Maskerade

Rating:
Summary: And to think, I once didn't like Granny Weatherwax...
Review: I'll be honest, as big a fan as I am of Terry Pratchett's "Discworld" series, I was left very cold by "Equal Rites" and "Wyrd Sisters." I figured the Granny Weatherwax tract of stories simply wasn't for me. But "Witches Abroad," "Lords and Ladies" and "Maskerade" have changed my mind -- I may go back and give those earlier books another chance.

Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg are one witch short for their coven after the events of "Lords and Ladies." Nanny suggests recruiting local girl Agnes Nitt, who has displayed some talent in the past. There's only one problem -- Agnes has left their home of Lancre to pursue a career in the Ankh-Morpork opera. Granny, Nanny and Greebo the cat embark upon yet another journey.

Like the best of the Discworld books, this one succeeds because it has a tight focus for its satire -- in this case, the opera. Particularly the works of a certain Mr. Webber. Pratchett shows skill at finding each little detail, each inconsistency, each nit just waiting to be picked and then putting it on display for the whole world in a fashion satisfying to both fans and detractors of that which he satires. Also, as with "Men at Arms," he manages to mingle the whole thing with a quite satisfying mystery -- who is the "Ghost" in the Ankh-Morpork Opera House? Why is he killing people? Why is he grooming Agnes to be a performer? It's a great, silly little tale and one of the better Discworld books. Maybe that's why I didn't like the early ones... maybe Terry Pratchett has just gotten that much better as he's come along.

Rating:
Summary: Hilarious spoof on classic story
Review: This is one of Terry Pratchett's best books with the lovable characters from the Discworld series. Back for another round of side-splitting comedy is Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax. Any true fan must read this book. You don't want to be left behind when you're friends are giving you advice from the 'Joye of Cooking'.

The dubious duo head off to Ankh-Morpork to collect on moneys that are owed to Nanny for her cook book with 'innuendos'. While there, they run into Agnes Nitt(which isn't hard considering her size), and embark on a wonderful adventure at the Ankh-Morpork Opera House that is a sure-fire spoof of the classic story, "The Phantom of the Opera".

Rating:
Summary: This is opera!
Review: Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax, the two most infamous Discworld witches, have some urgent financial business to take care off in Ankh-Morpork. Who would have guessed that Nanny Ogg's cookbook "The Joye of Snacks" would turn out to be such a success? Certainly if one takes into account that it only contains recipes of dishes that greatly improve one's nightly actions in bed, like Celery Astonishment or Strawberry Wobbler. One certainly would not have guessed that the Ankh-Morpork publisher, one of the nobelest professions on the Discworld, did not prefer to share its profits with the author. Granny Weatherwax is bound to undertake some slight corrective actions to the mindset of the publisher.

When both witches arrive in Ankh-Morpork, they see Agnes Nitt, alias Perdita X. Dream and born in Lancre, avoiding being noticed and failing miserably. Agnes wants to be an opera singer, but Nanny Ogg does not think that having all the talents of an opera singer makes Agnes suitable for a career in the Opera House. But Nanny should not meddle in other people's lives... or should she?

In this eighteenth episode of the Discworld saga Terry Pratchett proves that the witches are not yet fin-de-career. Now that Magrat is gone (see Lords and Ladies), Nanny Ogg is searching for a replacement witch. The search brings them to the world of Opera. Or is it the world of Musical?

The story starts as a typical Discworld novel by introducing some colorful new characters like Mr Bucket, Senior Basilica and Walter Plinge, and some old friends, like Death, the Librarian and sweet-smelling Nobby. But quickly you notice that it all fits nicely as a parody on The Phantom of the Opera, only this time it is more like The Ghost of the Opera. As such this book compares easily with Weird Sisters and Moving Pictures, where Pratchett plays with those other entertainment businesses: theater and film. The plotline of The Phantom really is a grateful base for extremely funny situations. Pratchett is at full speed in the hilarious closing sequence.

Rating:
Summary: One of Pratchett's funniest to date
Review: I've read every one of the Discworld novels, and this one's my favorite. In a world that is sometimes nonsensical, very much like our own, the witches tend to provide a clear look inside the human mind. This novel is at once riotously funny and extremely thought-provoking, as Pratchett pokes his usual gentle fun at the establishment.
Agnes Nitt (alias Perdita X. Dream) is a girl from Lancre who moves to Ankh-Morpork to be an opera singer. When she gets a job in the chorus at the opera house, she immediately stumbles on some peculiar happenings (and some extremely peculiar people). The two Lancre witches also happen to be in town on some financial business, and they set out to find out exactly what's going on in the opera house.
This book is for you if: you like opera; you think opera is silly; you like fantasy; you like satire; you have a pulse.

Rating:
Summary: The Phantom of the Opera is here inside my mind!
Review: Wonderful. Superb. Splendid. Magnificent. Operatic -- well, maybe not the last one. Maskerade is a work of art -- a work of wit, no less. Terry Pratchett is once again a master of the written word. Any fan of Pterry, Discworld, opera, musical theatre (I esp. loved when Nanny Ogg found the musical scripts!), Phantom of the Opera, and in fact, pretty much anything else will love this book. Creative, witty, satirical, and side-splitting. I laughed the whole way through. My only regret is that the only recognisable characters were Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax (oh, and Greebo. And a cameo Death). Not that they're bad -- au contraire -- but the wizards of UU are also very funny. Also... what happened to the footnotes? I've always enjoyed them in the other Discworld books. But that's a brief flaw -- overall, Maskerade is a genius' masterpiece, proving Pterry's brilliance once again.

Rating:
Summary: Quite Funny
Review: Plays off Phantom of the Opera. Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg set off to Ankh-Morpork to find out why they have not received royalties due Nanny for her best-selling cookbook of naughty erotic and aphrodisiac delicacies, and to check up on Agnes Nitt, who has gone to seek her fortune and is singing in the background for a young airheaded opera starlet who looks good in a sequined costume, in a sort of Milli-Vanilli scenario. She has not yet joined the coven, but has found she doesn't seem to fit in anywhere else; her alter-ego, Perdita, is also not yet developed into the alternate personality it becomes in later books. This one is quite funny, and the plot moves along well. There's a pseudo-Italian imposter tenor, Greebo makes an hilarious appearance in human form, and we get to experience a lot of Granny, my favorite witch character. It loses a star only because it dissipates some of its energy on one too many minor characters and subplots.

Rating:
Summary: I know, I rate all his books with five stars but...
Review: ...this book is just that good! It was the first book I every read in the discworld series. What I loved about it was that it was so witty but also had a fantastic plot! The death of rats made appearances in this book which is another plus, because the death of rats is a great chararter. The jokes were non stop because the phantom of the oprea is always lurking. The best part is this book does not build much off other books, making it a perfect starter.

Rating:
Summary: Another bullseye for Terry
Review: Yep, Terry Pratchett strikes again, this time with a hilarious parody on 'The Phantom of the Opera'. With Magrat Garlick finally settled nicely as the Queen of Lancre, the remaining witches, Esme 'Granny' Weatherwax and Gytha 'Nanny' Ogg, travel to the big city of Ankh Morpork to visit young Agnes Nitt - a promising potential witch from Lancre who went to Ankh to find her future in the Opera. While they're there, the witches help solve a series of mysterious murders at the Opera House.

The Witch books seem to get better every time, and the characters of Nanny and Granny are, on Maskerade, more full and charming than ever before. The new characters - Agnes, Senor Basilica, Walter Plinge and the rest - are all hilarious and very well-written. And let's not forget cameos by old favorites like 'Nobby' Nobbs, Sgt. Detritus and the Librarian.

One of Terry's most intelligent parodies, equals Lords And Ladies but much, much funnier - Maskerade is essential for Pratchett fans and Discworld veterans.

Rating:
Summary: Pratchett just keeps getting better and better!
Review: You know what I think? I think Terry Pratchett is breaking the rules. He's not writing these books for his publisher, or even for us - I think he's writing for himself. And I'm so glad he is. Because instead of sticking to some "formula for success," which usually results in most sequels turning out to be pale, thin imitations of the books that made us ask the author for more, Pratchett just keeps on turning out great STORIES and each one gets richer and better as his characters and his world develop and become more real.

But enough of my half-formed Theory of Great Literature. Here is why you want to read Masquerade: It has Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg in it. And, as if that weren't enough to make you want to read it (well, it was enough for me!) Death shows up (of course he's everywhere, right?) in a very interesting cameo, wherein we get to wonder just who - Granny or Death - IS the most powerful character on the Disc. Dear (?) ol' Greebo gets a large speaknig part in this one, too (mee-yowl!)

This is the story of how Agnes/Perdita Nitt came to be involved in in the unconventional coven. It's also a murder mystery (people are dropping out of the flies like flies) and it's a belly-busting look at opera and the entertainment industry and - as always - human nature overall.

It never ceases to amaze me how Pratchett manages to make me say "wow, that is so deep, that is so true," and yet laugh so hard I have to put the book down for a few minutes - every few minutes.

Rating:
Summary: Abundant heroine
Review: Heroine: plump/abundant 

    Agnes Nitt, remade as Perdita X, has left the tiny village of Lancre behind in favor of the bright city lights of Ankh-Morpork. No way will she wind up like her mother baking perfect apple pies while small children cling to her skirts. No way will she get sucked into the local witches' coven just because it's her destiny. No, it's the stage for Agnes, who is bound and determined to sing the socks off of the auditions board at the Ankh-Morpork Opera House.

Unfortunately for Agnes, this is the century of the Fruitbat and looks far outweigh musical talent when selecting the newest operatic diva. It's bad enough to be passed over as a lead because of her size, but to have to be the voice behind an unmusical yet beautiful slip-of-a-girl is the outside of enough! Add to this the fact that the Opera House seems to be haunted by an odd specter who on the one hand wants to train Agnes to sing even better than she does now, but who also goes 'round killing various members of the cast and crew for no apparent reason. And to top it all off, those gruff but lovable Lancre witches have come to town to try and lure Agnes back home.

Whatever is a witch-diva to do?!

What worked for me:

I love silliness, especially well-crafted silliness! This is why my home is filled with books by Piers Anthony, Robert Asprin, Douglas Adams, and Terrys Pratchett and Brooks. And also why I can recite several Monty Python skits verbatim.

Size-wise Agnes/Perdita is clearly abundant, as is one of the secondary male characters. However, this book is frustrating in that it is filled with mixed messages where size is concerned. On the one hand we frequently hear about how long it takes for some portions of Agnes to arrive at any given destination, and also about her "great hair and nice personality". And yet there are several instances where you suspect the author is subtly making fun of this type of thinking.

What didn't work for me:    

I picked this book up years (we're talking a decade or more, here) after my last encounter with a Discworld novel. Not that I am saying that "Maskerade" can't stand on its own, but I think it would have helped if I had refreshed my memory on the series first.

Overall:

I really enjoyed this wacky story for the most part, and the only thing that brought it down for me was the overuse of stereotypes. (Not just with the large people, either. The slender, slinky gal in this book was an absolute bubblehead cliché!)

Warning: I caution you, if you aren't in the mood to wade through fat jokes and deal with a bit of weight-loss, if absurd humor is not for you, or if "The Phantom of the Opera" parodies are nothing short of blasphemy in your eyes then you might want to give this book a pass. But if you adore bizarre humor and want to try and puzzle out the author's feelings toward fat, you might actually find this light reading material to be rather thought-provoking.

    If you liked "Maskerade" and could over look its faults size-wise, you might also enjoy "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" and "Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul".