Interesting Times

Rating:
Summary: A great book -- but not for the Discworld novice
Review: "Interesting Times" was the first full Discworld book I read, having been introduced to Pratchett through the "Legends" anthology, and while I liked it well enough, I enjoyed it a heck of a lot more the second time around. Pratchett prides himself on making each Discworld novel a work that can stand on its own, apart from the rest of the series, and while he is mostly successful in this, it can't be denied that familiarity with the older books makes the newer ones go down easier.

In "Interesting Times" Rincewind, the world's worst Wizard, gets transported to a far-off continent where people expect him to be some sort of magical genius. While there he encounters Cohen the Barbarian, a geriatric marauder, who has assembled a small "Silver Horde" of wizened old warriors to conquer the Empire. People discount the old barbarians. What they don't take into account is that most barbarians don't LIVE to be the old kind...

It was a funny book the first time I read it. It was even cute. But after having read the books prior to this one, especially "The Color of Magic," "Sourcery" and "Eric," this book took on a whole new dimension. I now grasped the prior relationships between Rincewind, Cohen and Twoflower, and I no longer read each luggage passage wondering what the heck was going on. It was, simply put, a better book.

So this is a great book and a worthy addition to the Discworld series, but if you haven't read it yet, I suggest reading those other three I mentioned first.

Rating:
Summary: A great book -- but not for the Discworld novice
Review: "Interesting Times" was the first full Discworld book I read, having been introduced to Pratchett through the "Legends" anthology, and while I liked it well enough, I enjoyed it a heck of a lot more the second time around. Pratchett prides himself on making each Discworld novel a work that can stand on its own, apart from the rest of the series, and while he is mostly successful in this, it can't be denied that familiarity with the older books makes the newer ones go down easier.

In "Interesting Times" Rincewind, the world's worst Wizard, gets transported to a far-off continent where people expect him to be some sort of magical genius. While there he encounters Cohen the Barbarian, a geriatric marauder, who has assembled a small "Silver Horde" of wizened old warriors to conquer the Empire. People discount the old barbarians. What they don't take into account is that most barbarians don't LIVE to be the old kind...

It was a funny book the first time I read it. It was even cute. But after having read the books prior to this one, especially "The Color of Magic," "Sourcery" and "Eric," this book took on a whole new dimension. I now grasped the prior relationships between Rincewind, Cohen and Twoflower, and I no longer read each luggage passage wondering what the heck was going on. It was, simply put, a better book.

So this is a great book and a worthy addition to the Discworld series, but if you haven't read it yet, I suggest reading those other three I mentioned first.

Rating:
Summary: Funniest Rincewind book, but not the best of Discworld
Review: A spoof on China, the Great Wall, and what was really going on with all those terra-cotta soldiers. I like Rincewind's talent for languages; given that Chinese is a tonal language, it takes him three or four tries to correctly pronounce each new word he learns. Includes Cohen the Barbarian, and the various attempts to teach the Silver Horde to be civilized are very funny, if not exactly the stuff of serious fiction. I read this out of order, and was not familiar with Twoflower from previous books so some of the characters are not familiar; if you're going to read it, it would help to have read at least The Light Fantastic first (but I just can't recommend that book).

Rating:
Summary: Pratchett's View Of 'East-Asia-in-a-Bag'...
Review: For those of you that aren't familiar with Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels, they're broken up into what are, essentially subseries. Different novels focus on different characters throughout the Disc and each follow a certain storytelling style. The Rincewind novels, of which this is one, are a sort-of antiheroical adventure mixed with what are, essentially, various travelogues. "Interesting Times" deals with what happens when the Disc's least impressive wizard - and greatest survivor - meet the Agatean Empire - a rather odd hodge-podge of Imperial China and feudal Japan run through Pratchett's colander of Discworld reality.

"Interesting Times" follows a half-mad, half-Machiavellian plot where Rincewind, the aforementioned 'wizard', gets shipped off to the Agatean Empire following a request by the revolutionary "Red Army" for the "Great Wizzard" that will help them in their time of greatest need. What results from this is a mad rush through Chinese peasant culture, Japanese martial arts, an group of ancient barbarians with a most unbarbarian plot and revolution that can't help but have things go the right way for them.

As with most of Pratchett's books, "Interesting Times" is a joy to read. Pratchett somehow seems to take every 'commonly known' reference about East Asia, mix them together in a large metaphorical bag, and spread them throughout his book, regardless of the history or accuracy involved. As with all of his works, what transpires is less a view of what foreign countries are actually like, but how it is that we as people view foreign cultures.

Having recently reread "Interesting Times", I found myself liking it more in retrospect than I did when I first read it. It's charming, introspective and loony all in one go. A brief word of warning to the odd East Asian scholar who made read it, though: it's not so much about what Japan and China are like as what people think they are like. Nonetheless, it's a book that any Terry Pratchett fan should read. It's even a book that any fan of Japan or China should read. It's also not a bad place to get into the Discworld series if you're looking for a place to start.

Rating:
Summary: Barbarian heroism
Review: Having read this book only in English although being a German didn't make it less funny!!!

Interesting Times definately belongs to the 3 best books of Pratchett (along with Guards!Guards! and Small gods).

Pratchett fills another part of the Discworld with live (the Counterweight Continent), but still manages to keep the spirit of the series alive. The reader meets old friends like Rincewind, Cohen or the Council of Wizards, and has (like in all of the other novels by Pratchett) the opportunity to laugh and think at the same time throughout the book.

Definately a book to buy for any Pratchett- fan or anybody who likes humorous fantasy.

Rating:
Summary: VERY GOOD!!!
Review: I have an intense feeling of tender affection and compassion for this book! It was the first published work of literature, science, or reference, or one intended for publication I ever read by Terry Pratchett! I am soooooo glad that I read it, for the reason that follows; I have now gone on to read all of the books by him that I can get my parts of the human arm below the wrist, consisting of a thumb, four fingers, and a palm and capable of holding and manipulating things on! He is SUCH a writer of a quality that excites admiration or amazement! I can't wait till his next book comes out!

Rating:
Summary: Huge Pratchett Fan!
Review: I utterly adore Pratchett's books. The nice thing about them is that they are easy reading but also witty and cleverly written. He is certainly an impressive writer. He turns out satire smoothly but without any trace of bitterness. This makes his books light hearted, funny and relaxing. I can not wait for his next book.

Rating:
Summary: One Of His Best
Review: I've only read about seven of the Discworld books, so I'm hardly an expert, but I know enough to feel qualified to write this review. I feel that this is better than any of the other books of his I have read. While his books are all wildly original, this one wins on the points of comparison.

First off, the settings of Ankh-Morpork and the Counterweight Continent are both well done. Pratchett taps into the same vein of humor underrunning the image of Imperial China that Barry Hughart did in "Bridge of Birds". He also introduces a very interesting linguistic idea, playing off the use of tone in spoken Chinese to create a language with few words but many, many different pronunciations. The other plot ideas, such as the Mandelbrot Butterfly etc., are well done, but the language was such a well-thought yet off-the-wall idea that it beat everything else.

The characters are well done also. Old barbarians are a comic image, but Pratchett is able to really use his old barbarians to advance the plot rather than having them hang around solely for laughs. The Gods play off each other well, and Rincewind's cowardice and fleeing make the places he lands in all the more interesting. The ending wraps everything up well without being too perfect, and Death is funnier than ever.

Hitting nary a wrong note, this book is worth getting out of the library, or buying if you are a Discworld fan. I would recommend it to anyone who likes fantasy, and also "Thief of Time", by the same author.

Rating:
Summary: Finally Rincewind returns?
Review: Let's make one thing clear: the Agatean Empire did `not' send Lord Vetinari, ruler of the Ankh-Morpork, a message by means of a Pointless Albatross. The message did not read "Send Us Instanly The Great Wizzard". Nevertheless, the guys from Unseen University -the fact that they all wear frocks clearly is more than a fashion statement- decide to send their most promising pupil Rincewind to the Counterweight Continent, 6000 miles away. Only one problem: Rincewind is currently floating peacefully in a lagoon and about to serve as lunch for a curious -but quite unlucky- shark. The shark is about to experience what it is to get in touch with heavy Luggage.

The Great Wizzard is back! For me this character is always a surplus to a novel by Terry Pratchett. Like all the Rincewind books, this one also classifies as some sort of road movie: Rincewind constantly being on the run for some kind of apocalyptic evil and more than once being hit with something that has no close resemblance to anything soft. Written by any other author this kind of storyline should quickly bore the hell out of the reader, but that is not taking into account the talents of Mr. Pratchett. The way he paints the characters of Cohen the Barbarian and his horde of senile warriors is certainly unprecedented. Although Interesting Times is not the funniest episode in the Discworld saga -the frequency of the jokes a bit too low to be able to claim this title- it is still an entertaining and absolutely recommended read.

The cliffhanger at the end of the book clearly indicates that we have not seen the last of Rincewind.

Rating:
Summary: I laughed so much I was sick
Review: My book review on Terry Pratchet's Interesting Times . Last night I was sick on Terry Pratchet's Interesting Times .I would recommend this book to you for these reasons : 1. It is very funny and humorous 2. Terry has a brill style of writing!! 3. It's just generally, all round, brilliant !!!! I would not however, recommend this book to kids under nine years old . The characters are : Rincewind, the wizzard who can't even spell wizard, Cohen, the barbarian who's had a lifetimes experience of not dying, Twoflower, the man who sent Rincewind off on his adventures , and many more. Rincewind finds himself lost without the luggage, on the counterweight continent, where gold is as common as copper and their worst curse is, "may you live in interesting times". I give this book 60/100, and I give Terry Pratchet 95/100. If you ever get to read this Terry, you're my favourite writer Written by Ben Bessey nine years old