gnole for grownups

[mandimoo]

im sure i had a book called the gnole, about a man who became lost in a cave for weeks and he befriended a creature called a gnole. i have googled for this but can only come up with the childrens book by alan aldridge. is this ringing any bells with anyone?

[Chrysaor]

There's a science fiction story called 'The man who sold rope to the Gnoles' and it does feature caves. Not sure if this is the same thing....

[mandimoo]

zacs, ive looked at those pics and i dont recognise him, or any of the other characters in the pics. and after reading the synopsis, i dont think my book can have been called gnole after all. there were pretty much only the man who was lost and this creature that used to appear and disappear like a cheshire cat, who sometimes helped him and sometimes didnt. the whole story was the interaction between the two.
Chrysaor i cant find a review for the rope version, but the title sounds too wordy, and i dont recall anything about any rope!
any other ideas?