Discworld Books - Page 2

Equal Rites: A Discworld Novel (Discworld)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 100 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

"We could buy you a much better broomstick." 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Eskarina Smith was born with a slight impediment a wizard desperate to leave his staff to an heir was so delighted to find the eighth child of an eighth child neglected to make one last quality check. And so the first female wizard was born. Granny Weatherwax quickly realizes the magnitude of the problem - there was no one to teach Esk to manage wizardry that is exactly like handing a two-year-old the remote control to an armed nuclear submarine. Granny did her best by instructing Esk in witchery, but this was only a temporary diversion. If there was any hope for the wolves in Lancre, Esk must be sent to the Unseen University where, unfortunately, the most likely reaction to a girl who could cast spells was to make a maid out of her.

On the way she meets Simon, a young wizard on the way to the University to gain his staff. Simon's a bit unusual; he's self-taught with a theoretical bent at a time when the average wizard had trouble keeping his cigar lit. Simon's talent wasn't simply useful, it was downright dangerous. So with Esk trying to work her way past wizardly sexism, Simon getting closer and closer to accidentally releasing all hell, and vague hints of romance Pratchett does what he always seems to do and make theater of the Absurd into a literary phenomenon.

Deep down inside Pratchett is a true romantic warring with a soul that thinks everything is made from the blackest of cottage cheese. It always amazes me how he manages to keep a level of sarcasm, tell some horrendous puns, and still write a book that is every bit a whopping good story, with characters good and awful, but always charming. This is number three in the serious, and stands perfectly by itself, but reading all the books is compulsory anyway. You will enjoy all of them, like it or not.

Editorial Review:

Terry Pratchett's profoundly irreverent, bestselling novels have garnered him a revered position in the halls of parody next to the likes of Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen.

In Equal Rites, a dying wizard tries to pass on his powers to an eighth son of an eighth son, who is just at that moment being born. The fact that the son is actually a daughter is discovered just a little too late.

Hogfather (Discworld)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 106 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The worst ! 2 out of 5 stars.
1 of 3 people found this review helpful.

This is probably the low end of anything he has written before or since.
I've read the more recent ones, and some were quite funny, and if not just as much as the former, at least they were more intense and profound.
But everything he wrote from about a year former or later to "The Hogfather"
should be buried and forgotten.
God blees Terry Pratchett. He's given me such laughs. But not here.

Black Christmas, er, Hogwatch 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

In the fictional Discworld, which is carried by four elephants atop a giant turtle floating through space, what we would consider Christmas is known as Hogwatch. The jolly, bearded fat man in the red suit we would associate with Santa Claus is known as the Hogfather and drives a team of four boars instead of eight reindeer. This year, though, something has gone amiss--mainly the Hogfather himself--and so if the Hogfather looks as if he's lost a lot of weight it's because Death is standing in for him.


The plot itself for "Hogfather" sounds like one of those cheesy Christmas specials we used to see more of on television like "The Flintstones Save Christmas" or "Ernest Saves Christmas" or even "The Santa Clause" where some ordinary klutz has to fill in for Santa and bring toys and cheer to the good little boys and girls. But things are never that simple or straightforward in the Discworld. While the Grim Reaper is filling the Hogfather's boots, his "granddaughter" Susan goes in search of the Hogfather, which ultimately involves assassins and The Tooth Fairy. Meanwhile, at Unseen University, the school for wizards, strange things are happening like gods and fairies appearing out of thin air. (It makes slightly more sense when you read the book.)

The story centers not so much on "saving Christmas, er, Hogwatch" as on the nature of belief and how it changes over time. In particular is the concept of old gods serving new purposes. If you look back through history you can compare the roles of old gods like Zeus or Odin with the Christian God (or Jesus) or Hindu gods, and so forth. No matter the society or the religion humans have always had a need for belief in something, even if it's something ridiculous like a jolly fat man and a team of flying hogs.

There's a good moral as well in the story of Death learning to be Santa, er, Hogfather in that Christmas, er, Hogwatch doesn't always mean getting everything you want. Even as children a little disappointment is necessary to help us mature into adults. (You've seen what happens to people who get everything they want growing up with the Paris Hiltons of the world.)

So really what could have in lesser hands been rendered into a cheap, sappy Christmas special has been given far more meaning by Mr. Pratchett. Not to mention the book is hilarious and a breeze to read. Some of the things near the end were a little confusing, but overall this was a great read for the holidays.

I bought the British miniseries of this off the Amazon Black Friday sale; I hear the miniseries sticks pretty close to the book, which would be a good thing. Once it arrives I'll have to find out.

That is all.

Editorial Review:

ITS THE NIGHT BEFORE HOGSWATCH.  AND IT'S TOO QUIET.

Where is the big jolly fat man?  Why is Death creeping down chimneys and trying to say Ho Ho Ho?  The darkest night of the year is getting a lot darker...

Susan the gothic governess has got to sort it out by morning, otherwise there won't be a morning.  Ever again...

The 20th Discworld novel is a festive feast of darkness and Death (but with jolly robins and tinsel too).

As they say:  You'd better watch out...


From the Paperback edition.

Guards! Guards! (Discworld Novels)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 78 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

On Guards 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Well this is the third of Pratchett's "Discworld" books I've read and probably the last one I'll read for a bit as I have some other stuff to do. Anyway, "Guards! Guards!" was another entertaining and quick read, though I couldn't help thinking it bore a lot of similarities to the later "Going Postal" which I read first. It wouldn't surprise me if many of Pratchett's nearly 40 Discworld books are very similar because in my experience authors develop a certain way of doing things and so do I, although I don't consider myself a true "author" at this point, just a hack writer.

But enough about me and vague generalizations. "Guards! Guards!" is about the laughably inept City Watch, who work the graveyard shift ringing a bell, shouting "all is well," and trying to stay out of the way. This is because the Machiavellian head of the metropolis of Ankh-Morpork, Lord Vetinari, has essentially legalized crime by unionizing thieves and assassins and giving them strict quotas. The head of the City Watch's night shift, Captain Sam Vimes, comes from that Bruce Willis mode of cops in that you can usually find him in a bar or in the gutter afterwards, stinking like a bar.

Things begin to change when a "dwarf" named Carrot arrives from the mountains. Carrot really isn't a dwarf, he's a human taken in by the dwarves since he was a baby and his parents were murdered. When he arrives in Ankh-Morpork he starts throwing the book (figuratively and literally) at the criminal element in the city despite Vimes and his lieutenants telling him to chill out. Meanwhile, a real crime is being purpotrated by a secret society trying to take control of the city by summoning a dragon. They get a lot more than they bargained for and now the only ones who can stop it are the City Watch with the help of the Lady Raskin, one of her pet swamp dragons, and an orangutan librarian.

I think the good thing about this off the bat is that while the book is funny and the cops are inept, they aren't really "Keystone Cops" so much as guys who really don't have an important job and are well aware of this so they just don't care. Some of the plot is predictable but the main twist at the end I didn't really see coming. Like the other two Discworld books I've read (and I'll bet it is the same for most) it features a lot of subtle comedy that makes it laugh out loud funny. As I said earlier, at some point I'll get around to reading more of these because they are high-quality reads that are fun and cover serious topics as well.

Also, as far as comparing this to "Going Postal" they both start off with the "hero" who isn't a hero by any stretch (drunken cop vs. con man) who is embroiled in a much larger game and somewhat reforms, in the process meeting a lady who isn't necessarily a "lady" in terms of decorum. Like I said, I'll bet a lot of the other books in the series follow a similar pattern, but it's a good pattern so that's not really a bad thing.

That is all.

Editorial Review:

Here there be dragons...and the denizens of Ankh-Morpork wish one huge firebreather would return from whence it came. Long believed extinct, a superb specimen of draco nobilis ("noble dragon" for those who don't understand italics) has appeared in Discworld's greatest city. Not only does this unwelcome visitor have a nasty habit of charbroiling everything in its path, in rather short order it is crowned King (it is a noble dragon, after all...).

Sourcery (Discworld Novel S.)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 51 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Wine and Song. Forget the Women. 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Concerning the delights of wine, women, and song, wizards can drink and croon with the worst of us (thank the gods karaoke hasn't been invented on Discworld), but the middle pleasure is strictly forbidden. This book deals with the consequences of two wizards mixing it up with the fairer sex.

The first wizard, Ipslore the Red fathers the eighth son of an eighth son, who is a wizard squared, i.e. a sourcerer. The Lore strictly forbids wizards to breed, for fear of sourcery, because the last time it appeared on Discworld, the Apocraplypse (Pratchett's spelling) was narrowly averted. When Ipslore's sourcerous (Pratchett's spelling) son crashes through the gates of the Unseen University, even the gargoyles have sense enough to flee, although not the majority of the wizards.

The second wizard, Rincewind the Inept falls in love (as does his Luggage) with the daughter of a temple dancer for some mad god. She enters the narrative while breaking into the Unseen University and stealing the Archmage's hat. Rincewind meets Conina while drinking himself under the table at Ankh-Morpork's coolest tavern, the Mended Drum. He soon discovers, after the requisite bloody bar fight, that his new companion also happens to be the daughter of Cohen the Barbarian. Her secret dream is to become a hairdresser, but she has to work hard at controlling her reflexes when she has a sharp object, e.g. scissors, comb, or a broken bottle in her hand.

The Discworld novels starring the cowardly wizard, Rincewind were never my favorites, but "Sourcery" also features the Librarian (who happens to be an orangutan), and a whole horde of inept wizards who suddenly turn ept when the Sourcerer appears in their midst.

One of my favorite scenes occurs when a newly empowered wizard turns Ankh-Morpork's Patrician into a small yellow lizard.

Naturally the wizards immediately go to war with each other to determine who is the most powerful. Only Rincewind, Conina, and Nijel the Destroyer, son of Harebut the Provision Merchant can save Discworld from their sourcerous folly.

With a little help from the Librarian.

Wyrd Sisters (Discworld Novel)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 79 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

a mixed cauldron of goodies and disappointment 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I almost gave this 4 stars, but the more I thought about it, the less satisfying it became.

Wyrd Sisters is a mildly amusing parody of Macbeth, with shades of Hamlet tossed in as well. I was actually reminded of "Rosenkrantz and Gildestern are dead" by Stoppard, which tells the story of Hamlet through two very minor characters wandering around the background during key scenes and soliloquies. Sadly, Wyrd Sisters wasn't as inventive.

The story has some good chuckles, but none of the laugh-out-loud moments that pepper Pratchett's other works. Also missing are cameos from the vast pantheon of enjoyable minor charcters in the Discworld milieu. My major problem, though, involves a...

***MINOR SPOILER***

About half way through, it becomes necessary to age one of the central characters (the rightful heir to the throne) by 15 years so he can return and claim his birthright. Pratchett's method for this was wholely unconvincing, and even he seemed embarrased by the awkwardness of it all, based on some comments that appear after the fact. I realize it needed to be done, but it just didn't sit right with me.

***END MINOR SPOILERS***

If you like Pratchett, and especially the Lancre Witches arc of his writing, then you'll probably enjoy Wyrd Sisters. Personally, I don't think it's one of his better efforts, though I'm glad I read it from a "completionist" standpoint.

Editorial Review:

Terry's Pratchett's profoundly irrelevetn novels, are consistent number one bestsellers in England, where they have catapulted him into the highest echelons of parody next to Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen.

Meet Granny Weatherwx, the most highly regarded non-leader a coven of non-social witches could ever have.Generally, these loners don't get involved in anything, mush less royal intrigue. but then there are those times they can't help it. As Granny Weatherwzx is about to discover, though, it's a lot harder to stir up trouble in the castle than some theatrical types would have you think. Even when you've got a few unexpected spells up your sleave.

Pyramids (Discworld Novels)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 42 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Standing On The Shoulders Of My Ancestors 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Terry Pratchett's first novel, "The Carpet People", appeared in 1971. "Pyramids" is the seventh novel in his hugely popular Discworld series and was first published in 1989. It's the first - and, to date, only - book to feature Teppic, and is largely set in his home country of Djelibeybi.

As the book opens, Teppic (or Pteppic) is approaching the end of his education at Ankh-Morpork's Guild of Assassins. (The final exam, if failed, tends to be very......final). However, there is more to Teppic than dressing very stylishly and inhuming only for vast amounts of money. With the very recent death of his father, he has also become King Pteppicymon XXVIII of Djelibeybi. Teppic's home country is very obviously based on Egypt : it's two miles wide, one hundred and fifty miles long and runs along the river Djel. It has driven itself bankrupt, having spent seven thousand years building pyramids for its monarchs - invariably on the country's most fertile soil. Having become the first Pharoh to be educated outside Djelibeybi, Teppic finds it difficult to re-adapt to the traditions of his home country. He is technically a God and although he is officially Head of State, it's Dios - the very aged High Priest - who actually runs the country. Teppic isn't entirely impressed about this - he wants to introduce proper plumbing and pillows, for example. However, in spite of the country's debt, he does agree to building a massive pyramid for his late father. (This isn't something his late father - still pottering around as a ghost - isn't too impressed with). The final straw comes when Dios decides to feed Ptraci - the late King's favourite handmaiden - to the crocodiles. Teppic decides to become a little more politically active - and, luckily, he has a helpful education to fall back on.

Like everything else I've read by Pratchett, this is an excellent book. It's easily read, features plenty of likeable characters and there are plenty of laughs. As it's one of Pratchett's stand-alone books, it's a good starting point if you've never read any of the Discworld books before. (In a way, I find that a pity : I'd love to have known what became of Teppic and Ptraci). Definitely recommended !

Editorial Review:

Being trained by the Assassins' Guild in Ankh-Morpork did not fit Teppic for the task assigned to him by fate. He inherited the throne of the desert kingdom of Djelibeybi earlier than expected, but that was only the beginning of his problems.

Soul Music (Discworld Novel)

Terry Pratchett

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 74 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Wherein Death, Death's Grandaughter, Bud y Holly collide 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Imp (Bud as in plants in Springtime) Y Celyn (Of the Holly trees) makes music his life (without understanding all the implications) and organizes a band with a troll, a dwarf, and briefly an orangutan; Death's grandaughter Susan considers the consequences of silliness, Death expresses gratitude with a rose in his teeth, a big hearing-impaired spotted cat arranges for a singer to appear with just one glove, the neighborhood witch arrangements are explained, a felonious monk's musical talent is discussed, and music-with-rocks-in is introduced.

One of the absolute best of Pratchett, and definately the best of the thread about Death. There are more rock and roll references per page than any other book in history, and more laughs than a rational man can deal with (I had no problem...) All the hallmarks of Pratchett's finest work; beautifully tangled threads of the story, humor both subtle and flagrent, puns to tears, and more than the customary presense of Death (and Death of Rats, and Death's servant Albert). It stands as well alone as it does as part of the Death stories or Ankh-Morpork stories.

Kudos!

Editorial Review:

A new contribution to a humorous saga follows the adventures of Death's granddaughter, who enjoys her inherited family job until she falls in love, and Imp the Bard, who finds ill luck in the attainment of a dream come true.

Night Watch (Discworld Novels)

Terry Pratchett

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Total reviews: 104 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This morning, Commander Vimes of the City Watch had it all. He was a Duke. He was rich.He was respected. He had a silver cigar case. He was about to become a father.

This morning he thought longingly about the good old days.

Tonight, he's in them.

Flung back in time by a mysterious accident, Sam Vimes has to start all over again. He must get a new name and a job, and there's only one job he's good at: cop in the Watch. He must track down a brutal murderer. He must find his younger self and teach him everything he knows. He must whip the cowardly, despised Night Watch into a crack fighting force -- fast. Because Sam Vimes knows what's going to happen. He remembers it. He was there. It's part of history. And you can't change history . . .

But Sam is going to. He has no choice. Otherwise, a bloody revolution will start, and good men will die. Sam saw their names on old headstones just this morning -- but tonight they're young men who think they have a future. And rather than let them die, Sam will do anything -- turn traitor, burn buildings, take over a revolt, anything -- to snatch them from the jaws of history. He will do it even if victory will mean giving up the only future he knows.

For if he succeeds, he's got no wife, no child, no riches, no fame -- all that will simply vanish. But if he doesn't try, he wouldn't be Sam Vimes.

And so the battle is on. He knows how it's going to end; after all, he was there. His name is on one of those headstones. But that's just a minor detail . . .

Night Watch (Discworld Novels)

Terry Pratchett

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Total reviews: 104 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This morning, Commander Vimes of the City Watch had it all. He was a Duke. He was rich.He was respected. He had a silver cigar case. He was about to become a father.

This morning he thought longingly about the good old days.

Tonight, he's in them.

Flung back in time by a mysterious accident, Sam Vimes has to start all over again. He must get a new name and a job, and there's only one job he's good at: cop in the Watch. He must track down a brutal murderer. He must find his younger self and teach him everything he knows. He must whip the cowardly, despised Night Watch into a crack fighting force -- fast. Because Sam Vimes knows what's going to happen. He remembers it. He was there. It's part of history. And you can't change history . . .

But Sam is going to. He has no choice. Otherwise, a bloody revolution will start, and good men will die. Sam saw their names on old headstones just this morning -- but tonight they're young men who think they have a future. And rather than let them die, Sam will do anything -- turn traitor, burn buildings, take over a revolt, anything -- to snatch them from the jaws of history. He will do it even if victory will mean giving up the only future he knows.

For if he succeeds, he's got no wife, no child, no riches, no fame -- all that will simply vanish. But if he doesn't try, he wouldn't be Sam Vimes.

And so the battle is on. He knows how it's going to end; after all, he was there. His name is on one of those headstones. But that's just a minor detail . . .