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Terry Pratchett!

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Wed 03 Jan , 2018 2:50 pm
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So I'm re-reading Going Postal, and noticed this little detail that made no impression on me last time:

Reacher Gilt lives in "Tump Tower". :Q

Discuss.

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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Sat 06 Jan , 2018 8:13 pm
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I think it's a one-off joke, honestly.

We need to get yov to read Going Postal. I consider it to be the finest discussion of libertarian ideas in literature.

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Sat 06 Jan , 2018 9:04 pm
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What, better than the literary masterpieces of Ayn Rand? :P

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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Sat 06 Jan , 2018 9:05 pm
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Well, it's Pratchett so yeah, probably. :D

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MariaHobbit
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Mon 08 Jan , 2018 8:03 pm
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"Going Postal" is actually the first Pratchett book we listened to. It was great! :) It was going back and starting from the beginning that soured me on Discworld books.


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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Mon 08 Jan , 2018 9:55 pm
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In that case, don't do them in order. Follow themes. For example:

If you liked Going Postal, you'll probably like "Making Money". And probably "The Truth".

Then follow the City Watch theme: start with "Guards! Guards!", then "Men at Arms", etc.

Or the Lancre Witches theme: start with "Wyrd Sisters", then "Witches Abroad", "Lords and Ladies", "Maskerade", and "Carpe Jugulum".

(some people would argue that the Lancre Witches theme starts with "Equal Rites", but since you don't seem to like early Pratchett, I'd just skip that one for now)

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MariaHobbit
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 2:32 pm
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We also liked "Making Money". :) Is "The Truth" also about Moist von Lipwig? Wikipedia says "Raising Steam" is.


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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 3:20 pm
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The Truth predates Going Postal. It's one of the first books in which Ankh-Morpork begins to transform from a Leiberian fantasy into a Victorian metropolis. No Moist, but it introduces Sacharissa, who interviews Moist in his books. If you liked GP and MM, go for it, you will like this one, too.

Raising Steam does have Moist but don't read it yet. It was written when Pratchett knew his time was running short and it's a beginning of his farewell to his world. Also, you need to read Snuff first, and for that you will want to read the Watch arc first.

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aninkling
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 3:44 pm
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I love Pratchett and re-read many of his books several times. But not the first two, where he was still finding his style. Or anything after Unseen Academicals (which was OK, but starting to show some weaknesses, IMO).

And I didn't bother reading anything after Snuff, which was the last straw for me (I wished I had spent that time on something else and threw the book out). Except for the very last book, which I liked because it wrapped things up and the writing was good. It was probably ghost-written to some extent, but didn't suffer from some of the awful writing/ characterizations in his last few books.

Last edited by aninkling on Tue 09 Jan , 2018 3:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 3:47 pm
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I actually re-read the last one recently. It has many things in it to love - in particular, the queen Nightshade trying to learn empathy. In this, Pratchett succeeded with his elves where Tolkien failed with his orcs.

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aninkling
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 3:53 pm
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[SHOW]
Yes. And I actually liked it that there wasn't a happy ending for Nightshade. Pratchett was taking a chance with that, but in the real world, things don't always turn out, despite everyone's best intentions.
Granny Weatherwax's death is also a high point for me.


btw, Maria, you might also try The Last Hero. It works as a standalone book - it's about the last adventures of a bunch of aging barbarian heroes, complete with dentures and wheelchairs, and includes snarky observations about the weaknesses of Dark Lords.

I'm not sure how it would do as an audiobook, though - the illustrations add a good deal to the story.

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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 5:05 pm
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My favorite thing about Last Hero was the old lady adventuress using knitting needles as her weapon. And the line "The song remains. No one remembers the singer."

Another excellent stand alone is Monstrous Regiment, where a young woman disguises herself as a soldier and discovers that she is not as alone as she thought. Also the dangers of thinking with the socks. I'd recommend reading the Truth first, as it introduces William de Worde and Otto Chriek, and it's more fun that way.

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Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 9:11 pm
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I thought Monstrous Regiment was a bit weak actually. Probably my least favourite Pratchett.

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 9:59 pm
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I kind of agree - I thought the main premise was brilliant and original, but he overplayed it. At some point, the revelations stopped being surprises.

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aninkling
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Tue 09 Jan , 2018 10:39 pm
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In a comedy, I'm not sure they were meant to be surprises at that point. Maybe the over-the-top-ness was part of the joke?

All the same, I didn't like Monstrous Regiment all that much myself. I don't know why - just got a bit bored somehow. It improved a little on second reading, but it's never been a favorite. Eric and Pyramids are also among the weaker ones for me.
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And the line "The song remains. No one remembers the singer."
I agree - wonderful line. And I loved the character of the old woman barbarian.

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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Fri 25 May , 2018 9:40 pm
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The new trailer for Troll Bridge is out.

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Fri 25 May , 2018 10:49 pm
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It looks promising.

I'm guessing this is more fanfiction than genuine Pratchett?

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Frelga
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Fri 25 May , 2018 11:45 pm
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It's based on the short story Troll Bridge, pretty closely, I think.

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Jude
Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Mon 06 Aug , 2018 7:54 pm
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Jude wrote:
Frelga wrote:
Did you hear that Pratchett said his daughter will take the Discworld over when he is gone?
No, that's news to me. And it looks from the article that it means she'll be one of the writers in a BBC series called "The Watch", which will take over where the novels leave off.
This is a quote from a post from 2012. Did anything happen regarding this hypothetical series? Is it still in the works?

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Post subject: Re: Terry Pratchett!
Posted: Mon 06 Aug , 2018 10:22 pm
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Rihanna's pretty busy with her own career surely?

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