Discworld

Discworld is a fantasy comedy novel series by Terry Pratchet (RIP). The characters are awesome and the satire is hilarious and smartly written. There are 41 books from 1983-2015, but you really don’t have to read them in order. There are sub series that focus on different characters and a few stand-alones: Death, The City Watch, The Wizards, The Witches, and Tiffany Aching. I only read book one of the City Watch arc (Guards! Guards!) and I’m reading book one of Death’s series now (Mort), but I’m already a fan. Both are awesome. Relatively short reads that keep me reading and never bored. The official website is a great resource for new readers:
Discworld Characters - Sir Terry Pratchett

 

Literally just bought The Color of Magic a few days ago. Excited to dive into the series.

 

I’m in a Fantasy/Sci-Fi Book group on Facebook and they’re starting a series read-along with it. I’m going to start it after I finish Mort. Let me know how you like it!

 

Started from the beginning and never looked back, and while I love many of the characters, the one I find myself most empathizing with is Sir Samuel Vimes.

That scene in Night Watch where he tells off the Patrician for daring to suggest making a statue as tribute to the officers that died in the massacre is one of my favorite scenes.

 

"‘You know,’ said Lord Vetinari, after a few moments, ‘it has often crossed my mind that those men deserve a proper memorial of some sort.’
‘Oh yes?’ said Vimes, in a non-committal voice. His heart was still pounding. ‘In one of the main squares, perhaps?’
‘Yes, that would be a good idea.’
‘Perhaps a tableau in bronze?’ said Vimes sarcastically. ‘All seven of them raising the flag, perhaps?’
‘Bronze, yes,’ said Vetinari.
‘Really? And some sort of inspiring slogan?’ said Vimes.
‘Yes, indeed. Something like, perhaps, “They Did The Job They Had To Do”?’
‘No,’ said Vimes, coming to a halt under a lamp by the crypt entrance. ‘How dare you? How dare you! At this time! In this place! They did the job they didn’t have to do, and they died doing it, and you can’t give them anything. Do you understand? They fought for those who’d been abandoned, they fought for one another, and they were betrayed. Men like them always are. What good would a statue be? It’d just inspire new fools to believe they’re going to be heroes. They wouldn’t want that. Just let them be. For ever.’ "

 

I love this exchange with Death.

 

Death is constantly the best.

 

I finished Mort recently. Here’s what I wrote up on Goodreads:
“This is my second Discworld book, but it’s number 4 in the series and number 1 in the Death sub series. I totally loved this, a lot more than Guards! Guards! (City Watch book 1). Mort is at a job fair and gets hired by Death to be his apprentice. That’s the basic premise of the story. Yes, the book is a comedy at heart, but the characters (especially Death) are well written and the themes are very thought-provoking. The story really pulled me in. It’s also fantasy, but the world-building is less Game of Thrones and more focused on the story instead of “epicness”. I feel like people write the series off (pun!) because of the comedy label. There’s a lot to unpack in this story. Death comes for everyone when it’s their time. Good characters, good story, good balance between goofiness and heavy themes. I recommend it as someone’s first entry in the Discworld series!”

 

I recommend all the Discworld books so I'd tell people to start with The Color Of Magic, but Mort isn't a bad place to start if you want to get a feel for what the books are like.

And to be fair, The Color Of Magic and The Light Fantastic suffer from some "early installment weirdness" since they're an introduction to Ankh-Morpork and a little more fantastical since it's about Rincewind.

Comedy is kind of a disingenuous word to use for these books, satire is more apt. The books are ultimately on our world and each one drills down on a topic and turns it upside down.

Death is definitely one of my favorite characters in the series and the journey he goes on with someone else who gets introduced later on is one of the most interesting and touching sagas in the series.

Glad you're enjoying the books!

 

I’m a bit into The Colour of Magic and not digging it that much. I’m in a Discworld book club on Facebook and we plan to read all the books in order, a chunk per week and discussion. I figure I’ll power through this one and book two, since Equal Rites sounds awesome.

 

Equal Rites is great.