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bluejayreads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
There is a lot going on in this book. Almost too much for one book, it seems. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun to read, but trying to sort it out afterwards I’m impressed so many different things got shoved into here.
Let’s start with Death, since this is his series. The supernatural people in charge of the whole universe (apparently those exist – I wonder if they’ll ever show up again) decide that since Discworld’s Death has a personality, it’s no longer a force but a person, and people can die. So Death, who suddenly has a time limit on his existence, stops doing his job and goes off to experience life as humans live it. Disguised as the tall and skinny but ordinary human Bill Door, he ends up on an old woman’s farm as a farm hand, where he gets to experience how humans interact with each other and deal with the knowledge that they’re going to die one day.
Meanwhile, Death not doing his job means that nothing is actually dying. The elderly wizard Windle Poons dies, but since there’s no Death to help him move on, ends up back in his body as a zombie, more spry after death than he had been in decades. With the occasionally-dubious assistance of other wizards, other undead, and other residents of Anhk-Morpork, he attempts to unravel what is happening to the city as excess life starts to do really weird things.
It’s fun and entertaining, as most Discworld books are, but the themes fall a bit flat. Death/Bill Door’s story had an interesting theme of dealing with the fear of death and living when you know it’s all going to come to an end, but since the book didn’t spend as much time in that storyline (I’m pretty sure less than half of Reaper Man was actually about the reaper man), there wasn’t time for it to reach full poignancy.
The storyline with the wizards and Windle Poons was mostly “hey, if Death stopped doing his job and nothing died anymore, wouldn’t the consequences be wild?” and playing with that idea. But it also tried to add some bigger ideas – the inevitability of death, the life-sucking nature of shopping malls, a couple pointed jabs at souvenirs and a particular kind of church lady, and possibly even something about the body and aging (although that one was so muddled that I’m not sure if it wasn’t just me reading too much into it). All of them were interesting ideas, but there were too many of them for any to have much of an impact.
Despite all these criticisms, this book was quite fun. I enjoyed Death/Bill Door’s attempts to figure out what humans do, fit in, and make friends. And even though Windle Poons is not my favorite wizard, I enjoy the dynamics between the wizards and how everything at the Unseen University works. Even though Reaper Man isn’t as strong thematically as other Discworld entries, it was still plenty of fun.
Graphic: Death, Animal death, and Body horror
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Child death
jarjarblingg's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death
rini's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Vomit
teignmouth's review against another edition
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Death and Child death
swampmonster's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I think I first read this when I was in my mid-teens, and it was THE MOST PROFOUND THING ANYONE HAD EVER SAID ABOUT DEATH! I read it again, recently, as (slightly more of) an adult, and it was good, but not as mind-bendingly profound as I had remembered it. Still, it's a sweet and very fun book, and I liked it a lot.
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, and Death
ellenwilberg's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death
42donotpanic's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Child death, Animal death, and Death
valereads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I'm not entirely sure how to talk about this book but I will say it was overall a wonderful book.
It follows what happens when Death (that is the anthropomorphic personification of death) decides to stop being well... death. I really enjoyed the stories focusing on Death and Windle Poons. These sections in particular had some reflections of death and the meaning of life that were really powerful. Unfortunately, as is often the case in books with multiple powerful narratives, there was one that I enjoyed significantly less that the others and that was the wizards' storyline. This one was overall okay with some very enjoyable moments and great jokes but it just wasn't as good as the rest and is what brought my overall rating down.
It follows what happens when Death (that is the anthropomorphic personification of death) decides to stop being well... death. I really enjoyed the stories focusing on Death and Windle Poons. These sections in particular had some reflections of death and the meaning of life that were really powerful. Unfortunately, as is often the case in books with multiple powerful narratives, there was one that I enjoyed significantly less that the others and that was the wizards' storyline. This one was overall okay with some very enjoyable moments and great jokes but it just wasn't as good as the rest and is what brought my overall rating down.
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Animal death
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