrator was too different than what I heard when I read it, or something else.

The story is overall pretty good, the narrator doesn’t do anything abysmal (he keeps the characters very distinct)
It just didn’t feel like it used to.