History Literature / Uncle

* AppropriateAnimalAttire: Uncle almost always wears a purple dressing gown with trousers underneath, but has no problem with wearing nothing.
** Badgers, bears, horses and other civilized animals are usually naked.

* CoolHouse: This doesn't even begin to describe Homeward.

* [[CouldntFindAPen Couldn't Find an Inkwell]]: A trademark of the Badfort Crowd is writing in blood, just to spite people.

** The fight is usually kept off when both sides are on the same vacation.

* WeaponOfChoice: Beaver Hateman and Uncle always carry stone clubs around for fighting, while Hitmouse is armed with skewers.

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: Several, most of them either living in Homeward or Badfort.

* ThoseTwoBadGuys: Nailrod and Sigismund Hateman.

* NewWeird: It would be an early example, but the series can sometimes read like Gormenghast for kids...

* NewWeird: It reads like Gormenghast for kids

* NeverLiveItDown: An in-universe example; Uncle once borrowed a bicycle without permission when he was at the University, and, being rather heavy, broke it. The Badfort gang always make fun of this record of theft.

* TheUnfought:
** Wizard Snipehazer is responsible for at least some of Uncle's major troubles, but does not appear in person anywhere.
** Abdullah the Clothes-peg Merchant is a mysterious backer for Beaver Hateman, but he is mentioned even less than Snipehazer.

* EldritchLocation: There are a lot of them in Homeward but always fun and safe. There's also the Monkey-and-Engine-Room-Jungle.

* TheUnfought: Wizard Snipehazer is responsible for at least some of Uncle's major troubles, but does not appear in person anywhere.

* FiveManBand:
** TheHero: Uncle
** TheLancer, or The OldRetainer: The Old Monkey.
** TheBigGuy: Cloutman and Gubbins.
** TheSmartGuy: Cowgill or Wizard Blenkinsop.
** TheChick: Goodman.
** SixthRanger: Rudolf, Auntie, Will Shudder, Lucy and Brass.

* TheObiWan: The Wizard Blenkinsop.

* TheDragon: Beaver Hateman is this to Hootman, ''and vice versa''.

The first two books were reprinted in a facsimile hardback edition by the New York Review of Books in 2007 and again in 2009. In March 2013, a Website/{{Kickstarter}} campaign was announced to reprint all six Uncle books in an omnibus edition. The reprint had the support of — and contributions from — several authors and illustrators, including Creator/NeilGaiman, Creator/GarthNix, Creator/DavidLangford, Justin Pollard, Martin Rowson, Andy Riley, Will Self, Kate Summerscale, and Richard Ingrams. The campaign was fully funded in a little over four hours. The book was published on 31 October 2013 under the title of ''The Complete Uncle''. The series has been published around the world in six languages, with a Chinese version in the works.

* BlackAndWhiteMorality: Almost all of the characters are clearly marked as either good or bad. (A rare exception is Old Whitebeard, who isn't necessarily an evil person, and isn't an ally of the Badfort Crowd, but is so selfish and miserly that everyone on both sides despises him.) However, some readers suspect the books of {{irony}}, noting that Uncle himself is faintly ludicrous and not very bright, in which case the trope may be being subtly but persistently {{subverted|Trope}}.
** Creator/NeilGaiman's introduction argues that the main difference between Homeward and Badfort is that Uncle forgives people but Beaver never does so.

** Hitmouse, a tiny and vicious person. His younger brother is called ''[[AdolfHitler Adolfus Hitmouse]]''.

* ArchEnemy: Beaver Hateman, the grimy and rude bully from Badfort.

* BigGood: Uncle.

* BrainsAndBrawn: Hootman and Hateman respectively.

** Uncle himself.
** Wizard Blenkinsop.

* EldritchLocation: A lot of them in Homeward but always fun and safe. There's also the Monkey-and-Engine-Room-Jungle.

* GoKartingWithBowser: Every Christmas, the Homeward lot and the Badfort Crowd put aside their differences and celebrate together before resuming their antagonism. Naturally, the Badfort Crowd often cannot resist causing trouble even then.

* TheUnfought: Wizard Snipehazer is responsible for at least some of Uncle's major troubles, but he did not appear anywhere.

* BombThrowingAnarchist: The Badfort gang, though they are just being jealous instead of destructive.

* CoolOldGuy: Uncle himself.

* [[CouldntFindAPen Couldn't find an inkwell]]: A trademark of the Badfort Crowd is writing in blood, just to spite people.

* EldritchAbomination: Jellytrussle, a grey/blue/purple wobbly {{Slime}} monster. There's also Batty, a bird/bat hybrid monster with giant fists.

** TheLancer, or TheOldRetainer: The Old Monkey.

The first two books were reprinted in a facsimile hardback edition by the New York Review of Books in 2007 and again in 2009. In March 2013, a Website/{{Kickstarter}} campaign was announced to reprint all six Uncle books in an omnibus edition. The reprint had the support of — and contributions from — several authors and illustrators, including Creator/NeilGaiman, JustinPollard, Creator/GarthNix, Creator/DavidLangford, Martin Rowson, Andy Riley, Will Self, Kate Summerscale, and Richard Ingrams. The campaign was fully funded in a little over four hours. The book was published on 31 October 2013 under the title of ''The Complete Uncle''. The series has been published around the world in six languages, with a Chinese version in the works.

* LaughableEvil: The Badfort crowd.

The first two books were reprinted in a facsimile hardback edition by the New York Review of Books in 2007 and again in 2009. In March 2013, a Kickstarter campaign was announced to reprint all six Uncle books in an omnibus edition. The reprint had the support of — and contributions from — several authors and illustrators, including NeilGaiman, JustinPollard, GarthNix, MartinRowson, AndyRiley, KateSummerscale, and RichardIngrams. The campaign was fully funded in a little over four hours. The book was published on 31 October 2013 under the title of ''The Complete Uncle''. The series are published around the world in six languages, with a Chinese version in the works.

* WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids: Fortunately there is no British censorship for weirdness and only later for violence in children's books. However, the third and later books are kept from republishing because of the Crack House being an unfortunate cocaine reference.