Monstrous Regiment

Rating:
Summary: Oh no!
Review: Things are going down hill for TP. I was very disappointed. I wrote a review, and after a week it has not come up. Save your money folks. Get the paperback.....better yet, check it out from the library. If you liked TP's old stuff, you'll hate this. I did. It wasn't funny, it wasn't interesting, it was just dumb and predictable. I have every discworld novel in HB, and I pre-order them all as soon as Amazon lets me or notifies me. I'm a big fan.....but this book is probably his worst. Let's hope the next one is better.

Rating:
Summary: Held together with spit and coffee!
Review: I have been one of the world's biggest Terry Pratchett fans for over five years now- (I was actually introduced to him by my librarian- who had a wicked sense of humor.) I have followed Terry's exploits through uncharted waters- uncharted territories- and uncharted peoples... and have stuck with him while he contemplated Death, Pictsies and Buggers- (Which I shall never actually know what that stands for, but still...) And now- I have traveled with him to a land where some idiot of a god has decreed blue to be an Abomination.

Think it couldn't get crazier?

Terry Pratchett's latest installment into his beloved Discworld series is Monstrous Regiment- a story that, like all the others before it- contains outlandish plots, heart felt characters, and twists even O'Henry couldn't have predicted.

I, like all other Pratchett fans, looked forward to the debut of this book. I had recently read the Wee Free Men, and- honestly? I would not admit it to be my favorite work by him. I had all the hopes, though- that this would be the one. I read it through in a single day, and closed the covers deep in thought.

The story itself is wonderful- the characters leap out of the pages to take you- arm in arm- down dangerous roads even the most stout-hearted of us wouldn't dare tread. They have their own host of certain problems- (As all Pratchett characters can attest to), but they never lose their humanity, sense of humor- and most importantly- love of coffee.

If I could fault ANYTHING with this book- it would be the message Terry tries to imbue us with. It was sterlingly wonderful, of course- until the last few pages- but then, I began to wince, as he pounded into my brain something he had already pounded- every single page of the way.

Don't get me wrong- I'm a woman- I love the strong woman type in books- but when it begins to get just the teensiest TINIEST bit preachy- I back away. As Pratchett should have done, towards the end of the book. Kisses and hugs to Pratchett, always, of course- he inspired me to become the writer I am today... but he's never become even the closest bit preachy in any of his other books- I simply don't understand why he thought now would be a good time to start.

Bottom line? Read Monstrous Regiment to draw your own conclusions. Enjoy the witty lines- the lovely plot- and the even lovelier characterizations that comprise the best of Pratchett writing. Far from being held together with spit and coffee, this is wonderful stuff- with a definitive message.

Just don't forget to don that battle helmet for the end of the book!

Rating:
Summary: Terry constantly surprises!
Review: Terry doesn't write to a formula, he writes from the heart. I expect the people who didn't take to this book as much as his others were made a little uncomfortable by that. Perhaps they mistook satire for comedy, who knows?

This book had some serious moments and some pretty heart-wrenching moments. But it also had some absolutely hilarious moments as well.

Terry has created a very European setting for this story, but really you could transplant to anywhere and it would still make perfect sense. Anywhere that women are put down and denigrated. Anywhere that religous traditions become more important than the people who live with them. Anywhere that young lives are sacrificed by old men in their pursuit of power or glory.

And there are heaps more themes in this story. Read it. Then put it aside and read it again a few weeks later.

My last thoughts in this review are that perhaps, for some people, Terry's themes hit a little too close to home.

Rating:
Summary: Disapointment is on the horizon...
Review: Monstrous Regiment was pretty good, but quite a dissapointment compared to Pratchett's last few Discworld books. The story starts out well, get rather improbable, but still keeps it under the allowance of "humor". The story doesn't really go anywhere for a while, and atthe end of the book, he beats the theme to death, stretches it, burns it, and scatters it's ashes to the wind. in my opinion, he could have done a lot better.
I would recomend you read it, if you already like Terry Pratchett...I just wouldn't recomend that you buy it (especially the nice, expensive, hardcover)
If you haven't read Terry Pratchett, read something else first so you don't get biased by reading this one.

Rating:
Summary: Really a unique turn for Pratchett
Review: If you're a diehard Pratchett fan - I've got some bad news for you: Monstrous Regiment isn't about witches, Rincewind, wizards, Death, or even the Watch (although they play a role.) It's a standalone book like Equal Rites, Soul Music, Pyramids, or Small Gods. So, people - join a support group, wear some armor on the weekends, something ... but prepare yourself for something a little different from a truly creative author.

Monstrous Regiment takes place on the outer fringe of the Discworld stories - in Borogravia, a country sandwiched by a score "more civilized" nations which they've managed to aggravate into a constant state of war that has left their land uncultivated, and their popluation dwindling. With all the men missing or killed in the neverending state of warfare, who's the right man for the job? That's right - a woman.

Polly Perks has a lot on her mind: her dimwitted, yet gentle brother is missing in action; her father's inn is being overrun by hooligans and old soldiers; and being a woman, she's got a lifetime of swabbing out the privies to look forward to since the nationalized diety has proclaimed every state of existence (except baldness) an Abomination for women. So with a quick haircut, a comic walk and a pair of socks, she enlists in the Borogravian army to at least find her brother.

I enjoyed this book a great deal more than some of the more recent books, and in a much different way than some of the earlier books. Pratchett has stripped his style of many of the cheaper puns and sight gags, to reveal a more subversive type of humor - humor based in satire that lacks the punch of a timely toilet joke, but that is more satisfying to me as a reader. Pratchett also prods around the edges of the Disc, and does a pretty adequate job of finding new ways to explore the world he's created. And his thematic conclusions are never easy: there were at least two occasions in Monstrous Regiment where I thought: "Well, that should do it - Polly will be fine now," - Pratchett always seems to have one more twist up his sleeve.

Monstrous Regiment presents a quandry, though: a new reader will be muddled, misled, and underinformed about the Discworld; the plot and theme more than compensate for it, however. I feel you should read The Fifth Elephant, Men At Arms, or Feet of Clay first, then you have to read The Truth, and then this one to fully appreciate the presence and role of Vimes, Angua, William de Worde, and Carrot (who is not referred to by name ???!!) - their parts of the story, while critical, are really sketchy and assume a great deal of prior knowledge. But there is plenty of action, invention, and great dialog to keep even a casual fan interested. Put down that Robert Jordan, fanboy!

Will Polly find her brother? Will she be able to keep her secret? Why are there never any socks in the regiment's laundry? These are all questions worth answering by reading Monstrous Regiment. New readers will enjoy Monstrous Regiment after a little catch up - fans will enjoy it more by relaxing their tightening expectations on one of fiction's most active and creative satirists.

Rating:
Summary: What's to laugh about?
Review: This book settles it--I have lost my sense of humor. If you can find laughs in this book, congratulations. You probably collect SNL's last seasons on tape. I was disappointed and bored in turns throughout this book.
While Terry Pratchett can create characters and form sentences that nobody ever used before, his conversations are starting to take a predictable form, something like 4-panel comic strips. You know when the kicker is coming and what it will be. I respect his craft and have enjoyed every page of earlier books, but this one and Night Watch seem to have been written by someone else, or when Pratchett had other things to do.
I guess I'll stick to re-reading the old ones from now on.

Rating:
Summary: Poor Terry, Poor Reader!
Review: Let me begin by saying that I love Discworld books. I've read nearly all now. Rabid fans, this one will dissappoint you. Lacking humor, comic relief and focussed on oppressed characters, this one reads like Platoon with women as the leads. Even our beloved Duke fails to add much to the scenes, showing up at the end of novel, wishing he were home.

Please,if you love Terry but don't feel like writing him and telling him to take a break; just don't read this book. I feel 9-11 went to his heart and this is his way of showing it.

Monstrous Regiment is a Monstrosity.

Rating:
Summary: Not one of Pratchett's best.
Review: I am a very big fan of Terry Pratchett's books, most of which are sidesplittingly funny while including effective satire/commentary on society. When Pratchett is on, his books are great. Unfortunatly he seems to have emphasized theme more than humor and storyline in this book. It's still ok, but it's defintly not going to be anywhere near the top of a list of his best books. It reads similarly to his book Pyramids, so if you liked or disliked that one you'll probobly feel the same about Monstrous Regiment.

Rating:
Summary: Great return to form!
Review: I have to confess, I was a little dissapointed with Nightwatch. I liked to have the familiarity of the other characters in the Watch, but it was good to focus on Vimes for a while and realise what a great character he is.
But onto MR, God was it great. I didn't have as high expectations for this one, but not only did I fall in love with the regiment (especially Polly, Maladict and Igor) but it also put in some appearences from Angua, Vimes, William De Worde and Otto. At first I thought their appearences were a bit out of place, like a kinda "Asterix in Switzerland" approach. But if you keep reading their presence will make more sense. I loved every page of this book and look forward to seeing the next installment!

Rating:
Summary: The Importance of Strategically Placed Socks
Review: Borogravia is at war. Again. Or still. The country has been fighting with its neighbors so long that there aren't very many young men left to be soldiers. So even though a woman dressing as a man is an Abomination Unto Nuggan (garlic, chocolate, ears, rocks and much more at all Abominations unto the crazed Borogravian deity), Polly Perks dresses as a man and signs up for the Ins and Outs, the Tenth Division of the Borogravian army. No one looks too carefully; recruits are getting too hard to find.

The title is a play on an obscure John Knox essay, a diatribe against women in leadership positions. Army life, officers, NCOs, patriotism, Army intelligence, institutional religion and especially sexism all get the Pratchett Treatment. More than any of his other books, I was strongly reminded of Mark Twain's later satires. Pratchett is a little gentler than Twain, and his approach is more methodical, but the same simmering anger is evident. Pratchett's distaste for the institutions and respect for the individuals is made completely clear. Stupidity, Polly Perks comes to realize, is simply too dangerous to have around.

There are a few wonderful new characters, including Jackrum, a legendary sergeant in the Borogravian army, apparently ageless and, upon his word, "not a dishonest man;" and Maladict, one of Polly's fellow recruits, who has substituted a lust for blood for a lust for coffee (Pratchett is plainly a serious coffee drinker). And there are cameos of greater or lesser extent from Watch characters Duke Samuel Vimes, Corporal Angua, Buggy Swires and Reg Shoe; and William de Worde and his photographer, Otto.

But mostly this is about Polly, an intelligent, decent person, placed in the madness and folly of war. She masters the art of impersonating a man - mostly belching and walking differently - practices shaving with a blunted razor and learns the importance of a strategically placed pair of socks. She learns how to tell if it is just the socks talking. She learns that sometimes when you ask, "Are we winning the war?" you might not be asking the right question. And she demonstrates that sometimes the right man for a task is a woman. Or perhaps several women.

Pratchett touches on another theme, too, the difference between worship and belief. "Small Gods" focused on that distinction, and it plays a critical role here. Borogravians may worship Nuggan (even if they sometimes ignore the newest Abominations) but they believe in the Duchess, even though she may be dead. And, as events unfold, the difference is critical.

There aren't many belly laughs, but this is a mature, amusing and instructive novel. It doesn't hurt that the themes are topical, but it's too much to hope that either Tony Blair or George W. Bush will read, let alone understand, what Pratchett is saying. Don't make their mistake.