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Summary: Packing words to complete book
Review: This was my first Terry Pratchett book, and I hope his other books give me more reason to continuing reading his work.I enjoyed the first half of the book, but towards the middle when she finally reaches the wizarding school, I felt like the rest of the book could have been summed up in one or two chapters. It almost felt like Pratchett packed the last half with words because he didn't have much else to say before ending the book. It was disappointing. He could have written in the ending he had and concluded the book by taking her on another adventure.
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Summary: gender roles and sexism in the Discworld
Review: Equal Rites is another of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. This one focuses on the first female wizard on the Disc. The little girl in question, Esk, is the eighth son of an eighth son. At least, that's what the dying wizard who was passing on his powers thought. It turns out, that the eighth son is a daughter, and the first wizard of the Disc is born. The story is not as sweeping as the first two Discworld novels, but because of the nature of the story, it works perfectly. Up until close to the end, the story is fairly small, dealing with the girl, the attempt to get her into the Unseen University, and the prejudices against female wizards. As always, Equal Rites is told with Terry Pratchett's odd sense of humor. Another good one from Pratchett.
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Summary: A good Second book in the Disk World set
Review: I like this book more then the first. It is a fun book to read, with some intersting twists.
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Summary: Dickens would approve!
Review: Eskarina Smith is the eighth child of an eighth son. If the child had been a son, it's nearly inevitable that a wizard would have been the result. Nearly everything was prepared. A wizard came to witness the birth. He passed his staff on to the newborn child, immediately taken by DEATH, as is fitting. But, as with everything else on the Discworld, there's a hitch. Eskarina's a girl, and everyone knows, girls can't be wizards. As she grows older, however, certain Powers begin to manifest themselves, leading Eskarina on a wholly unanticipated series of adventures. Like attending the wizards' school, the Unseen University. This third Discworld novel takes us to the other aspect of that strange place's magic environment, the feminine side. PTerry introduces us to someone who will later loom large in the Discworld pantheon, Esme Weatherwax. Granny Weatherwax is the resident witch of Bad Ass and takes up the task of teaching Eskarina the role of how witching works through the use of headology. Granny's not a charlatan, but she knows the value of belief and spurns the cheap tricksterism so often manifest by the wizards. Eskarina's powers are too apparent for either of them to control effectively and Granny's forced to send Eskarina to the only place where that control can be learned. By various and adventure-filled paths, Eskarina arrives at the University, thrust almost inadvertently into a bizarre new world. Esk's outspoken claim to "want to be a wizard" brings on the confrontation between tradition and The Century of the Fruitbat. Times certainly are a-changin' but for Esk they only become worse for some time. She's given into the care of the University's housekeeper, Mrs Whitlow, and quickly becomes a figure out of Dickens. Sweeping floors isn't what she had in mind, even if she can direct the broom to do the work while she sits in a corner pondering life's injustices. Yet her powers develop, to the point where she's forced to confront the Things from the Dungeon Dimensions, the greatest threat the Discworld faces. It's an even match. Pratchett's characterizations are always more valuable than any of his story lines, and this early work is no exception. Eskarina's a forceful girl with modern views, even if she's writ a bit young for the role. Although this book ends a bit weakly, the story's message is valid and needs expressing. As always, Pratchett attests that the Discworld is a "mirror of worlds", especially ours. Eskarina's plight is too common for PTerry to ignore and he presents it clearly and honestly. That he can add his sparkling wit in conveying his ideas is a added blessing for us. Put this next to Colour of Magic and Light Fantastic with assurance that you will pick it up again. His works never age, but remain a joyful read for years to come.
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Summary: Good Intro to Granny Weatherwax
Review: This novel is worth reading just to be introduced to Granny Weatherwax and her philosophy of "headology." Here you see the difference between wizards and witches - both are equally weird and funny. Once again, you see bumbling wizards, and Cutangle is funny too, especially when he talks to Granny Weatherwax. But I still like Rincewind's first series better. You should still read this - even fair for Pratchett is good for others. I agree that there weren't as many interesting characters are in the previous books.
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Summary: The first two were better - a lot of it is the reader
Review: The first two books did a great job of holding the attention and Nigel Planer was a *perfect* reader. This book rambles a bit and I didn't bother going back to find out what was happening when I zoned out. Tony Robinson would be better suited for reading Agatha Christie. Nigel Planer managed to present the comical metaphors in a way that often had me laughing out loud; you have to pay attention to know when Tony Robinson reads one. Not bad but significantly less enjoyable than the first two.
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Summary: One of my less enjoyable trips to the Discworld
Review: Equal Rites is the third Discworld novel, and in it Pratchett begins to reveal just how diverse a place it is. The inept wizard Rincewind is not to be found in these pages, nor are Twoflower the Tourist and his Luggage. Discworld is home to an incredible number of fascinating characters, and in this novel we are introduced to one of the most remarkable and unforgettable ones--the witch Granny Weatherwax. We also get a closer look at Unseen University and the wizards who call it home. The eighth son of an eighth son is always a wizard, as everyone knows. Unfortunately, the novel's eighth son of an eighth son turns out to be a girl, which is a fact Granny Weatherwax points out immediately. Granny is a traditional witch; she doesn't hold with living in towns and selling love potions and other sundry matters. She teaches young Esk witchcraft, but it eventually becomes apparent that the child is a born wizard. Getting the child to Ankh-Morpork and Unseen University is not easy, but the hardest part of the mission is getting her accepted as a female. There's also a small matter of the terrible beings from Beyond trying to break through to this side. I enjoyed this novel, but it didn't seem to have the magical aura of most Pratchett books. Young Esk was too willful and erratic, and I never understood why she kept wandering away from Granny Weatherwax on the journey to Ankh-Morpork since Granny was trying to fulfill her dream of becoming a wizard. I also thought the character of Simon, a stuttering but brilliant young wizard, should have been developed more fully; he formed an important part of the story, but I never knew him well enough to strongly like him or dislike him. Esk's frustration and anger at being rejected as a girl are understandable, but some of her reactions seemed a little too childish to me. Toward the end, I sometimes got the impression that I was reading a piece of juvenile fiction--there's nothing wrong with that, and Pratchett has written some excellent novels for a younger audience, but it left me feeling a little empty and let-down. Even Granny Weatherwax, one of my favorite Discworld characters, seemed only a shadow of the Granny I have come to know in later novels. This novel also has some sexual innuendo material in the background, which is something I found a little disconcerting and atypical of Pratchett. It does add to some of the humor, though, especially in the scenes featuring Granny and ArchChancellor Cutangle. Weirdest of all was a direct reference to Steven Spielberg--when I read Pratchett, I am in his world, and I felt as if he kicked me out of his universe momentarily for no good reason. The humor is the real strength of this novel. Pratchett's ever-present comical metaphors are particularly strong in places, and he is able to exploit cliches in ways no other author can. The descriptions of Granny having to get long running starts in order to get her broom off the ground and of the head wizards getting all excited about increasing their knowledge by increasing their ignorance of brand new concepts are especially hilarious. Comedy saves this particular novel. I would have liked to see much more character development; as it is, Esk and Simon are pretty forgettable characters, and the charm of Granny Weatherwax is really not realized here. I did enjoy getting a closer view inside Unseen University, but the wizards in the book seemed shallow and sort of stereotypical. I saw a lot, but I didn't learn a lot. In the end, though, this is a Discworld novel, so it is definitely better than most anything else you can find on the shelves, but I think it is one of Pratchett's weakest efforts.
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Summary: Who let a woman in here?
Review: Equal Rites is the third book in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. I had to stop and think after reading this book. Why didn't I like it that much? Was it my mood at the time? No, I don't think so, because I wasn't in the best mood when I read Reaper Man and Lords & Ladies either, yet I loved them. Finally, I decided that, unusually for Pratchett, it just didn't do anything for me. Drum Billet is a wizard who's dying. Before Death comes for him, though, he wants to pass on his wizard staff and power. This is done by finding the eighth son of an eighth son. Drum Billet thinks he's found the perfect one and hurriedly does the deed before he finally expires. One thing, though: he didn't wait long enough to make sure of the sex of the new-born baby. Granny Weatherwax is determined to see that Esk (the baby in question) grows up to be a witch, rather than a wizard. Esk will never get into the wizards' university because women can't be wizards. It just isn't done. However, Esk starts manifesting power that's beyond being a witch and beyond Granny's ability to teach. Esk really wants to become a wizard and seems to be losing control of her power, so Granny decides to take her there and see what will happen. What follows is an adventure that takes them to the city of Ankh-Morpork, to the university, with a side-trip to the Dungeon Dimensions to ensure that the monsters that live there don't come into our reality. And maybe, just maybe, some wizards will start to change their attitude to the "fairer sex." And sometimes, a staff is just a staff. It really hurts to say this about a Terry Pratchett Discworld book, but I just didn't think it was very good. It is the third in the series, and I wasn't a big fan of the first two, so perhaps he just hadn't hit his stride yet (I think he hit it with Mort, personally). First of all, the book just isn't that funny. None of the situations are exceptionally humorous. Instead, most of the humour comes from Pratchett's narration. Even that, though, is not up to his later power. He makes some wry comments about gender issues, especially the prejudice against women in the workplace. However, they just lie there, doing nothing and taking up space. The characters aren't that interesting. I was looking forward to the introduction of Granny Weatherwax (first read by me in Wyrd Sisters), but even that was a disappointment. She doesn't have the same feel in this one as she does when she's with her coven. You can see signs of it in her characterization (she's irascible and set in her ways), but she's not quite as tart as the Weatherwax I know. It's almost like she needs somebody to play off to be "right." Esk suffers from being rather dull. Is it because Pratchett can't write an 8 year old character? I don't know. I do know that she's rather flat and I didn't care about her situation. I'm all for equal rights, but Esk's situation didn't push me any further along that path. She's just there on the page with nothing to really hook you into caring about her. One thing I shouldn't really hold against this book, though I feel I should mention it, is the wizard characters. The main wizards (Archchancellor, Dean, etc) are different characters in this book than in subsequent books. Unfortunately, since I've read many books containing the "new" characters, I found the original characters extremely wanting. They weren't funny at all. What I can hold against them, however, is that they were boring. Archchancellor Cutangle is the most developed of them, and even he's not very well done. He's there more to represent the unmovable force of male domination, and to show what happens when it meets the irresistible force of female determination. I can say a couple of positive things about this book, however. The beginning is probably the funniest part of the book, where the mix-up happens. This part has Death in it, which already brings it up to a certain level. Death is always ready to chime in with an interesting comment or two. Secondly, Pratchett's descriptions of things are on the ball as always. He has a wonderful narrative voice. While the witty asides in this one aren't as good as some others, he still is an interesting read when he gets on a roll. Unfortunately, when the characters come back onto the stage, the story grinds to a halt again. I really hate to give a Pratchett book 2 stars. Hopefully, it will be the only one that I have to do that to. Save your money and buy Reaper Man instead. You'll be glad you did.
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Summary: Serendipity Strikes Again
Review: I don't know how this series escaped me, but I'd never picked up one of Terry Pratchett's Diskworld novels before...but while on vacation, and desperate in an airport for something to read, I picked up the Legends 3 anthology of short novels (only because it had an Earthsea novella, Dragonfly, by Ursula K. Le Guin), which happened to contain a Diskworld story. I read it because it was there, and because United had delayed take-off by three hours...Serendipity! Pratchett's Diskworld, for those of you unfamiliar with the series, is quite flat...borne on the backs of four giant elephants, which in turn are supported by a galactic-sized turtle flying through the cosmos...is home to wizards, witches, dragons, zombies, demons, trolls, knights, dwarves, all the usual suspects of worldwide, multi-traditional heroic fantasy. But Pratchett deftly skewers the endless, tedious cliches of the genre and of Western society in general. He's sarcastic, sophomoric, filled with bad puns, and actually pretty darned funny. Maybe it's the British upbringing...There are different sub-series which follow the exploits of different main characters. Equal Rites is as good a place as any to start reading the Discworld books. It deals with the occasionally-unpleasant but totally-admirable witch, Granny Weatherwax, and the trials, tribulations and growing-pains of the first female born with wizardly powers instead of witchly ones...I also gobbled Lords and Ladies, a sort of twisted take on the plot of A Midsummer Night's Dream, in which the elves are not, uh, well, not nice... Discworld has something for everyone, as long as you're a fan of some SF genre or other...Pratchett turns every cliché on its head, warps every hoary plot to his own ends. And I thank him for it.
Rating:
Summary: Not the best, but a great read anyway
Review: Welcome to a different and slightly less chaotic Discworld and meet our new hero, Esk, the eigth DAUGHTER of an eigth son, who, unfortunately for the wizards, was supposed to be a son. Esk starts her career in magic learning the ways of the Witch from old Granny Weatherwax, but after an almost fatal Borrowing Granny decides she must take Esk to the University. It is at the University where she meets Simon, the brilliant young wizard-to-be, and they encounter some very dark forces of their imaginations...
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