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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Okay, this is going towards the very top of the list, holy shit. Sir Terry never really misses, does he?
I kept thinking about the way we as a culture are having this conversation, at the moment a really terrible conversation full of violence and hate, about gender... and how this book isn't about that, except that it kind of is, it's just this really beautiful examination of injustice and war and gender and... Terry Pratchett was such an insightful writer of culture, such a brilliant satirist, I kept thinking about how he would have written and talked about the current moment. I wish he was here to give us some clarity and guidance, I guess.
There are aspects of this book where, the literal meaning being what it is, I couldn't help but reading some truly radical gender-queerness into the book. There's Clogston, whose name is Christine, but who doesn't think he could "get used to wearing a dress again..." There are the moments when Polly has this strange feeling of discomfort in her own body when she's "dressing up as a woman." There's Maladicta, who, yes, does say that she's a woman who dresses up as a man for all the same reasons that everyone else is doing it, namely that being a woman in her world is more difficult than being a man, but something about her coming out moment to Polly read as particularly trans to me, where she basically just braces herself and says, "I'm actually Maladicta" and Polly just says "okay, good for you," like really gracefully accepting this revelation. And it read more like someone standing in their truth than revealing a disguise, if that makes sense? Also, the Igor/Igorina thing, something about the fact that she can physically transition in a way that's totally normative for her... species? Or whatever you want to call it? And even Jade, where the gender markers aren't necessarily parsed in the same way as they would be for humans so it's showing that there's not necessarily one inherent way to present as a woman and live your life as one.
And then my favorite, this bit about Jackrum that just completely knocked my socks off: "Jackrum had turned her chair to the fire, and had settled back. Around him, the kitchen worked." Just... the her right into the him was so deft and succinct and perfect.
I did find myself wondering at the lack of dwarf characters in this one, since we've already seen the way their concept of gender is its own unique thing in this world, but I appreciate that this book expands the scope of that conversation away from just the one fantasy people within the Discworld!
There's also a full-on gay relationship between two young women in this book, and I was a little startled (and pleased) to see it! There's kind of the unfortunate implication that they're lesbians due to trauma, like, the world treated them so horrendously that the only solace they had was each other, which would be a little better if they weren't the only ostensibly gay characters in the text. I wouldn't have minded some of these other cross-dressing women being like... "I'm actually into the ladies" lol. Honestly would have loved a hinted romantic vibe between Polly and maybe, say, Maladict, with the reveal that she's a woman changing nothing about it, just the suggestion that maybe they'll be something someday. But that's asking a lot of a book published in 2003.
I keep thinking of more things I want to talk about: I loved Wazzer, the Joan of Arc vibes there, the way religion functions in this world as a consequence of belief. I actually have been thinking a lot about gods and pantheons in big expansive fantasy franchises because of the ending to Campaign 3 of Critical Role, which had a divisive ending but which I really loved. Divorcing the idea of deities from this just... eternal inevitability, tying belief and mortal lives up with the "power" and influence of the divine, is such a cool angle. On the Discworld, Death is the "deity" that is immutable and forever, and even He exists as a function of how he is imagined by the living. (Death only gets the briefest of cameos in this one, and it's really all in Polly's head. Or is it?)
We've also got William de Worde, returning from his introduction in The Truth, which I think also makes the list of top faves in the Discworld, honestly. We get a continuing commentary on the way technology shapes culture and vice versa, with the power of the written word being a major theme. "How many ways can you fight a war? Polly wondered. We have the clacks now. I know a man who writes things down." The whole text starts off with a political cartoon!
And then beyond all the deep theming stuff, yeah, this book is just as funny and charming and smart as every other book in this insanely wonderful series, I kept being surprised by how often it made me smile and chuckle to myself, but I shouldn't be surprised at this point, should I? I really loved Polly and the whole gang, I wish there were more books about some of these characters and this part of the world! At the same time, seeing Vimes and Angua made me eager to get back to Ankh-Mopork before too long.
I kept thinking about the way we as a culture are having this conversation, at the moment a really terrible conversation full of violence and hate, about gender... and how this book isn't about that, except that it kind of is, it's just this really beautiful examination of injustice and war and gender and... Terry Pratchett was such an insightful writer of culture, such a brilliant satirist, I kept thinking about how he would have written and talked about the current moment. I wish he was here to give us some clarity and guidance, I guess.
There are aspects of this book where, the literal meaning being what it is, I couldn't help but reading some truly radical gender-queerness into the book. There's Clogston, whose name is Christine, but who doesn't think he could "get used to wearing a dress again..." There are the moments when Polly has this strange feeling of discomfort in her own body when she's "dressing up as a woman." There's Maladicta, who, yes, does say that she's a woman who dresses up as a man for all the same reasons that everyone else is doing it, namely that being a woman in her world is more difficult than being a man, but something about her coming out moment to Polly read as particularly trans to me, where she basically just braces herself and says, "I'm actually Maladicta" and Polly just says "okay, good for you," like really gracefully accepting this revelation. And it read more like someone standing in their truth than revealing a disguise, if that makes sense? Also, the Igor/Igorina thing, something about the fact that she can physically transition in a way that's totally normative for her... species? Or whatever you want to call it? And even Jade, where the gender markers aren't necessarily parsed in the same way as they would be for humans so it's showing that there's not necessarily one inherent way to present as a woman and live your life as one.
And then my favorite, this bit about Jackrum that just completely knocked my socks off: "Jackrum had turned her chair to the fire, and had settled back. Around him, the kitchen worked." Just... the her right into the him was so deft and succinct and perfect.
I did find myself wondering at the lack of dwarf characters in this one, since we've already seen the way their concept of gender is its own unique thing in this world, but I appreciate that this book expands the scope of that conversation away from just the one fantasy people within the Discworld!
There's also a full-on gay relationship between two young women in this book, and I was a little startled (and pleased) to see it! There's kind of the unfortunate implication that they're lesbians due to trauma, like, the world treated them so horrendously that the only solace they had was each other, which would be a little better if they weren't the only ostensibly gay characters in the text. I wouldn't have minded some of these other cross-dressing women being like... "I'm actually into the ladies" lol. Honestly would have loved a hinted romantic vibe between Polly and maybe, say, Maladict, with the reveal that she's a woman changing nothing about it, just the suggestion that maybe they'll be something someday. But that's asking a lot of a book published in 2003.
I keep thinking of more things I want to talk about: I loved Wazzer, the Joan of Arc vibes there, the way religion functions in this world as a consequence of belief. I actually have been thinking a lot about gods and pantheons in big expansive fantasy franchises because of the ending to Campaign 3 of Critical Role, which had a divisive ending but which I really loved. Divorcing the idea of deities from this just... eternal inevitability, tying belief and mortal lives up with the "power" and influence of the divine, is such a cool angle. On the Discworld, Death is the "deity" that is immutable and forever, and even He exists as a function of how he is imagined by the living. (Death only gets the briefest of cameos in this one, and it's really all in Polly's head. Or is it?)
We've also got William de Worde, returning from his introduction in The Truth, which I think also makes the list of top faves in the Discworld, honestly. We get a continuing commentary on the way technology shapes culture and vice versa, with the power of the written word being a major theme. "How many ways can you fight a war? Polly wondered. We have the clacks now. I know a man who writes things down." The whole text starts off with a political cartoon!
And then beyond all the deep theming stuff, yeah, this book is just as funny and charming and smart as every other book in this insanely wonderful series, I kept being surprised by how often it made me smile and chuckle to myself, but I shouldn't be surprised at this point, should I? I really loved Polly and the whole gang, I wish there were more books about some of these characters and this part of the world! At the same time, seeing Vimes and Angua made me eager to get back to Ankh-Mopork before too long.
One of my favorite Discworld novels and being a stand alone story from the others makes it a fair intro for newcomers if they’re not going starting at the beginning of the series. I always enjoy stories that divert from the main characters to shine a light on somewhere else in the world.
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
adventurous
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No