(Tony Roberts’ (?) cover for the 1975 edition of Ten Thousand Light-Years From Home (1973), James Tiptree, Jr.)
Here’s a lighthearted themed science fiction art post on elephants, elephantine aliens, and prehistoric mammoths that I’ve cobbled together over the last few weeks. Elephants have always made me happy–especially baby elephants…. and yes, I have been known to watch Youtube videos of baby elephant antics. I digress.
The SF novel that first came to mind was Robert Silverberg’s masterful rumination on colonization on a decaying world Downward to the Earth (1970). Rather than only focus on Downward to the Earth‘s huge range of elephantine alien covers, I’ve interspersed a variety of others.
Which novels/collections have you read?
I’ve read Poul Anderson’s Brain Wave (1953), Robert Silverberg’s Downward to the Earth (1970), and James Tiptree, Jr.’s collection Ten Thousand Light-Years From Home (1973) (although I never reviewed it).
Do you have a favorite elephant cover?
My favorite has to be Karel Thole’s cover for the 1973 German edition of Silverberg’s novel—the elephant isn’t the focus of the cover (it’s small and near the bottom) but rather an unusual lumbering Tapir-esque beast…
Other than additional editions of Silverberg’s novel that I deliberately excluded, do you know of any elephant SF covers I could add (pre-1990) to a potential Part II?
Enjoy.
(Paul Alexander’s cover for the 1979 edition of Downward to the Earth (1970), Robert Silverberg)
(Peter Goodfellow’s cover for the 1977 edition if Keep the Giraffe Burning (1977), John Sladek)
(Paul Alexander’s cover for the 1982 edition of The Hand of Zei (magazine 1950), L. Sprague de Camp)
(Stuart Hughes’ cover for the 1978 edition of Downward to the Earth (1970), Robert Silverberg)
(John Rush’ cover for the 1st edition of Elephant Song (1982), Barry N. Longyear)
(Jim Burn’s cover for the 1984 edition of Downward to the Earth (1970), Robert Silverberg)
(Michael Herring’s cover for the 1978 edition of Brain Wave (1953), Poul Anderson)
(Karel Thole’s cover for the 1973 German edition of Downward to the Earth (1970), Robert Silverberg)
(Gérard Ruffin’s cover for the 1980 French edition of Downward to the Earth (1970), Robert Silverberg)
(H. R. Van Dongen’s cover for the 1st edition of Mastodonia (1978), Clifford D. Simak)
(Uncredited cover for the 1973 issue of the Japanese SF magazine S-F)
For book reviews consult the INDEX
For cover art posts consult the INDEX
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 
There’s always the first edition of Niven and Pournelle’s Footfall (1985.)
I read that as a kid — I think it was in my high school library (next to endless L. Ron Hubbard books). It was long before I read SF regularly…. But yes, absolutely!
I read it when it was new, from the library in hardcover, and I liked it. I still remember a few of the technical things, like detonating atomic bombs to power an X-ray laser cannon on the space warship the Earthers built in secret. There was also some thing about laying dinner plates in front of an enemy column to trick them into stopping their AFVs, something Niven and Pournelle suggested had been done during the Hungarian uprising or something like that.
It had far less of an impact on me (I must have read it between 2002-2005). I remember fragments of the plot and the cover.
One edition of Anderson’s TRADER TO THE STARS has an alien elephant.
Thanks for visiting!
Cool, I’ll investigate. Perhaps I’ll put together a Part II depending on how many others I can track down.
Do you have a favorite cover from this bunch?
Ah, Paul Lehr for the 1966 edition of Trader to the Stars (1964)
Downward to the Earth is my favorite Silverberg novel, and I love the original Frank Frazetta cover.
Yeah, as I mentioned in the post, I am aware of all the Downward to the Earth covers — I deliberately excluded this one, although I love it, as I had so many! I enjoy Frazetta’s art far more when he’s not creating his normal sword and sorcery fair….
But yes, while it is not my favorite Silverberg novel, it’s in the top 5 (as of now).
Here’s another Frazetta, from Kuttner’s The Creature from beyond Infinity, which I read in 2017.
https://mporcius.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-creature-from-beyond-infinity-by.html
Cool. I remember that review. I like Frazetta’s mammoths and elephants more than his people…..
Will definitely go on a Part II, if I find enough.
One more Frazetta, from a 1970s edition of Burroughs’ Back to the Stone Age.
The mammoth, in Frazetta’s art, definitely conjure silly/humorous “prehistoric time where men fought like real men” vibes…
I love the fact that there are enough elephants on scifi books that you can do a whole post on it!
Hah, yeah. And I almost have enough for a Part II (the magic number is usually 10….)
Do you have a favorite cover from this bunch?
Here’s one from my favorite Jame White novel:
Another one I was meaning to include but forgot…. will definitely feature in a Part II.
Thanks!
I must admit I bought this one for the Jack Gaughan cover and then thoroughly the story. I tried a few James White novels afterward and put them aside without finishing them.
Should be “enjoyed the story.”
I’m a huge fan of James White’s SF.
These are the three I’ve read since I’ve had the site (I read a few of his Sector General stories before I started reviewing).
All Judgement Fled (1968): https://sciencefictionruminations.com/2015/12/19/short-book-reviews-if-all-else-fails-craig-strete-1980-my-petition-for-more-space-john-hersey-1974-and-all-judgement-fled-james-white-serialized-1967/
The Dream Millennium (1974) https://sciencefictionruminations.com/2016/04/17/book-review-the-dream-millennium-james-white-serialized-1973-novel-1974/
The Watch Below (1966) https://sciencefictionruminations.com/2011/12/10/book-review-the-watch-below-james-white-1966/
Project Mastodon by Simak is a 1955 short story which was later greatly altered and expanded into Mastodonia (aka Catface in the UK). Sadly, I don’t think any mastodons appeared in relation to it until 2009
And Wildside by Steven Gould has a great cover by an artist called Ravenwood! (Tor Teen edition, 2003) Also a bit late for your project, I”m afraid…
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0765342464.jp
Any others I can think of are also far too recent…
Well, if any others come to mind, let me know. I might have a part II.
I included a Mastodonia cover in this post — the 1st edition.
I did see that, but the short story is substantially different.
Other later books with mammoth covers that I’ve read include
Harry Turtledove – The Breath of God – 2008
The Golden Shrine – 2009 both fantasy
Stephen Baxter – Mammoth: Silverhair – 1999
Mammoth: Longtusk -1999
Mammoth: Icebones – 2001
collected as Behemoth – 2004 sf – they end up on Mars!
John Varley – Mammoth – 2005 sf rewilding/ranching in Alaska or maybe Canada
Greg Benford & Kevin J. Anderson – Mammoth Dawn – 2015 edition sf cloned mammoth loose in L.A.
Eric Brown – Jani and the Greater Game – 2014 steampunk alt.hist with mechanical elephant; it’s great fun!
Sadly. Barsk: The Elephants’ Graveyard (2015), and it’s sequel, by Lawrence M. Schoen don’t have elephants on the cover, despite the books being specifically about uplifted elephants and their place in a wider ‘up-lifted’ space empire! It’s also probably the best of the elephant/mammoth titles I’ve just listed here!
As a bunch of these are newer (although I recognize a lot of the authors), I’ll investigate –not sure I’ll include them in a part II as they are so new. Thanks for the list! It’s fun seeing that the theme continues. Do you have a favorite novel on the topic?
The Lawrence M. Schoen book is probably the best of the ones I’ve mentioned, although the Eric Brown is the most fun to read! And Wildside, by Steven Gould, mentioned in my other reply is a good, very readable YA novel. (teenager finds a portal to an alternate Earth and takes it all very seriously!)
Here’s another mammoth cover!
In Fletcher Pratt’s novel INVADERS FROM RIGEL, elephantoid invaders from . . . you guessed it . . . turn most of Earth’s population into statues, but a select few are turned into metal beings. The elephantoids appear on Emshwiller’s cover for the hardcover edition, but they’re very small. See the Wikipedia entry on this inane book:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invaders_from_Rigel
I’ll include that cover in a Part II!
Thanks John.
But yeah, I’ve never managed to complete a Fletcher Pratt novel. I’ve started at least three and quit them after the first chapter. Did he write anything of quality?
Hi
I loved this post and will keep my eyes open. I enjoyed both Brain Wave and Downward to Earth. I cheated a bit and given his interest in Africa I assumed Michael Resnick would have at least cover that fit the bill and he did. Hopefully the links work.
I only pulled one cover from my ERB collection.
And even though it is a rino, since you mentioned Poul Anderson I threw this in.
As for you comment on Pratt I did do one of his short stories The City of the Living Dead recently but it was part of my interest in SF history, rather than deathless prose. I could not resist.
Keep well.
Guy
Thanks for stopping by!
I’ll see if I can find that Pratt story. Thanks.
Hi
I took another look on the shelves.
This exercise is quite seductive.
Guy
I’m glad you enjoyed tracking down elephant-esque animals. I’ll definitely include this wonderful Analog cover in Part II of this post!
I can’t recall offhand if there have ever been any editions of Conan by Robert E. Howard to feature the elephantine alien god Yag-Kosha from “The Tower on the Elephant” on the cover.
I do not know — but isfdb.org will probably give you the answer!
Here’s Robert E. Howard’s listing if you want to browse: http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?822
Thanks for the link. It appears the limited edition of The Tower of the Elephant published by Donald M. Grant in 1975 is the closest Yag-Kosha has ever gotten to appearing on a book cover.
http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?511665
No problem. I’ll give it a browse as well — I’ll probably include the one you linked for part II (if I make it).
Hi
I was not sure if the god/being Chaugnar Faugn in Long’s The Horror from The Hills fits the criteria. However there is mention in the Wikipedia article that he and “his brothers were actually connected hyper-dimensionally” which works for me. Anyway it is a neat cover.
Now I have to finish The Very Slow Time Machine by Watson.
Happy Reading
Guy
Looks elephantine to me! I’ll include it.
Thanks!
I adored the collection The Very Slow Time Machine — nice early work by a master.