Saturday, September 29, 2007
A New Book Changes Reading Plans
I discovered that the new Terry Pratchett book had arrived yesterday. So, I snagged it off the shelf and brought it home after a very long day at work. I started reading it immediately, but paced myself. I read only the first chapter to get me into the book, but since I so look forward to the publication of Pratchett's books, I want to savor it as well. This is a Discworld novel. For those of you who don't know what that means, I pity you. Pratchett has created a fantastical world inhabited by dwarfs, vampires, witches, wizards, death (as a character), etc. all inhabiting Discworld -- a flat plant that makes its way across the universe on the back of a giant turtle who stands on 4 (or 5) elephants. His characters and situations, however, mirror the world we inhabit and our foibles. Pratchett works are overlooked sometimes because of the fantastical species that form the fabric out of which he weaves his satire. He is, in my opinion, one of the great satirist of our time and deserves to be read more widely. Not only are his insights keen, he is one of the funniest authors you will find -- in the Monty Python school of absurdity. Anyway, the new book is called, "Making Money". The protagonist is Moist Von Lipwig, who in a previous book revamped the postal system of Anhk-Morpork and has now been asked to take over the mint, hence the title, "Making Money". Having a new Terry Pratchett book to read on a weekend with beautiful Fall weather in the forecast and a Badgers game and a Packers game to look forward --- life can't get much better than this!
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4 comments:
I've never read Terry Pratchett, but you have me convinced that I should!
(Anything with a character named Moist Von Lipwig deserves at least a try!)
Would you recommend starting at the beginning, or can each book stand on its own?
Each book stands alone, but most of the characters repeat from book to book. So having read the whole series adds texture, ambience, deeper understanding, etc. One of the great things about Terry Pratchett is how prolific he is. There are 37 books related to Discworld, about 10 kids books, and a few miscellaneous. There are also Discworld gatherings (like Star Trek) and, when in a previous book Moist Van Lipwig reformed the ailing post office (in a book called "Going Postal" ( I think)) Terry started printing stamps on a Victorian press he had found somewhere and the stamps are now collectibles for Discworld maniacs as well as philatelists. I imagine he may start printing money on his little printing press as an adjunct to his new book "Making Money" and hook numistmatists as well.
Going postal was great. This one is turning out great too. Moist won't let you down. Gotta love the adding glitter to the top hat! We are reading Men At Arms for our book group this month.
Interesting stamp tie-in for going postal. Since I don't have to start at the beginning, I think I'll start with that one (since ssk gave it such a good review!)
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