In good condition
Limpy the cane toad has been in my life for so long it feels strange to think he started out as an abstract idea rather than the intrepid, loyal, warm-hearted bundle of slightly-squashed warts and irrepressible wistfulness I’ve come to love.
Well, two abstract ideas really. Firstly I wanted to have some fun looking at our species through the eyes of a non-human character. To get a different perspective on what we humans get up to when we don’t know other species are watching.
I also wanted to do an experiment. One of my favourite things about stories is the chance they give us to experience empathy in the privacy of our own imaginations. A character might be different to us on the outside, but a good story takes us beneath the surface of that character to a place where we find part of ourselves, and sometimes part of our favourite primary school teacher as well.
But what if a character isn’t just a bit different to us on the outside, but completely, totally, comprehensively, revoltingly different? Size, shape, skin condition, personal habits, the lot? Could a story about such a character still make our hearts soften with recognition? That’s what I wanted to put to the test.