NoggleStones
A near-fantasy tale by Wil Radcliffe. Your comments are welcome!
Shunned by his people and tormented by nightmare visions, Bugbear, the mad goblin scholar, ventures into the wilderness with his ne’er-do-well cousin, Tudmire, to seek out an ancient ruin and the lost wisdom it holds.
Soon the cousins find themselves embroiled in cosmic events as their magical world of Annwfn is merged with 19th Century Earth after an accident concerning a mysterious scroll Tudmire acquires in a crooked game of Noggle Stones. While fleeing the enraged ogres they cheated, Bugbear and Tudmire happen upon Martin Manchester, who appears to be a creature of mythology known as a human. Bugbear takes Manchester as his apprentice, agreeing to teach him the empowering ways of Non-Logical Thought. The trio soon discovers that dark forces have aligned against them, and the two worlds may have been merged only to be destroyed!
January 24th, 2006 at 3:01 pm
Loved the book! I listened to each chapter as it was released (just about), and couldn’t wait for the next. Keep up the good work.
January 25th, 2006 at 6:07 pm
started listening.. so far so good.. only one thing.. can you label the chapters so i can have them in proper order on the ipod without having to go to audiobooks to see which one i should listen too next?
May 10th, 2006 at 6:12 pm
Well, not really my cup of tea!
May 12th, 2006 at 10:21 am
I thought this was a great story! It was well written and fast paced. I fell in love with the characters too. It would have been nice to hear the voices of the characters though rather than the same voice throughout.
June 10th, 2006 at 6:57 am
Lovely story. Quite a nostalgia trip – reminds me of kid fantasy, excpet for adults. If that makes sense. It really is quite a sweet story.
Two minuses:
1. The narrator is not … ah, suitable. Sorry dude, but I just don’t think Mr. Allen is really acting your characters out well – listen to “7th son” for very good narration).
2. What is with the soundtrack! Dude, you have a great story and you drown it out with new-age garbage? If you must have background music, listen to “The Curious education of Epitome Quirkstandard” for some fantastic background and title music.
Other than that, thanks for the story!
September 25th, 2006 at 5:25 am
I was hooked into this story and drawn along.
I thought the love story was a bit wishy washy
May 10th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
I could not even get through the first chapter.
The narrator sounded like he was reading an intro the whole time there was no inflection in his voice, listen to Jim Dale, 7th Son or any thing by Scott Sigler get us hooked or get nothing
May 18th, 2007 at 8:18 am
Josh: Sorry you didn’t like the narration. If you’d rather read the book yourself, it’s available for purchase at http://www.amazon.com, http://www.barnes&noble.com, and by special order through your local bookstore. Stop by http://www.nogglestones.com for more information. Again, sorry you didn’t like the narration on the Noggle Stones podiobook.
Everyone else, thank you for the comments and suggestions!
Cheers!
Wil Radcliffe
June 7th, 2007 at 10:35 am
I am really enjoying this book and I love the reader’s voice. Could not have been done better in my view.
June 16th, 2007 at 1:34 am
Wil really has skill in his use of words, alliteration, and rhythm. There is a poetry there for those who listen for it.
July 19th, 2007 at 1:55 am
The music is “new age garbage”!? Granted the production might have seemed comparable to a lot of the new-age but most of the tunes were trad irish (or at least celtic). Was that significant…?
I haven’t read the print version but the alliteration and language used was perfect for reading aloud – I liked the narration. Audiobooks don’t always need to be ‘acted’ because it’s someone telling you a story, not reciting a play! I really enjoyed it. Thanks!
July 19th, 2007 at 11:20 am
Reading the synopsis for this book, I was thrilled. Here, I thought, was a wonderful, light hearted and interesting twist on the normal fantasy novel. And indeed, I believe that Noggle Stones has a good plot and excellent characterization, as well as a humorous slant to it that sets it apart from your usual fantasy romp. Unfortunately, the narrator is terrible. His flat monotone absolutely butchers what I think would otherwise be delightful and quirky dialogue, accents, and voices. As it is, it’s impossible to tell when he is segueing into a scene or the start of a character’s sentence, which is both confusing and disappointing. Because of this unfortunate choice of narrators, I think Noggle Stones is poorly suited to the Podiobook format. As a published book I can hold in my hands and read with my own voice, I think it would be absolutely fantastic. However, in the hands of this narrator, I am unable to listen to it at all and am sad to say I will be unsubscribing from Noggle Stones as soon as I finish here.
July 20th, 2007 at 4:23 am
I am absolutely delighted that most of you are enjoying (or have already enjoyed) the Noggle Stones podiobook. However, I am equally concerned that some of you have not enjoyed your journey into the world of Noggle Stones. If you have enjoyed the writing itself, but not necessarily our audio presentation, I urge you to browse the book for free here…
http://books.iuniverse.com/viewbooks.asp?isbn=0595282741&page=fm1
If you would like to order a copy, there will actually be a brand new edition, with some revisions and added material, coming out in 2008. This will be from a new publisher, and we will have greater presence in bookstores throughout North America as a result.
In any case, I am deeply sorry that some of you have not enjoyed the podiobook. I hope you will at least give the print version a try.
If anyone ever has any questions or comments, please feel free to stop by my web site and drop me a line. I’m always eager to hear people’s opinions, whether they are simple compliments or in depth critiques!
Cheers!
Wil
August 3rd, 2007 at 2:29 pm
I was a little dubious of the narrator at first, but I really enjoy listening to him. His tone inflections added to the story, and I love the way it was written. The rhythm is wonderful, the pace is a little fast, but not too much so, and the music adds to the story; it doesn’t drown out the narrator like so many others do.
While I do enjoy hearing different people do different parts, it is not always needed. It takes a lot of time to put these together, and to synthesize like Sigler does, or to get guest voices can delay release of new episodes.
I really enjoyed your story Wil. Thank you for lightening up my work day with it!
January 25th, 2008 at 4:32 am
Nia: A belated “thank you” for the kind words. I’m glad you enjoyed the Noggle Stones podiobook.
If you or anyone else is interested in purchasing the Noggle Stones novel, a new edition from Dailey Swan Publishing will be on stands in March. The new edition of Noggle Stones is now available for pre-order at the following on-line retailers….
Amazon.com
$10.17 plus 5% pre-order special!
Barnes&Noble.com
$13.45 or $12.10 Member price!
Buy.com
$9.66!
These retailers are offering Noggle Stones at great savings! Regular retail price is $14.95. Now’s your chance to buy the book Barry Cunningham (the editor who discovered J.K. Rowling) calls “Great fun!”
In addition, you can find Noggle Stones at your local bookstore. We’ll be carried by such national distributors as Baker & Taylor and Ingram, as well as Midpoint Tradebooks.
And, of course, you can enjoy the Noggle Stones podiobook for free! And be sure to stop by my web site for updates on the new edition of Noggle Stones, as well as other exciting developments!
Cheers!
Wil
March 11th, 2008 at 12:16 am
Funny, but when I was thinking about what I was going to say about this book, one of the first things that came to mind was that it was an excellent story for young people because there wasn’t any gratuitous sex or violence and no profanity. In spite of missing such things, it was a terrific read, er, listen. I’m always amazed that some authors think such things are required in order to be successful.
Anyway, I enjoyed this story thoroughly and look forward to seeing (listening to) it progress. One of the things I particularly liked was the way the ogres “spoke.” I thought it highly entertaining.
I was initially put off by the music, but came to like it very much. I think it helped that I happen to like Celtic music in particular. However, there were a few times when I found the tempo or mood of the music just slightly incongruous with what was happening at the time. Other than that little nit, I was quite happy with the story and would highly recommend it for families (as already noted on the Podiobooks website).
Thanks for a great story. Keep up the good work.
August 15th, 2008 at 11:08 am
PuddyRat (great handle, by the way), thanks for the kind words. I’m glad you enjoyed Noggle Stones.
By the way, the new print edition of Noggle Stones is now available! It features a brand new chapter, as well as some edited passages. Plus, artist Darren Stephens has provided an outstanding new cover! Check it out online, or go to your local bookstore! If they don’t have it in stock, ask them to order it!
More information on ordering can be found here…
http://www.nogglestones.com/order.htm
Anyone in the Battle Creek, MI area can stop by the Barnes & Noble store inside Lakeview Square mall Saturday, August 23rd! I’ll be signing copies of Noggle Stones and giving away FREE Noggle Stones games compliments of 3Rivers Archery. These games are free to EVERYONE, no purchase necessary! But hurry! When they’re gone, they’re gone!
The Noggle Stones Youth Archery Line will also be available soon from 3Rivers Archery. Stop by the Noggle Stones page at 3RiversArchery.com for more info…
http://www.3riversarchery.com/nogglestones.asp
Thanks for listening!
Wil
February 4th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
I think both the story and the narration were great. I was very surprised to see Amanda say it was done in a monotone. I had none of the problems listening that she mentioned. And Josh said there was no inflection in his voice got me wondering as well. I thought his inflection was good – not overdone like some other podiobooks, including Scott Sigler. As much as I enjoy listening to Sigler (well, not so much as listening to HIM, but hearing the stories), I find his narration to be excessive with the intonation and the way he does the women’s voices annoying. I also find him to be overly melodramatic.
Listening to this podiobook, the narration didn’t overwhelm the story. I can’t think of a single problem with the narration. In fact, I think that if Sigler had done this narration, he would have ruined it. I don’t mean this to sound anti-Sigler since I do enjoy his podio books, even if I do chuckle at the way he does some of the voices.