A review by motherbooker
Hogfather by Terry Pratchett

5.0

 There are few writers quite like Terry Pratchett. He had an amazing ability to create a fantasy world and lore that contained humour and addressed real-world issues. He was a shrewd writer who used his Discworld novels' absurd characters and settings to sneak social commentary into his books. Hogfather is a book about belief and the importance of fantasy for humans. The Hogfather is the Discworld equivalent of Father Christmas and he brings presents to all of the children on Hogswatch Eve. Until this year when he's mysteriously gone missing. Turns out the Hogfather is pretty important so Death has stepped into the role for the night. While he delivers the presents, his granddaughter Susan tries to find and save the Hogfather. Will they be able to pull this off or will there be dire consequences for Discworld?

In this book, belief in the Hogfather is about more than just succumbing to the spirit of Christmas. It's something that keeps the world turning. "HUMANS NEED FANTASY TO BE HUMAN. TO BE THE PLACE WHERE THE FALLING ANGEL MEETS THE RISING APE." It is the childish belief in the Hogfather that enables humans to keep accepting the mysteries of humanity. It allows them to accept all of the intricacies of being human. All of those things wouldn't make sense if you looked at them too closely. Believing in the Hogfather is what prepares children to grow into fully functioning adults. So, his disappearance causes some big problems. Unfortunately, the only one ready to take on the role is Death himself. A figure who struggles to understand some of the more important aspects of being the Hogfather and who can't quite nail his "Ho, Ho, Ho".

Hogfather is the fourth Death novel in the Discworld series. None of the Discworld books have to be read in order but it probably makes sense to be familiar with some others before you read this one. You'll probably want to read Mort so you've already met Death. It may even be worth catching up with Soul Music so you're also familiar with Susan. It's not essential but it will give you some context to the most important characters. When you finally pick up this book, I can definitely recommend the audiobook as read by Sian Clifford, Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy. Serafinowicz is great as Death and Clifford is great as the narrator. Adding Bill Nighy to cover the footnotes just makes sense. It's a great cast. 

As we've come to expect from his novels, Hogfather is a book that's full of humour. It's a very enjoyable read and will appeal to different levels of humour. One of the consequences of the Hogfather's disappearance is an excess of belief that starts to create new gods and beings. Gods like the "Oh God" of Hangovers and the Hair Loss Fairy. There are plenty of funny new figures brought into being and it presents plenty of comedic potential thanks to the wizards of Unseen University.

As well as laughs, there's also plenty of social commentary. It's well known that Pratchett is brilliant at pointing out the negatives of our society and this Christmassy novel gives him ample opportunity to take aim at ideas like economic equality and performative charity. As we've seen countless times before, Pratchett's writing is as relevant now as it was when it was written. He has so many important things to say and he does it in a way that never seems preachy. It's quite a skill to have and ensures that his books are both entertaining and will make you think about your own behaviour. If you're a fan of Terry Pratchett then it's obvious why this is a must-read for December. It's a very fun and enjoyable take on Christmas for Discworld. It's full of good stuff.