Going Postal Group-Read, Week One

On July 10, 2012July 10, 2012 By cherylmahoneyIn Summer in Discworld9 Comments

Today is our first installment of the Going Postal group-read. Read the details about the challenge, and see my review of Going Postal if you’d like a little more context.

We’re starting off the discussion with a few questions about the first hundred pages of the book.

1) For those new to Pratchett or Going Postal, what are your first impressions? For re-readers, is anything striking you this time that you didn’t notice on a first read?

I’m obviously a re-reader. This is actually one of my first Discworld re-reads–there are so many books, I’ve mostly been seeking out new ones to explore! I find that the satire is making a bigger impression this time around–I noticed it before, but I’m seeing it more now. I think I get distracted by all the wonderful humor on an initial read, and while a second time through is still very, very funny, the deeper aspects of the book are coming through more clearly as well. In just this first section Pratchett has already started touching on so many ideas, about government, truth, civil rights, collectors culture… I’ll leave it at that for now, as I want to discuss the satire in more depth in a later post, after it’s been developed further!

2) We’ve started to get to know our protagonist, Moist von Lipvig, by now. What are your thoughts on him so far?

Pratchett’s makes a lot of Moist’s charm. Everyone seems to love him, despite the fact that he’s a crook and a scoundrel–and somehow they seem to love him because of it. I love that Moist himself directly observes this paradox. I also feel like Pratchett is playing the reader much the way Moist plays the crowd. We fall under the spell of Moist’s charm too. He’s friendly, he’s pleasant, he’s completely honest about being a crook, and he has style. I think readers always love a scoundrel, especially one who never really hurts anyone. Pratchett makes a point early on that Moist cons people, but he doesn’t kill anyone, or even hit people over the head. He starts out as the charming rogue that we want to root for. Having read the book before, I know Pratchett is going to delve into this idea more, and I’m enjoying watching its initial set-up.

3) We’ve also met quite a few rather unusual supporting characters. Who are you most looking forward to reading more about?

Strangely enough, Moist is a relatively normal main character surrounded by even weirder figures. Groat stands out, completely bonkers in some ways but he also has such devotion to the post office, and to the memory of how it used to be. He’s almost a tragic figure–in a really bad toupee!

I’m also really enjoying Vetinari. He shows up in a lot of Discworld books, and I think he gets a particularly good turn in this one. I love that he’s a tyrant who makes things work. I think I’m stealing that phrase from one of the City Guards books, but it describes him so well. He’s always four steps ahead of everyone else, nothing ever ruffles him, and despite a well-deserved reputation for ruthlessness, he always makes things work for the greater good.

4) What are your favorite quotes or moments from this section of the book?

Oh, so many…Pratchett really hits the ground running with the humor. For instance:

Mr. Groat, re: Stanley: “Orphan, sir. Very sad. Came to us from the Siblings of Offler charity home, sir. Both parents passed away of the Gnats on their farm out in the wilds, sir, and he was raised by peas.”

“Surely you mean on peas, Mr. Groat?”

“By peas, sir. Very unusual case. A good lad if he doesn’t get upset, but he tends to twist toward the sun, sir, if you get my meaning.”

I don’t get his meaning at all, but it’s hilarious. If he explained it, it would ruin everything. A more philosophical favorite moment:

“It was…odd to think of all those letters heaped in that old building. You could imagine them as little packets of history. Deliver them, and history went one way. But if you dropped them in the gap between the floorboards, it went the other.”

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If you’re participating in the group read, leave a comment with a link to your first post. I can’t wait to see what everyone thinks! And if you’re thinking you’d like to join in, it’s not a long read and there’s plenty of time still to catch up; just let me know, and I’ll send you the questions for next Tuesday’s post. 🙂

Favorites Friday: Discworld Moments

On June 29, 2012June 29, 2012 By cherylmahoneyIn Favorites Friday, Summer in Discworld4 Comments

Continuing our Discworld theme this Friday…I originally thought of doing favorite quotes, but as I compiled them I realized there were several that were all about the dialogue or the back-and-forth. So here are some favorite Discworld moments.

First, a philosophical one, about the power of knowledge:

They thought the Library was a dangerous place because of all the magical books, which was true enough, but what made it really one of the most dangerous places there could ever be was the simple fact that it was a library.

– Guards! Guards!

And another time, Death waxes philosophical. It should be noted that Death always speaks IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS:

WHO KNOWS WHAT EVIL LURKS IN THE HEART OF MEN?
The Death of Rats looked up from the feast of potato.
SQUEAK, he said.
Death waved a hand dismissively. WELL, YES, OBVIOUSLY ME, he said. I JUST WONDERED IF THERE WAS ANYONE ELSE.

– The Truth

And because Death is so brilliant, another one, after someone suggested that he should be “more of a people person”:

KNOCK KNOCK.
He looked up.
“Who’s there?”
DEATH.
“Death who?”
There was a chill in the air. Beano waited…
I WONDER… CAN WE START AGAIN? I DON’T SEEM TO HAVE THE HANG OF THIS…

– Men at Arms

Maskerade is probably a favorite moment in its entirety, and I could quote most of it…but here’s just one moment. A dead body turns up, along with a note from the Opera Ghost:

Hahahahaha! Ahahahahaha!
Yrs, The Opera Ghost
P.S. Ahahahahaha!

“I don’t understand! Is this man mad?”

Salzella put an arm around his shoulders and led him away from the crowd. “Well, now,” he said as kindly as he could. “A man who wears evening dress all the time, lurks in the shadows and occasionally kills people. Then he sends little notes, writing maniacal laughter. Five exclamation marks again, I notice. We have to ask ourselves: is this the career of a sane man?”

“But why is he doing it?” Bucket wailed.

“That is only a relevant question if he is sane,” said Salzella calmly. “He may be doing it because the little yellow pixies tell him to.”

– Maskerade

The image of the Phantom of the Opera, chatting with the little yellow pixies, never fails to crack me up. It’s the same for this very odd bit below, about a crazed artist:

“He was convinced that if he went to sleep at night, he would turn into a chicken. He’d leave little notes for himself saying, ‘You are not a chicken,’ although sometimes he thought he was lying… Scholars have puzzled over the notes ever since, seeking some insight into the poor man’s tortured mind. They are not in any order, you see. Some are very…odd.”

“Odder than ‘You are not a chicken’?”

– Thud!

I think I need to re-read all of these books now. 🙂 Other Discworld readers, what are your favorite quotes or moments?

Pathways Through Discworld

On June 15, 2012June 15, 2012 By cherylmahoneyIn Summer in Discworld4 Comments

Have you signed up for the Summer in Discworld reading challenge yet? Still plenty of time to join in! This week, I thought I’d post some thoughts on navigating Discworld, for people deciding where to start, or which book to pick up next.

The Discworld series has within it several sub-series, with sets of books that focus on the same groups of characters. It seems to me that the most obvious thing in the world would be to provide a list breaking the books out into these sub-groups. But…Google hasn’t been able to find me a good list! There are a few out there, but either they’re hard to read, or they’re not matching my experience reading the books (I’ve seen Maskerade described as a City Guard book–it’s really not, despite some cameos). So, naturally, I set about to make my own list.

Part of the complexity may be that characters often show up in supporting roles, even when they aren’t a primary focus. I’ve tried to arrange books based on who the lead protagonists are–for example, Vimes shows up in The Truth, but only in a supporting role so I haven’t put it with the other Vimes/City Guard books. A few books show up twice, as they cross sub-series.

I’ve starred the books I’ve read, and feel free to ask if you’d like to know more about any of them. If you notice a book that seems mis-grouped, let me know. I don’t claim perfect accuracy. 🙂 But, hopefully this will give you some good directions for whichever paths you want to pursue.

Rincewind
The Colour of Magic*
The Light Fantastic*
Sourcery
Eric
Interesting Times
The Lost Continent
The Last Hero

Wizards
Reaper Man*
Interesting Times
The Lost Continent
Unseen Academicals
Lords and Ladies*

Witches
Equal Rites*
Wyrd Sisters
Witches Abroad
Lords and Ladies*
Maskerade*
Carpe Jugulum

Death
Mort
Reaper Man*
Soul Music*
Hogfather*
Thief of Time

City Guard
Guards! Guards!*
Men at Arms*
Feet of Clay*
Jingo*
The Fifth Elephant*
The Last Hero
Night Watch*
Thud!*
Where’s My Cow? (picture book)*
Snuff*

Wee Free Men/Tiffany Aching
The Wee Free Men*
A Hat Full of Sky
Wintersmith
The Wee Free Men: The Beginning
I Shall Wear Midnight

Independent
Pyramids
Moving Pictures
Small Gods
The Truth*
Monstrous Regiment
Going Postal*
Making Money

Obviously I have not been too systematic in my reading…merely proof that you can attempt Discworld by any route you like!

Lords and Ladies and Witches and Elves

On June 11, 2012June 11, 2012 By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Reviews, Summer in Discworld5 Comments

I just read my first book for my Summer in Discworld challenge: Lords and Ladies, part of the Witches subseries. I seem to be reading Pratchett’s Witches books backwards. I read Maskerade first, ages ago. Lords and Ladies comes immediately before it, and there are at least two other earlier ones. But no matter–Discworld is fun in any order (but be warned, spoilers ahead for earlier books). I wound up here because it’s June, and I wanted to read Pratchett’s Midsummer Night’s Dream retelling for the Once Upon a Time Challenge.

It’s a very loose retelling. There are fairies and royalty and a group of rustics who are trying (without much success) to put on a play. Beyond that, there’s not much resemblance to the Bard’s story. Pratchett’s story focuses on three witches–Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick. They’ve just returned from a trip abroad (a previous book), and Magrat is due to marry King Verence (which she’s almost sure she wants to do). Meanwhile, there are mysterious crop circles popping up in fields, on heads of hair and in bowls of porridge; there are strange stirrings between the multiverses; and an ancient force is trying to break through from another world. Unfortunately, as Granny and Nanny know, elves are not nearly as nice as people want to believe…

The plot here is mostly just a vehicle for the characters–and they’re wonderful characters. Granny Weatherwax is a stiff old crone, in the most literal sense, terrifying for her sheer willpower more than for her magic, and fiercely protective of her kingdom and people. Nanny Ogg is ever cheerful, ever comfortable and good-natured, utterly incapable of being embarrassed no matter the circumstances and at home everywhere…but you somehow get the impression you don’t want to cross her either. Magrat is sweet and plain and lacking self-confidence–at least until she gets some inspiration from history.

There are a host of good supporting characters as well. Verence was originally trained to be a Fool and somehow wound up king (also a previous book), and is very sure that he can learn all he needs to about running a kingdom, handling people and getting married by reading the right books. The group of rustics don’t stand out individually (especially since they’re all known as Weaver the thatcher or Carpenter the baker or Baker the butcher, and so on), but they’re funny in their jumble–and they’re the closest connection to the Shakespearean play. The Wizards from Ankh Morpork’s Unseen University come to town for the wedding, and I liked them better than I have in any previous books–they’re finally starting to emerge as individuals to me. My favorite, though, is the Librarian, who loves books and happens to be an orangutan (a spell gone very wrong).

And the elves, well…they are actually genuinely frightening. It’s not at all a horror book, and I wouldn’t exactly say any parts are scary–but the concept of the elves, these smiling, beguiling people who see humans as animals, and wreak havoc and inflict pain for the fun of it…it’s quite a frightening concept.

I do have a few small criticisms. The book takes a good fifteen pages to get going properly. Pratchett likes to do philosophical prologues, and this book went through a whole series of scenes like that before we got to the witches (though Death had a good scene in this first section). The point of view jumps about wildly, which sort of bothers me but only in an academic way. It didn’t actually interfere with my reading, it was just something I noticed every so often and my literary instincts got upset. More difficult was his lack of speech tags in some places, so I had to go back and count lines to figure out who was talking.

But those are small criticisms. I enjoyed the book: there was some beautiful writing, excellet character development, good tension and, of course, humor. I wouldn’t classify it as a favorite Discworld volume, but I liked getting to know the Witches better, and I expect to continue reading their stories–though I haven’t decided whether to go back to the beginning, or keep going backwards!

Author’s Site: http://terrypratchettbooks.com/

Other reviews:
SF Reviews
The Wertzone
The Incurable Bluestocking
Anyone else?

Saturday Snapshot: Discworld Titles

On June 2, 2012June 2, 2012 By cherylmahoneyIn Saturday Snapshot, Summer in Discworld21 Comments

I thought I’d play with pictures and book titles today. I just launched a Terry Pratchett Reading Challenge for the summer, so I have Pratchett on the brain–and I decided to have some fun pairing images with his book titles.