Just finished up Guards! Guards! last night. It's so far the best book in the series. It seems to be where Pratchett really got dialed in, and Vimes is one of the most interesting people to inhabit the world. I know a lot of people say don't bother reading them in order, but it's actually really an enjoyable way to do it, as you see how the world and Pratchett's prose evolve. Plus I don't know how much I would have enjoyed Colour of Magic had I read it after stuff like Mort, Sourcery, and Guards! Guards!
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The Discworld Thread mk. 2: Now Made from Real Sapient Pearwood!
- Thread starter Issun
- Start date
I've been rereading Discworld, in order, on and off between other books for the past several months. While I read most of the series as a kid/teenager growing up, I'd never actually read anything earlier than Mort at the time since the prevailing wisdom on the internet was "don't bother". And I certainly hadn't reread any of the other ones in all this time, so it's been really fun in all.
I completely agree that Guards! Guards! is where the series really came into its own, and I don't think that would've been as noticeable if I hadn't been going in order. The early books were enjoyable enough, but this is where it feels like the world clicks into place.
I just finished up Interesting Times earlier this week, the first Discworld book I ever read back at the age of 12 or 13 (it was the most recent one in the series at the time, which for some reason I thought would make it a good starting point?). I was instantly hooked and telling all my friends about it, but reading it again now it feels like a relatively minor entry, even if it does reintroduce some characters long-time readers would've been happy to see again. Maybe the Rincewind books are more meant to be the light comedies of the series. The Night Watch books certainly feel like where most of the meat ended up, looking at Discworld as a whole.
I completely agree that Guards! Guards! is where the series really came into its own, and I don't think that would've been as noticeable if I hadn't been going in order. The early books were enjoyable enough, but this is where it feels like the world clicks into place.
I just finished up Interesting Times earlier this week, the first Discworld book I ever read back at the age of 12 or 13 (it was the most recent one in the series at the time, which for some reason I thought would make it a good starting point?). I was instantly hooked and telling all my friends about it, but reading it again now it feels like a relatively minor entry, even if it does reintroduce some characters long-time readers would've been happy to see again. Maybe the Rincewind books are more meant to be the light comedies of the series. The Night Watch books certainly feel like where most of the meat ended up, looking at Discworld as a whole.
Rincewind as a character may not be too deep on his own merits, but he's still an excellent POV character and his personality allows others to bounce great reactions off of him. Interesting Times is definitely his brightest moment, but The Last Continent is wonderful too.
FelixSH
(He/Him)
I'm also reading the books in order, but am extremely slow - I started four or five years ago, and am now just at Night Watch.
Personally, I thought Wyrd Sisters was the one where Pratchett got the world really right. I found it excellent, and a good step above the ones before.
Honestly, I'm always a bit sad when people mention the Watch books as the best series, when the Witches are, to me, equally great (granted, there are one or two in the middle that are a bit weaker). I know, to each his own, they are all great. And all are worth reading, even the early ones.
And for the record, I think the Guard books are excellent.
Personally, I thought Wyrd Sisters was the one where Pratchett got the world really right. I found it excellent, and a good step above the ones before.
Honestly, I'm always a bit sad when people mention the Watch books as the best series, when the Witches are, to me, equally great (granted, there are one or two in the middle that are a bit weaker). I know, to each his own, they are all great. And all are worth reading, even the early ones.
And for the record, I think the Guard books are excellent.
Egarwaen
(He/Him)
I completely agree; I think that over the course of Wyrd Sisters, Pyramids, and Guards Guards! one can see Pratchett stretch himself more and more until Moving Pictures establishes what is going to be the normal formula for pretty much the entire rest of the series.
I saw a good summary about this bullshit a week or two ago, but that video has a great tweet from Neil Gaiman saying that Terry specifically told him how proud he was that trans people saw themselves in his dwarf characters. Linking the thing I read below in case anyone wants to read instead of watching a video.
www.themarysue.com
I finished up Maskerade and Feet of Clay (which introduces Cheery Littlebottom) recently, and while I don't have the time to post more about them now, I want to come back and talk about them a bit later.
Transphobes Tried To Claim Terry Pratchett and NOPE | The Mary Sue
Some transphobes tried to claim Terry Pratchett as one of their own, but were swiftly shot down his daughter and his own work.
www.themarysue.com
I finished up Maskerade and Feet of Clay (which introduces Cheery Littlebottom) recently, and while I don't have the time to post more about them now, I want to come back and talk about them a bit later.
I'm willing to bet they're not actually reading anything.
FelixSH
(He/Him)
So, I just got through Wee Free Men. Great book, fun as always, and I love that we start to finally get to see, what the third book gave us some look into - how a witch is trained, and how she develops on that way.
I remember not liking the Feegles too much. Not that I disliked them, but I was always glad that they would get less and less important, as the Tiffany books went on. Not so now, I enjoyed their company a whole lot. Meeting the Fairy Queen is always fun, too, and I enjoy deconstructions of wonderland, or whatever you want to call these fantastic places, where dreams come from. It's just a very interesting theme, talking about how it is not a good idea to actually have your dreams and wishes fulfilled.
Another thing that I like about this series is, that Granny is now a side character. Granny is one of my favourite Discworld characters, but she feels somewhat overpowered, after Lords and Ladies. Which doesn't matter, when she is just a side character, especially one who is just a mentor, and will let Tiffany deal with her stuff on her own. But in that role, I appreciate her and Nanny a lot.
I remember not liking the Feegles too much. Not that I disliked them, but I was always glad that they would get less and less important, as the Tiffany books went on. Not so now, I enjoyed their company a whole lot. Meeting the Fairy Queen is always fun, too, and I enjoy deconstructions of wonderland, or whatever you want to call these fantastic places, where dreams come from. It's just a very interesting theme, talking about how it is not a good idea to actually have your dreams and wishes fulfilled.
Another thing that I like about this series is, that Granny is now a side character. Granny is one of my favourite Discworld characters, but she feels somewhat overpowered, after Lords and Ladies. Which doesn't matter, when she is just a side character, especially one who is just a mentor, and will let Tiffany deal with her stuff on her own. But in that role, I appreciate her and Nanny a lot.
Last night I finished The Shepherd's Crown, and with it the complete series read that I started back in 2020. I read them in between other books, but I really liked knowing that I could just pick up a Discworld whenever I ran out of other stuff to read. Now that I've gotten through all of them, I'm pretty sad that there are no more! At the same time, what an absolute joy it was to read these. What a gift Terry Pratchett gave us.
Before this, the last Discworld book I'd bought was Night Watch, so many of them after that were new to me. I was a little wary going into the Tiffany Aching books, since they were supposed to be more YA-oriented, but they grew on me extremely quickly and once you get a couple of books in they just feel like part of the main series. I loved getting to see more of Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg as well, even just as supporting roles.
One thing that really impressed me along the way was just how consistent Pratchett really was. I always enjoyed the books when I was younger, but going through them in order helped me see that while some of the books may be better than others, none of them are really bad. At worst, they're still fine. 41 books and none of them are bad. Most authors can only dream of that kind of output.
I have a bunch of other scattered thoughts about individual books and the series as a whole, but the one thing I do want to pin down right now is how devoted Pratchett was to showing his characters' dignity. No matter who they were, where they were from, what species, time and again there's a through line in the entire series that all people are valuable and deserving. It sounds corny writing it down like that, and it's not something he ever stops and spells out (nor would he), but it's always at the heart of the series.
I feel like I should have some kind of conclusion here, but I don't really. Discworld: still great!
Before this, the last Discworld book I'd bought was Night Watch, so many of them after that were new to me. I was a little wary going into the Tiffany Aching books, since they were supposed to be more YA-oriented, but they grew on me extremely quickly and once you get a couple of books in they just feel like part of the main series. I loved getting to see more of Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg as well, even just as supporting roles.
One thing that really impressed me along the way was just how consistent Pratchett really was. I always enjoyed the books when I was younger, but going through them in order helped me see that while some of the books may be better than others, none of them are really bad. At worst, they're still fine. 41 books and none of them are bad. Most authors can only dream of that kind of output.
I have a bunch of other scattered thoughts about individual books and the series as a whole, but the one thing I do want to pin down right now is how devoted Pratchett was to showing his characters' dignity. No matter who they were, where they were from, what species, time and again there's a through line in the entire series that all people are valuable and deserving. It sounds corny writing it down like that, and it's not something he ever stops and spells out (nor would he), but it's always at the heart of the series.
I feel like I should have some kind of conclusion here, but I don't really. Discworld: still great!
Humble’s massive Terry Pratchett bundle includes 38 Discworld books for $18
Here’s where to start reading Discworld, what to know going in, and the best deal possible on Pratchett’s work
www.polygon.com
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