One of the joys of being a Discworld fan is how Pratchett changed his conception of the Disc over his career. It was ever a vehicle for his interests, not some set and unchanging place, and a vehicle he flung around the track with a deft hand and unbridled glee. Yet in a way, that […]
(mild spoilers) One of the fascinating things about reading Pratchett’s career as a whole is that you get to see where he had an idea, maybe didn’t quite like what he did with it or saw other possibilities, and therefore did it again. Sourcery is a prime example, and an enjoyable read in its own […]
(mild spoilers) Imagine, for one moment, that you are a gangly day-dreamer living in a very hard-headed and serious world. Imagine that you had one day to find a future when seemingly no one sees one for you. Imagine that at two minutes to midnight, you are given a job as apprentice to Death. You […]
(Some Spoilers) In her excellent series of essays, Tansy Rayner Roberts someone suggested someone should write essays on Pratchett’s men. I am stupid enough to think I can be that someone. In the spirit of building off what she has done, I would start with the observation that all of Pratchett’s early characters are shaped […]
(mild spoilers) Equal Rites is a mildly odd book in that the central premise, particularly as suggested by blurbs, of a girl accidentally being gifted a wizard’s power and seeking access to the traditionally masculine wizard’s university, only takes up a fairly small and late part of the story. Equal Rites – that’s equal rights […]
The Light Fantastic, Pratchett’s second Discworld novel, cleaves closely to the model of The Colour of Magic in many ways but with notable improvements in most respects other than the amount of dragons. The one big difference is the plot, of which there was virtually none in TCoM. Nobody is award anything prizes for The […]
Something that fascinates me when you get these big iconic works of art in a creative scene is which ones inspire whole new schools and which ones stand alone. For my money, The Colour of Magic is in the latter category. When was the last time you read a book that reminded you of The […]
(some spoilers, particularly in second time reader) A confession. I have long believed that the City Watch series peaked with Night Watch and that the books after it are, in a way, superfluous. Which means this book. No matter how much a book might be appreciated, it’s hard for it to be fully appreciated when […]
Once upon a time, someone linked me to a set of essays on Pratchett’s female characters. I forget entirely why, although it’s probably due to being next door to being religious about his work. Anyway, I read them. Then I put up links on forums I used so people could read them. Then I read […]
(spoilers yo) Things to do when bored. Look at your own blog archives and find statements you made but never really followed up. In this case, the idea that we don’t talk enough about sets of characters and their dynamics in terms of what makes great fiction. To rectify this, I’m going to do some […]
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