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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
While I love the humor and the spoof of Phantom of the Opera, there was an overarching theme of fatphobia I couldn't really vibe with.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was my first stand alone Terry Pratchett book and I loved it to pieces. Flew through it. As a long time Phantom of the Opera lover this left me in stitches. A loving jab at a well loved classic. I can't wait to read more.
Agnes is a wonderful new character, I just wish the book treated her better.
Contains one of my all time favorite quotes:
"***the IQ of a mob is the IQ of its most stupid member, divided by the number mobsters,***"
I think about the truth of that statement on a weekly basis, mostly when I am reading articles on the internet.
"***the IQ of a mob is the IQ of its most stupid member, divided by the number mobsters,***"
I think about the truth of that statement on a weekly basis, mostly when I am reading articles on the internet.
2012, March 28-29
That was so much fun.
December 31, 2013 - January 4, 2014
Phantom of the Opera Discworld style.
March 24-26, 2016
I love all of the twists and turns in this story. Brilliant as always.
July 4-5, 2018
Greebo and the witches are awesome.
That was so much fun.
December 31, 2013 - January 4, 2014
Phantom of the Opera Discworld style.
March 24-26, 2016
I love all of the twists and turns in this story. Brilliant as always.
July 4-5, 2018
Greebo and the witches are awesome.
Me ha gustado muchísimo más de lo que recordaba. Las miles de referencias a óperas, al musical y su surgimiento durante el s XX como entretenimiento de masas, lo cabronas que son Yaya y Tata (no son las buenas, aunque pueda parecerlo porque son las protagonistas), el desarrollo de Agnes, Walter....
Maskerade is another very fun instalment in the Witches series of Discworld novels, which is even more enjoyable if you're a fan of opera and/or musical theatre. In this clear spoof of The Phantom of the Opera a girl from Lancre who would rather not become the third town witch runs off to join the Ankh-Morpork opera company, only to find the opera house is being terrorized by a Ghost. Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax follow her and mystery and hijinks ensue. It's fast-paced and humorous and I could not stop humming tunes from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical to myself as I was reading it.
But - and it's a big BUT - we need to do a better job talking about how so many Discworld novels seem to contain at least one super offensive racist joke. In past I've mostly noted stereotyping of Asian accents and facial features in a way that's very orientalist. In Maskerade there is an outright joke about African American slavery that caricaturizes what Pratchett presumably thought sounded like a slave dialect and compares a cat to a plantation owner.
When you look up discussions of racism and Discworld a lot of the discourse revolves around the fact that as a public figure, Pratchett had a strong history of speaking out against racism. Others look to the way that inter-species conflicts in his novels can be used to illustrate anti-racist principles. That can all be valid at the same time as recognizing that he clearly had some serious blind spots. These kinds of jokes were and are harmful and they aren't limited to his earlier work.
I'm not necessarily suggesting that the racist jokes be cut, since that would be hiding the problem, but maybe future editions could use some kind of footnotes to better contextualize the comments and acknowledge the harm. Regardless, it's clearly something the Discworld fandom still needs to grapple with and that can only start with fans owning it.
But - and it's a big BUT - we need to do a better job talking about how so many Discworld novels seem to contain at least one super offensive racist joke. In past I've mostly noted stereotyping of Asian accents and facial features in a way that's very orientalist. In Maskerade there is an outright joke about African American slavery that caricaturizes what Pratchett presumably thought sounded like a slave dialect and compares a cat to a plantation owner.
When you look up discussions of racism and Discworld a lot of the discourse revolves around the fact that as a public figure, Pratchett had a strong history of speaking out against racism. Others look to the way that inter-species conflicts in his novels can be used to illustrate anti-racist principles. That can all be valid at the same time as recognizing that he clearly had some serious blind spots. These kinds of jokes were and are harmful and they aren't limited to his earlier work.
I'm not necessarily suggesting that the racist jokes be cut, since that would be hiding the problem, but maybe future editions could use some kind of footnotes to better contextualize the comments and acknowledge the harm. Regardless, it's clearly something the Discworld fandom still needs to grapple with and that can only start with fans owning it.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Update: so I read it after quitting a while ago for fat-phobia. This is a love letter to the opera and Phantom of the Opera, but with the witches.
Not much to say, I was convinced to read this because I originally decided to quit and skip due to the fat-phobia present. It was fine, I went in with a bad taste in my mouth so that probably tainted the book for me. I did chuckle a bit from time to time and I liked the ending, but not my fave Discworld for sure however still glad I read it.
From when I originally quit: It’s kind of weird how badly Pratchett wants you to know how large of a woman the main character is. I got through 25 pages and it’s very nearly on every page. She can’t turn around, she doesn’t know her own body, etc. It’s dumb and I didn’t want to keep reading it.
Not much to say, I was convinced to read this because I originally decided to quit and skip due to the fat-phobia present. It was fine, I went in with a bad taste in my mouth so that probably tainted the book for me. I did chuckle a bit from time to time and I liked the ending, but not my fave Discworld for sure however still glad I read it.
From when I originally quit: It’s kind of weird how badly Pratchett wants you to know how large of a woman the main character is. I got through 25 pages and it’s very nearly on every page. She can’t turn around, she doesn’t know her own body, etc. It’s dumb and I didn’t want to keep reading it.
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think Pratchett is one of those writers where if you don’t get into it at the right time of your life, you just never do. I enjoyed Monstrous Regiment, but this one was just ehhhh. Maybe because of the ableism and fatphobia, but even when that wasn’t front and center I was just underwhelmed.