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Majyk #1
Die Katze läßt das Zaubern nicht
Zauberlehrling Kendar in Bedrängnis: Ein magischer Unfall stattet ihn und eine vorwitzige Katze mit Kräften aus, die sie nicht beherrschen können. Nie war Magik witziger, selbst bei Robert Asprin nicht!
412 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1993
2 people are currently reading
149 people want to read
About the author
Esther M. Friesner
264 books710 followersEsther M. Friesner was educated at Vassar College, where she completed B.A's in both Spanish and Drama. She went to on to Yale University; within five years she was awarded an M.A. and Ph.D. in Spanish. She taught Spanish at Yale for a number of years before going on to become a full-time author of fantasy and science fiction. She has published twenty-seven novels so far; her most recent titles include Temping Fate from Penguin-Puffin and Nobody's Princess from Random House.
Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in Asimov's, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Aboriginal SF, Pulphouse Magazine, Amazing, and Fantasy Book, as well as in numerous anthologies. Her story, "Love's Eldritch Ichor," was featured in the 1990 World Fantasy Convention book.
Her first stint as an anthology editor was Alien Pregnant By Elvis, a collection of truly gonzo original tabloid SF for DAW books. Wisely, she undertook this project with the able collaboration of Martin H. Greenberg. Not having learned their lesson, they have also co-edited the Chicks In Chainmail Amazon comedy anthology series for Baen Books, as well as Blood Muse, an anthology of vampire stories for Donald I Fine, Inc.
"Ask Auntie Esther" was her regular etiquette and advice column to the SFlorn in Pulphouse Magazine. Being paid for telling other people how to run their lives sounds like a pretty good deal to her.
Ms. Friesner won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story of 1995 for her work, "Death and the Librarian," and the Nebula for Best Short Story of 1996 for "A Birth Day." (A Birth Day" was also a 1996 Hugo Award finalist.) Her novelette, "Jesus at the Bat" was on the final Nebula ballot in the same year that "Death and the Librarian" won the award. In addition, she has won the Romantic Times award for Best New Fantasy Writer in 1986 and the Skylark Award in 1994. Her short story, "All Vows," took second place in the Asimov's SF Magazine Readers' Poll for 1993 and was a finalist for the Nebula in 1994. Her Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel, Warchild, made the USA TODAY bestseller list.
She lives in Connecticut with her husband, two children, two rambunctious cats, and a fluctuating population of hamsters.
Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in Asimov's, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Aboriginal SF, Pulphouse Magazine, Amazing, and Fantasy Book, as well as in numerous anthologies. Her story, "Love's Eldritch Ichor," was featured in the 1990 World Fantasy Convention book.
Her first stint as an anthology editor was Alien Pregnant By Elvis, a collection of truly gonzo original tabloid SF for DAW books. Wisely, she undertook this project with the able collaboration of Martin H. Greenberg. Not having learned their lesson, they have also co-edited the Chicks In Chainmail Amazon comedy anthology series for Baen Books, as well as Blood Muse, an anthology of vampire stories for Donald I Fine, Inc.
"Ask Auntie Esther" was her regular etiquette and advice column to the SFlorn in Pulphouse Magazine. Being paid for telling other people how to run their lives sounds like a pretty good deal to her.
Ms. Friesner won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story of 1995 for her work, "Death and the Librarian," and the Nebula for Best Short Story of 1996 for "A Birth Day." (A Birth Day" was also a 1996 Hugo Award finalist.) Her novelette, "Jesus at the Bat" was on the final Nebula ballot in the same year that "Death and the Librarian" won the award. In addition, she has won the Romantic Times award for Best New Fantasy Writer in 1986 and the Skylark Award in 1994. Her short story, "All Vows," took second place in the Asimov's SF Magazine Readers' Poll for 1993 and was a finalist for the Nebula in 1994. Her Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel, Warchild, made the USA TODAY bestseller list.
She lives in Connecticut with her husband, two children, two rambunctious cats, and a fluctuating population of hamsters.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 15, 2019
Good, looking forward to reading the next in the series. Zoltan was predictably evil, Kendar was more than a little naive, if not stupid, Mother Toadbreath was a wonderful character, Grym the cute faced Barbarian was an interesting sidekick, and Scandal the talking cat was as loyal and wise (more like wisecracking) and a delight. Another Friesner hit.
June 18, 2009
Just a touch of plod in what is mostly a romp.
30.6
30.6
September 10, 2016
review of
Esther Friesner's Majyk By Accident
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - April 24, 2016
As I typically do, I alternate between reading a serious bk & at least one that's more for fun so that I can take a break from the labor-intensiveness that goes into the serious review writing. The serious bk read at the same time as this one was Marco Deseriis's Improper Names - Collective Pseudonyms from the Luddites to Anonymous ( https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/... ). I consider the serious reviews to be the important ones but I might very well enjoy things like this more. Make of that what you will.
I don't generally read fantasy, wch is what I reckon this is, given that I prefer science fiction's more prophetic &, yes, scientific nature. Still, this had a good sense of humor & sometimes that's all I ask for. It starts off w/ this:
""SO THERE YOU ARE, YOU WORTHLESS RATWHACKER!" Velma Chiefcook's heavy hand fell on my shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The great hall of Thengor's Academy of High Wizardry echoed with her harsh voice, the huge chandelier overhead swaying, the timid fire-sprites inside their separate glass cells flickering with fear. Even the tall brass-bound doors guarding the mighty Master Thengpr's apartments shuddered on their hinges." - p 1
I reckon this children-at-the-school-of-magic trope is a well-worn path but this was published in 1993 & that's 4 yrs before the extremely popular Harry Potter series so maybe Esther Friesner's sitting around wondering why SHE isn't rich instead of J. K. Rowling.
As those of you who've been around know, the word "magic" is usually used to mean stage magic & the word "magick" is usually used to mean ceremonial magick. Long ago, I proposed to abbreviate the latter to just "magik". (see my letter under the heeading "Sound Thinking" on p 14 of "Kaos" issue #10 (London, 1987 or 1988)). In this bk another variation appears:
""Majyk," Tolly breathed. He stared at the golden cloud above Master Thengor's bed, and his beady blue eyes began to shine with greed. "It's the stuff that puts the spunk in our spells, the energy in our enchantments, the charge in our charms, the can-do in our cantrips. Without it, we wizards are nothing. We could wag our wands until the unicorns come home, but if we didn't have a little Majyk, we wouldn't be able to turn snakes into snacks or cats into catsup!"" - p 11
2 of the main characters are a cat who's come thru into a student wizard's alternate universe & the student. Cat's are a mythical creature in the student's world. The cat speaks in 20th century American slang:
""I don't want to learn how to use it," I said. "I just want to get it all back together, get it off my back, and get on with my life."
""Okay, don't have a cow," the cat said. "So we get the rest of the Majyk together for you, if that's what floats your boat."
""I don't have a cow," I told him. "Or a boat."
""No? You look like the kinda guy who's always been a little dinghy["]" - p 52
Or maybe he's just 2 tents?
Orbix, the student wizard's world, is based on fairy tales:
"Silly question; everyone knows what happens to wolves. They're worse than lemmings, some ways. The poor dumb animals are always getting themselves killed falling down the chimneys of brick houses, into big pots full of boiling water. If not that, they sneak into old ladies' homes, dress up in the grannies' flannel nightgowns and crawl into the bed until someone finds them, panics, and calls a woodchopper to come in and take care of the beast. It's an awful mess. Bloodstain-resistant sheets, pillow-cases, and flannel nightgowns are the most popular Grandma's Day gifts on Orbix, followed by Wolf-B-Gon chimney filters." - p 61
In other words, between the fun Friesner has w/ slang & its possible misunderstandings & fairy tales & their translation into 'reality' there's plenty of fun to be had. All in all, Friesner's use of the interplay between Earth & Orbix is absolutely fructiferous!:
""You guys think the wizards on this world got power? Ha! They're small potatoes next to my old human. Now there was a wizard. A computer wizard. I remember one Columbus Day when he was just hacking around and he fixed it so one of those big electric news banners on Times Square kept on scrolling 'You mean it;s NOT flat?' —signed 'Ronald Reagan.'"" - p 92
Hacked electronic road signs DO exist regardless of whether the world is round or Frame of Reference shaped & there's plenty online about it. My friend Lizard & I even discussed doing it 30 yrs or so ago & never did so I tip my head to all those who've pulled it off:
"ROGUE PANDA ON RAMPAGE
"TRAPPED IN SIGN FACTORY
"FREE KITTENS IN LEFT LANE
"Entering bat country
"OMG THE BRITISH R COMING
"SORRY MARIO THE PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE
"THE CAKE IS A LIE
"COPS EVERY WHERE
"NAZI ZOMBIES! RUN ! ! !
"RIGHT LANE CLOSED EXPECT RAINBOWS
"FREE CANDY AHEAD 3/29 - 4/2
"POOPY FINGERS
"THIS SIGN HAS BEEN HACKED
"THUG LIFE
"I AM BECOME DEATH
"EAT MY SHORTS
"FLYING MONKEYS AHEAD
"KLAATU BARADA NIKTO
"YOU'LL NEVER GET TO WORK ON TIME HAHA! !
"NOBODY HAS EVER LOVED YOU
"RAPTURE AHEAD
"HONK IF YOU ARE WEARING A THONG
"SMOOTH OPERATOR" - www.stuffyoushouldknow.com/blog/galle...
&, of course, there're even websites that tell you how to do it. As an advocate of Criminally Sane behavior (w/ a sense of humor) I just-can't-stop-myself-from-reproducing-this:
"How many times have you driven by an electronic road sign like one of these?
"This is the ADDCO portable sign. Today, you see what is on the inside, and how they are programmed to display important information.
"*** WARNING YOU SHOULD NEVER TAMPER WITH THESE SIGNS ***
"The access panel on the sign is generally protected by a small lock, but often are left unprotected. Upon opening the access panel you can see the display electronics.
"The black control pad is attached by a curly cord, with a keyboard on the face.
"Programming is as simple as scrolling down the menu selection to "Instant Text". Type whatever you want to display, Hit Enter to submit. You can now either throw it up on the sign by selecting "Run w/out save" or you can add more pages to it by selecting "Add page"
"** HACKER TIPS ** Should it will ask you for a password. Try "DOTS", the default password.
"In all likelihood, the crew will not have changed it. However if they did, never fear. Hold "Control" and "Shift" and while holding, enter "DIPY". This will reset the sign and reset the password to "DOTS" in the process. You're in!" - http://jalopnik.com/5141430/how-to-ha...
&, yeah, strictly speaking, I wdn't want anyone to commit such an act thoughtlessly in a way that might endanger public safety but if the sign's not currently in use to provide needed traffic info I certainly wd get a laugh if I saw a road sign that sd something like "GOD MADE ME NOT DO IT" or whatever.
& &, of course of course, there're probably multiple Flat Earth Societies. Here's a link to an example: www.theflatearthsociety.org/cms/ . Personally, I think the Earth's hollow but it's been turned inside out & the former outside is now filled w/ well-'nigh impenetrable garbage.. Or maybe that's the future.
""The only problem with the holes was whenever a wind blew over them—even a breeze—you heard music. It wasn't great music, but the way it wandered up and down the Ichthyonic Scale was kind of hypnotic. Entire civilizations fell under the music's spell. Healthy men and women would just sit around in white rooms staring at shiny crystals and telling everybody how they were really Master Pasmoddle the Great from the Age of Large Pointy Animals so they didn't need to go out and get a job."
"Scandal scowled at Grym. "And I bet your tribe decided they were the giant horned hamsters, huh?" The barbarian tried to look Who, me?
"I picked up the cube. "This is what Orbix looked like in the Age of Teen Death Ballads, the one that came just before the age we're in now. It didn't last too long—we never know when the next shape shift's going to come—but we got a lot of good music out of it."" - p 95
Scandal, the cat, is having none of it. Perhaps an honorary membership in the I.S.C.D.S. (International Stop Continental Drift Society) is in order?:
""I changed my mind," Scandal replied, keeping his eyes on the path. "I'm happier not knowing. I'm saner not knowing. I'm telling myself it was the Plate Tectonics Fairy who did it."
""Who?"
""Yeah, she got together with Tinkerbell and Glinda for a wild party one Saturday night, downed a few too many tequila-and-pixie-dust shooters, then went home and zapped Orbix so every few aeons it gets the geological hiccups."
""Gee, that's amazing!" I was really impressed. "Except for the names, you got it right!"" - p 96
"She tossed a pinch of blue dust over the churning gunk in the pot, then spit into it. Immediately a gigantic bubble formed itself on the surface, then broke free and bobbed across the room.
"A perfect double of Scandal floated inside." - p 141
Scandal's spitting image, so to speak. Yeah, yeah, you got it without my having to spell it out for ya. Friesner does, however, spell it out for ya w/ this interesting distinction:
""I am a witch, not a wizard. Wizardry's the art of making something out of nothing; witchery's the art of making do with what you've got. I can make a pine cone sprout into a lovely set of pinewood furniture. I can capture the image of a cat in the reflective surface of a soap bubble, I can make a rock into a rocking chair, but I can not make a mop out of thin air."" - p 142
& then, of course, there's always reading entrails. Is that what surgeons do?
""Entrails?" My stomach lurched. All good wizards are taught how to read entrails: You take a poor innocent animal, give it a tidbit, pat it on the head, then split it open, spread its insides out on a board and read the future in the twists, curves, colors, and markings of your victim's guts. Given a choice, I'd rather just wait for the future to get here. I always cut Introductory Entrails." - p 151
Kendar, the student wizard, has a family.. Ah.. families..
""Where can I find Dad, Mom?" I asked.
""Hmmm. It's not meal time. Killing something."" - p 178
""Your brother Basehart killed his first deer when he was six years old." Dad's moustache bristled with pride. "Just a fawn, it was, but he strangled it with his bare hands and I said to all my friends, 'Now there's a child of destiny!'"" - p 179
A parody of romance novels fits right in:
""But just as you are about to drown, her faithless but adored name on your lips, she dives in and rescues you, almost dying herself in the attempt. You take her into your arms and gaze into her eyes. The fires of unbridled love—long smoldering beneath the thin surface of a polite marriage of convenience—surface suddenly, in an overwhelming surge of torrid tenderness that takes you by surprise and sweeps you both away on the crest of wave after thundering wave of—!" She stopped cold.
""Go on, go on!" Mysti begged.
"Lucy shook her head. "No, no, that won't work. It's got to be the man who rescues the woman."
""Why?" Mysti was peeved.
""Because it's always the man who rescues the woman." Milkum put in. "And if that's what the public's been buying up until now, we mustn't upset them, must we?"" - p 202
After all, romance novels are fantasies read mostly by women into wch they must inject themselves if they're to work & such passive consumers aren't likely to be able to identify w/ active heros now are they?
Friesner builds her world of Otbix bit by bit, character by character, eventually reaching the capitol of Kendar's territory:
""Grashgoboum was founded shortly after the War of the Two Cousins Once Removed and Their Aunt Pooki," I said. "The last king in the direct line died accidentally during a friendly game of knoblop when his chicken escaped the scoop-net and flew up into his horse's face, causing the beast to stumble, step into one of the goal-buckets, and throw his rider. Because it was third hork of an exhibition game, he had just taken off his helmet so he could balance the mince pie on his head for extra points. Unfortunately, mince pies don't help much when you hit a stone wall headfirst. It was very tragic. That game was being held in honor of the king's engagement to Princess Sluice of Wend."" - p 218
Friesner 'breaks the rules' of some fantasy writing by not sticking to an immutable world. She lets her imagination loose & lets contemporary Earth intermingle w/ Orbix in a way that milks the joke value of both:
"["]Why I ought to—!" With that weird strength you sometimes get in hopeless situations, I raised Graverobber over my head and swung the sword wildly around and around.
"And around and around it continued to go. The blade glowed with Majyk's golden light and gave off an unearthly chud-chud-chud-chud noise. The carpet slowed its fall, then stopped and hovered peacefully in midair beneath the whirling blade." - p 221
""Tchah!" The king waved off her objections. "I'll see about that." He immediately summoned a messenger. "I shall send him on ahead to Uxwudge Manor with a letter marked with the king's own seal. This says Lord Lucius Parkland Gangle is not to begin the witch's trial until I get there," King Steffan said, showing us the document. Then he passed it to the keeper of the king's own seal who in turn held it so that the king's own seal could mark it with his needle-sharp teeth.
""Good boy," said the keeper, tossing the beast a fish.
""Ark, ark!" the king's own seal replied, clapping its flippers together before it waddled out.
"(Anyone can carve a seal out of soft stone and use it to stamp hot wax with the king's device, making a paper legal. But no one can forge the unique pattern one special animal's teeth make, which is why the monarchs of Grashgoboum will always live in palaces that smell like herring.)" - p 231
Friesner even uses neologisms:
"Imaginesia," Mother Toadbreath wispered.
""Don't you mean amnesia, toots?" Scandal asked.
""I said imaginesia. What's wrong with the king. First you forget everything you ever knew, then you remember things you didn't ever know. I read about it a time or two in my books, but I never thought to see an actual case. My this has been an educational day!" She looked pleased." - p 252
Great word! Imaginesia must be what propaganda aims for.
"Zoltan wiggled his fingers and said, "Verticillium japonica" to undue his summoning of a demon. Since I recognized that as a Latin name for something Japanese I looked it up & found that Verticillium Wilt is a disease of Tilia japonica, Japanese Linden. That might not mean much to you but it's the 2nd time that Lindens have popped up in my life in the recent past under unusual circumstances.
Anyway, yeah, another writer I like, read her works, they're not as 'important' to me as Marco Deseriis's Improper Names but this was enough fun to keep me distracted & amused. If there were a range of 1 to 10 stars on GoodReads I might even give it a 7 but instead it gets a 3.
Esther Friesner's Majyk By Accident
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - April 24, 2016
As I typically do, I alternate between reading a serious bk & at least one that's more for fun so that I can take a break from the labor-intensiveness that goes into the serious review writing. The serious bk read at the same time as this one was Marco Deseriis's Improper Names - Collective Pseudonyms from the Luddites to Anonymous ( https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/... ). I consider the serious reviews to be the important ones but I might very well enjoy things like this more. Make of that what you will.
I don't generally read fantasy, wch is what I reckon this is, given that I prefer science fiction's more prophetic &, yes, scientific nature. Still, this had a good sense of humor & sometimes that's all I ask for. It starts off w/ this:
""SO THERE YOU ARE, YOU WORTHLESS RATWHACKER!" Velma Chiefcook's heavy hand fell on my shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The great hall of Thengor's Academy of High Wizardry echoed with her harsh voice, the huge chandelier overhead swaying, the timid fire-sprites inside their separate glass cells flickering with fear. Even the tall brass-bound doors guarding the mighty Master Thengpr's apartments shuddered on their hinges." - p 1
I reckon this children-at-the-school-of-magic trope is a well-worn path but this was published in 1993 & that's 4 yrs before the extremely popular Harry Potter series so maybe Esther Friesner's sitting around wondering why SHE isn't rich instead of J. K. Rowling.
As those of you who've been around know, the word "magic" is usually used to mean stage magic & the word "magick" is usually used to mean ceremonial magick. Long ago, I proposed to abbreviate the latter to just "magik". (see my letter under the heeading "Sound Thinking" on p 14 of "Kaos" issue #10 (London, 1987 or 1988)). In this bk another variation appears:
""Majyk," Tolly breathed. He stared at the golden cloud above Master Thengor's bed, and his beady blue eyes began to shine with greed. "It's the stuff that puts the spunk in our spells, the energy in our enchantments, the charge in our charms, the can-do in our cantrips. Without it, we wizards are nothing. We could wag our wands until the unicorns come home, but if we didn't have a little Majyk, we wouldn't be able to turn snakes into snacks or cats into catsup!"" - p 11
2 of the main characters are a cat who's come thru into a student wizard's alternate universe & the student. Cat's are a mythical creature in the student's world. The cat speaks in 20th century American slang:
""I don't want to learn how to use it," I said. "I just want to get it all back together, get it off my back, and get on with my life."
""Okay, don't have a cow," the cat said. "So we get the rest of the Majyk together for you, if that's what floats your boat."
""I don't have a cow," I told him. "Or a boat."
""No? You look like the kinda guy who's always been a little dinghy["]" - p 52
Or maybe he's just 2 tents?
Orbix, the student wizard's world, is based on fairy tales:
"Silly question; everyone knows what happens to wolves. They're worse than lemmings, some ways. The poor dumb animals are always getting themselves killed falling down the chimneys of brick houses, into big pots full of boiling water. If not that, they sneak into old ladies' homes, dress up in the grannies' flannel nightgowns and crawl into the bed until someone finds them, panics, and calls a woodchopper to come in and take care of the beast. It's an awful mess. Bloodstain-resistant sheets, pillow-cases, and flannel nightgowns are the most popular Grandma's Day gifts on Orbix, followed by Wolf-B-Gon chimney filters." - p 61
In other words, between the fun Friesner has w/ slang & its possible misunderstandings & fairy tales & their translation into 'reality' there's plenty of fun to be had. All in all, Friesner's use of the interplay between Earth & Orbix is absolutely fructiferous!:
""You guys think the wizards on this world got power? Ha! They're small potatoes next to my old human. Now there was a wizard. A computer wizard. I remember one Columbus Day when he was just hacking around and he fixed it so one of those big electric news banners on Times Square kept on scrolling 'You mean it;s NOT flat?' —signed 'Ronald Reagan.'"" - p 92
Hacked electronic road signs DO exist regardless of whether the world is round or Frame of Reference shaped & there's plenty online about it. My friend Lizard & I even discussed doing it 30 yrs or so ago & never did so I tip my head to all those who've pulled it off:
"ROGUE PANDA ON RAMPAGE
"TRAPPED IN SIGN FACTORY
"FREE KITTENS IN LEFT LANE
"Entering bat country
"OMG THE BRITISH R COMING
"SORRY MARIO THE PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE
"THE CAKE IS A LIE
"COPS EVERY WHERE
"NAZI ZOMBIES! RUN ! ! !
"RIGHT LANE CLOSED EXPECT RAINBOWS
"FREE CANDY AHEAD 3/29 - 4/2
"POOPY FINGERS
"THIS SIGN HAS BEEN HACKED
"THUG LIFE
"I AM BECOME DEATH
"EAT MY SHORTS
"FLYING MONKEYS AHEAD
"KLAATU BARADA NIKTO
"YOU'LL NEVER GET TO WORK ON TIME HAHA! !
"NOBODY HAS EVER LOVED YOU
"RAPTURE AHEAD
"HONK IF YOU ARE WEARING A THONG
"SMOOTH OPERATOR" - www.stuffyoushouldknow.com/blog/galle...
&, of course, there're even websites that tell you how to do it. As an advocate of Criminally Sane behavior (w/ a sense of humor) I just-can't-stop-myself-from-reproducing-this:
"How many times have you driven by an electronic road sign like one of these?
"This is the ADDCO portable sign. Today, you see what is on the inside, and how they are programmed to display important information.
"*** WARNING YOU SHOULD NEVER TAMPER WITH THESE SIGNS ***
"The access panel on the sign is generally protected by a small lock, but often are left unprotected. Upon opening the access panel you can see the display electronics.
"The black control pad is attached by a curly cord, with a keyboard on the face.
"Programming is as simple as scrolling down the menu selection to "Instant Text". Type whatever you want to display, Hit Enter to submit. You can now either throw it up on the sign by selecting "Run w/out save" or you can add more pages to it by selecting "Add page"
"** HACKER TIPS ** Should it will ask you for a password. Try "DOTS", the default password.
"In all likelihood, the crew will not have changed it. However if they did, never fear. Hold "Control" and "Shift" and while holding, enter "DIPY". This will reset the sign and reset the password to "DOTS" in the process. You're in!" - http://jalopnik.com/5141430/how-to-ha...
&, yeah, strictly speaking, I wdn't want anyone to commit such an act thoughtlessly in a way that might endanger public safety but if the sign's not currently in use to provide needed traffic info I certainly wd get a laugh if I saw a road sign that sd something like "GOD MADE ME NOT DO IT" or whatever.
& &, of course of course, there're probably multiple Flat Earth Societies. Here's a link to an example: www.theflatearthsociety.org/cms/ . Personally, I think the Earth's hollow but it's been turned inside out & the former outside is now filled w/ well-'nigh impenetrable garbage.. Or maybe that's the future.
""The only problem with the holes was whenever a wind blew over them—even a breeze—you heard music. It wasn't great music, but the way it wandered up and down the Ichthyonic Scale was kind of hypnotic. Entire civilizations fell under the music's spell. Healthy men and women would just sit around in white rooms staring at shiny crystals and telling everybody how they were really Master Pasmoddle the Great from the Age of Large Pointy Animals so they didn't need to go out and get a job."
"Scandal scowled at Grym. "And I bet your tribe decided they were the giant horned hamsters, huh?" The barbarian tried to look Who, me?
"I picked up the cube. "This is what Orbix looked like in the Age of Teen Death Ballads, the one that came just before the age we're in now. It didn't last too long—we never know when the next shape shift's going to come—but we got a lot of good music out of it."" - p 95
Scandal, the cat, is having none of it. Perhaps an honorary membership in the I.S.C.D.S. (International Stop Continental Drift Society) is in order?:
""I changed my mind," Scandal replied, keeping his eyes on the path. "I'm happier not knowing. I'm saner not knowing. I'm telling myself it was the Plate Tectonics Fairy who did it."
""Who?"
""Yeah, she got together with Tinkerbell and Glinda for a wild party one Saturday night, downed a few too many tequila-and-pixie-dust shooters, then went home and zapped Orbix so every few aeons it gets the geological hiccups."
""Gee, that's amazing!" I was really impressed. "Except for the names, you got it right!"" - p 96
"She tossed a pinch of blue dust over the churning gunk in the pot, then spit into it. Immediately a gigantic bubble formed itself on the surface, then broke free and bobbed across the room.
"A perfect double of Scandal floated inside." - p 141
Scandal's spitting image, so to speak. Yeah, yeah, you got it without my having to spell it out for ya. Friesner does, however, spell it out for ya w/ this interesting distinction:
""I am a witch, not a wizard. Wizardry's the art of making something out of nothing; witchery's the art of making do with what you've got. I can make a pine cone sprout into a lovely set of pinewood furniture. I can capture the image of a cat in the reflective surface of a soap bubble, I can make a rock into a rocking chair, but I can not make a mop out of thin air."" - p 142
& then, of course, there's always reading entrails. Is that what surgeons do?
""Entrails?" My stomach lurched. All good wizards are taught how to read entrails: You take a poor innocent animal, give it a tidbit, pat it on the head, then split it open, spread its insides out on a board and read the future in the twists, curves, colors, and markings of your victim's guts. Given a choice, I'd rather just wait for the future to get here. I always cut Introductory Entrails." - p 151
Kendar, the student wizard, has a family.. Ah.. families..
""Where can I find Dad, Mom?" I asked.
""Hmmm. It's not meal time. Killing something."" - p 178
""Your brother Basehart killed his first deer when he was six years old." Dad's moustache bristled with pride. "Just a fawn, it was, but he strangled it with his bare hands and I said to all my friends, 'Now there's a child of destiny!'"" - p 179
A parody of romance novels fits right in:
""But just as you are about to drown, her faithless but adored name on your lips, she dives in and rescues you, almost dying herself in the attempt. You take her into your arms and gaze into her eyes. The fires of unbridled love—long smoldering beneath the thin surface of a polite marriage of convenience—surface suddenly, in an overwhelming surge of torrid tenderness that takes you by surprise and sweeps you both away on the crest of wave after thundering wave of—!" She stopped cold.
""Go on, go on!" Mysti begged.
"Lucy shook her head. "No, no, that won't work. It's got to be the man who rescues the woman."
""Why?" Mysti was peeved.
""Because it's always the man who rescues the woman." Milkum put in. "And if that's what the public's been buying up until now, we mustn't upset them, must we?"" - p 202
After all, romance novels are fantasies read mostly by women into wch they must inject themselves if they're to work & such passive consumers aren't likely to be able to identify w/ active heros now are they?
Friesner builds her world of Otbix bit by bit, character by character, eventually reaching the capitol of Kendar's territory:
""Grashgoboum was founded shortly after the War of the Two Cousins Once Removed and Their Aunt Pooki," I said. "The last king in the direct line died accidentally during a friendly game of knoblop when his chicken escaped the scoop-net and flew up into his horse's face, causing the beast to stumble, step into one of the goal-buckets, and throw his rider. Because it was third hork of an exhibition game, he had just taken off his helmet so he could balance the mince pie on his head for extra points. Unfortunately, mince pies don't help much when you hit a stone wall headfirst. It was very tragic. That game was being held in honor of the king's engagement to Princess Sluice of Wend."" - p 218
Friesner 'breaks the rules' of some fantasy writing by not sticking to an immutable world. She lets her imagination loose & lets contemporary Earth intermingle w/ Orbix in a way that milks the joke value of both:
"["]Why I ought to—!" With that weird strength you sometimes get in hopeless situations, I raised Graverobber over my head and swung the sword wildly around and around.
"And around and around it continued to go. The blade glowed with Majyk's golden light and gave off an unearthly chud-chud-chud-chud noise. The carpet slowed its fall, then stopped and hovered peacefully in midair beneath the whirling blade." - p 221
""Tchah!" The king waved off her objections. "I'll see about that." He immediately summoned a messenger. "I shall send him on ahead to Uxwudge Manor with a letter marked with the king's own seal. This says Lord Lucius Parkland Gangle is not to begin the witch's trial until I get there," King Steffan said, showing us the document. Then he passed it to the keeper of the king's own seal who in turn held it so that the king's own seal could mark it with his needle-sharp teeth.
""Good boy," said the keeper, tossing the beast a fish.
""Ark, ark!" the king's own seal replied, clapping its flippers together before it waddled out.
"(Anyone can carve a seal out of soft stone and use it to stamp hot wax with the king's device, making a paper legal. But no one can forge the unique pattern one special animal's teeth make, which is why the monarchs of Grashgoboum will always live in palaces that smell like herring.)" - p 231
Friesner even uses neologisms:
"Imaginesia," Mother Toadbreath wispered.
""Don't you mean amnesia, toots?" Scandal asked.
""I said imaginesia. What's wrong with the king. First you forget everything you ever knew, then you remember things you didn't ever know. I read about it a time or two in my books, but I never thought to see an actual case. My this has been an educational day!" She looked pleased." - p 252
Great word! Imaginesia must be what propaganda aims for.
"Zoltan wiggled his fingers and said, "Verticillium japonica" to undue his summoning of a demon. Since I recognized that as a Latin name for something Japanese I looked it up & found that Verticillium Wilt is a disease of Tilia japonica, Japanese Linden. That might not mean much to you but it's the 2nd time that Lindens have popped up in my life in the recent past under unusual circumstances.
Anyway, yeah, another writer I like, read her works, they're not as 'important' to me as Marco Deseriis's Improper Names but this was enough fun to keep me distracted & amused. If there were a range of 1 to 10 stars on GoodReads I might even give it a 7 but instead it gets a 3.
August 14, 2020
Kendar has been at wizard school for six years during which time he's learned pretty much nothing about wizardry. Master Thengor is dying, he's hoarded majyk and may be about ready to divvy up some of that majyk from his deathbed. In a slapstick scene it comes to Kendar. He can't control it, people aren't happy that he got it and a couple of the masters attempt to take it away. Unsuccessfully. Now he has a nemesis that is trying to persuade (trick, coerce, blackmail, extort and worse) Kendar to give him the majyk.
Scandal is a cat that came through a rat hole-like dimensional portal. In this universe Scandal can talk, has the intelligence of a person, and is aware of the human culture of his/our Earth. With Scandal's help Kendar escapes one attempt on his life and leaves the school.
Kendar runs into more sticky situations, makes friends, goes from the frying pan into the fire, gets a respite or two. One of the friends says maybe he's not an idiot, that the teachers were encouraging him to fail to extract more tuition. From there on Kendar feels more self worth.
When I was a kid I loved The Three Stooges, this has the same vibe. The lovable nitwits getting by more on luck than smarts. It has more going for it, because it's one story and gives Kendar and his friends room to grow. Saying that, I've got to say I've kind of outgrown The Three Stooges.
Scandal is a cat that came through a rat hole-like dimensional portal. In this universe Scandal can talk, has the intelligence of a person, and is aware of the human culture of his/our Earth. With Scandal's help Kendar escapes one attempt on his life and leaves the school.
Kendar runs into more sticky situations, makes friends, goes from the frying pan into the fire, gets a respite or two. One of the friends says maybe he's not an idiot, that the teachers were encouraging him to fail to extract more tuition. From there on Kendar feels more self worth.
When I was a kid I loved The Three Stooges, this has the same vibe. The lovable nitwits getting by more on luck than smarts. It has more going for it, because it's one story and gives Kendar and his friends room to grow. Saying that, I've got to say I've kind of outgrown The Three Stooges.
December 11, 2022
This is a reread for me - I don't even know how many times I have read it since purchasing it at least 10 years ago. It is funny, with an anti-hero who, as he moves through discovery and gains knowledge, switches to be a hero, with all the perks a hero should have, but responsibility too.
One of the wins in this book is not only the fun reading, but the lessons learned as the main character matures. The lesson - telling someone they are no good is a bad way to treat someone because often they believe it to their ruination and that of others as well.
Overall, I would recommend this for anyone who wants a good book they can read over and over.
One of the wins in this book is not only the fun reading, but the lessons learned as the main character matures. The lesson - telling someone they are no good is a bad way to treat someone because often they believe it to their ruination and that of others as well.
Overall, I would recommend this for anyone who wants a good book they can read over and over.
November 26, 2008
Fantasy or Humor? Humor or Fantasy? Majyk by Accident is both! On the planet Orbix, Kendar Gangle is known as the worst student at Thendor's Academy of High Wizardry. But when he hooks up with a talking earth cat, Kendar ends up with more majyk than he knows what to do with. Literally. Esther Friesner has a great way with words. Try Majyk by Hook or by Crook and Spilt Heirs, too!
February 1, 2012
Jolly good fun! Looking for more.
May 2, 2017
Rereading this, first read it 20+ years ago. If you like dialogue with a smart-ass cat, this book is for you. Lots of fun, doesn't take itself too seriously.
August 16, 2011
Kind of reminds me a little bit of the Xanth series by Piers Anthony.
December 24, 2021
A new edition to my growing fantasy satire shelf.
Not as good as some of the others I have read…maybe it is because I am more of a dog person, but the talking cat quips and puns got old about a third of the way through,
…recognized elements from Myth Adventures and Xanth in there..but not done as well.
Not as good as some of the others I have read…maybe it is because I am more of a dog person, but the talking cat quips and puns got old about a third of the way through,
…recognized elements from Myth Adventures and Xanth in there..but not done as well.
May 30, 2023
Esther Friesner’s 1993 light fantasy comedy, "Majyk by Accident", is fine for what it is, but it is not very much.
Kendar Gangle, a dim-witted underachiever at a school of wizardry, has inadvertently inherited a massive pool of the energy (called Majyk) that underpins all sorcery and has made himself a target for those that covert this power. Unschooled and incompetent, he and a collection of ragtag allies he gathers along the way—including a talking cat originally hailing from New York—head out on a journey to find a place of safety that will give him time to determine how best to control what he has unintentionally stolen.
This review is part of my “Nostalgia” series, where I infrequently revisit a small collection of fantasy novels in my possession—most of which I inherited when I was younger—to determine if they hold up decades later and are worth keeping. While a part of that collection, this book was not one I had read when I was younger.
I recall reading this when I was a young teenager of less-than-discerning taste (see my former affection for the works of Anthony, Piers). Even at that time, I had this vague recollection of not thinking it a very good book, which is a worrying sign given how a fresh look at the material I did find appealing at the time has failed to fill me with confidence. Would I look more fondly at a book I had dismissed at the time?
The answer is… somewhat? Kind of? A little bit?
What separates the eye-rolling, pun-filled world of Friesner from those contemporaries is that it knows exactly what it is and revels in it. Meant to be funny, time has not been kind to the rapid fire 1970s and 1980s pop culture references of Rascal, the talking cat. Frankly, they weren’t particularly fresh in 1993, either. Some of the ridiculousness of the world is diverting and creative—and elicits a chuckle or two—but ultimately doesn’t matter much. Most, however, are one-off wordplay meant to highlight how strange and counter to commonsense the world of Orbix operates, while only occasionally trying to offer some social satire on own world.
With a paper-thin plot as the characters move from one set piece to another, there is no real heart to ground the book. The silliness is missing something more to make it feel worthwhile. I don’t hate it as a book, but I don’t like it either. And that gets to the challenge of the five-star rating system, because there are two-star books that I rate much higher and one-star books that fit well below this one. In the end, it’s inoffensive, fairly childish, and ultimately forgettable.
Kendar Gangle, a dim-witted underachiever at a school of wizardry, has inadvertently inherited a massive pool of the energy (called Majyk) that underpins all sorcery and has made himself a target for those that covert this power. Unschooled and incompetent, he and a collection of ragtag allies he gathers along the way—including a talking cat originally hailing from New York—head out on a journey to find a place of safety that will give him time to determine how best to control what he has unintentionally stolen.
This review is part of my “Nostalgia” series, where I infrequently revisit a small collection of fantasy novels in my possession—most of which I inherited when I was younger—to determine if they hold up decades later and are worth keeping. While a part of that collection, this book was not one I had read when I was younger.
I recall reading this when I was a young teenager of less-than-discerning taste (see my former affection for the works of Anthony, Piers). Even at that time, I had this vague recollection of not thinking it a very good book, which is a worrying sign given how a fresh look at the material I did find appealing at the time has failed to fill me with confidence. Would I look more fondly at a book I had dismissed at the time?
The answer is… somewhat? Kind of? A little bit?
What separates the eye-rolling, pun-filled world of Friesner from those contemporaries is that it knows exactly what it is and revels in it. Meant to be funny, time has not been kind to the rapid fire 1970s and 1980s pop culture references of Rascal, the talking cat. Frankly, they weren’t particularly fresh in 1993, either. Some of the ridiculousness of the world is diverting and creative—and elicits a chuckle or two—but ultimately doesn’t matter much. Most, however, are one-off wordplay meant to highlight how strange and counter to commonsense the world of Orbix operates, while only occasionally trying to offer some social satire on own world.
With a paper-thin plot as the characters move from one set piece to another, there is no real heart to ground the book. The silliness is missing something more to make it feel worthwhile. I don’t hate it as a book, but I don’t like it either. And that gets to the challenge of the five-star rating system, because there are two-star books that I rate much higher and one-star books that fit well below this one. In the end, it’s inoffensive, fairly childish, and ultimately forgettable.
August 14, 2014
I love love love love love this book!
Read
January 17, 2018An interesting take on the silliness that abounds in the English language. Begin with one hapless ignorant student wizard, and allow him to pick up companions and get into certain hi-jinks in his search for knowledge, and you have an interesting tale set in a land where cats are mythological creatures.
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