Rating: 
Summary: It's not new...but it's a definite classic!
Review: This book came out a looooonng time ago - it was one of the first ones that got me hooked on Terry Pratchett's work about ten years ago. For Granny Weatherwax fans, you might be a bit disappointed, since he developed her present character much more in "Wyrd Sisters" and the books since. However, it was the first book that Pratchett started to really flesh out his world beyond Anks-Morpork, and it is a great read. Thank God they're re-releasing all these older ones...give me a chance to buy them again, since they've been stolen by various friends over the years!
Rating: 
Summary: Great stuff
Review: This concerns a wizard who, when passing off his magic staff to an eighth son of an eighth son, turns out that he's passed it off to an eighth daughter. Since there can't be any such thing as a female wizard, the local witch, Granny Weatherwax (based on Katherine Anne Porter's Granny Weatherall), tries to get her to learn witchcraft instead. But it doesn't work so she has to be sent to the Unseen University, the prestigious wizard college. This one is hilarious.
Rating:
Summary: This book is cool so buy it.
Review: When I was little, I desperately wanted to be a ballerina. I wanted to be slim and fragile, and beautiful, and to dance beautifully and be very rich. I also wanted to be a checkout chick because I liked the noise of the cash registers. What has this to do with Equal Rites? Well, this book is also about a young girl who desperately wants to be something - in this case a witch - because of all the glamour and power she sees in the job. She also would like to be a wizard, because due to a mistake (ie her turning out to be female instead of the male the dying wizard was expecting) she has inherited a staff with which she is able to "wiz". And just as I discovered that I couldn't be a ballerinal due to a severe lack of grace, slimness and fragileness, but did relise my ambition to become a checkout chick - only to discover that it's not all beeps and flashes but involves smiling and standing up for hours on end, Esk, the heroine, manages to become a witch of sorts under the grumpy Granny Weatherwax but due to the staff enters the Unseen University - by the third door unknown even to wizards - and discovers that being a wizard has less to do with pointing sticks and making things explode, or turn into triple distilled white mountain peach brandy, and involves hard work, dilligence in studies, and to be frank, being male, a feat which she is unable to accomplish. However, all is not lost for Esk, and her fate changes along with the rapidly twisting plot which is whipped along by Pratchett's brilliant wordsmithing and rollicking style. I highly reccommend this book to die hard Pratchett lovers and nervous first time buyers alike - don't worry, he isn't madcap, or zany, he says so himself. It's just a very good read from beginning to end which will leave you with an insatiable appitite for more of the discworld fables. So why the nine, if this book is so brilliant? Well, it's always better to have a higher score in readiness for his next offering just in case his verbiose dexterity can master this triumph
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as the Rincewind sub-series books
Review: I read "Equal Rites" after enjoying both "The Color of Magic" and "The Light Fantastic". I especially liked Granny Weatherwax, who I had heard about as being a great character. I also liked Cutangle the Archchancellor, and mildly found Hilta Goatfounder and Mrs.Whitlow to be quite funny. I really hated Ksandra. Really, really hated her. Not because of her accent. Because she does absolutely nothing! There were also many similarities to Harry Potter, although that came later. First, Drum Billet giving Gordo Smith his staff and Granny trying to burn it remind me of the first chapter of "HP and the Sorcerer's Stone". Cern and Gulta were like two Dudleys. Especially since Gulta gets turned into a pig. Gander was a little like Hagrid, as was Granny. The Skillers, although they were a brief presence, reminded me of the Dursleys. Hilta was reminiscent of Doris Crockford. Mrs. Whitlow was a version of Professor McGonagall. These are just a few. If you don't know Discworld, you'll like Equal Rites. If you love Discworld, Equal Rites is a great book for you.
Rating:
Summary: Whatever happened to Esk?
Review: Drum Billett, an elderly wizard, is dying, and is waiting to pass on his magical staff to the newborn eighth son of an eight son before he expires. Unfortunately, the eighth son turns out to be a daughter, but Drum Billett finds this out too late, he's already given her the staff. Eskarina grows up showing signs of having strong magical powers, so her perplexed parents apprentice her to the witch Granny Weatherwax (making her first apperance in the saga). Granny becomes convinced that Esk really does have wizard powers, so they set off on the long journey to Ankh-Morpork to try and convince the wizards of Unseen University that Esk is fit to be a wizard. Nobody at Unseen University has any time for Esk, except a young apprentice wizard called Simon. It seems there are sinister forces at work in the university, and only Esk and Simon can stop them. Granny Weatherwax is a less complex character in this book than she later becomes, but still formidable. The magical battle between Granny and Cutangle, the chancellor of the University, is one of the highlights of the book. One thing about this story ahs always puzzled me though. At the end of the book, Cutanlge decides that Esk can be admitted to the University, and he is considering admitting more female students. He even suggest an exchange programme with Granny Weatherwax (with whom he seems rather smitten). But in subsequent Discworld novels, the charming Esk has vanished without trace, and Unseen University is as much a male bastion as ever. I wonder why? This was the first Discworld novel I ever read, and it is still one of my favourites.
Rating: 
Summary: I tried to like it
Review: I read this book twice. Well...read it once and listened to it on audio once. I wanted to like this book. First, I love Granny Weatherwax. Second, I love Pratchett and his discworld novels. Third, I'm a feminist and I thought to see some great ripping of gender stereotypes.
I don't know what Pratchett was doing with this book and I don't think he did either. The gender stereotypes were present and it was hard to tell if he was making fun of them or if he was making fun of those who make fun of them. This book was boring, it was confusing and it didn't even do what it promised to do (explain why gandalf never got married) and stuff like that. He actually did all that in Sourcery and not this book.
Having said all of that...I'm rather disappointed that Esk and Simon haven't been in any other books. I think that with a lot more charecter development, they'd have been really interesting. Maybe the reason that I came down so hard on this book was that it could have done so much--seems to have half-heartedly tried all at once, and ended up being a whole lot o' nothin'.
Rating:
Summary: Equal but Opposite
Review: Terry Pratchett once again takes readers on a romp through Discworld, however, in a departure from style, Pratchett chooses to make this book much more serius than his past two books. Although his writing style has changed, it continues to improve in the way he is able to describe things with not only increadible detail and realism, but also to make the reader laugh, chuckle, chortle, or whatever other reaction the reader has to a good joke.
This book leaves the characters of Rincewind and Twoflower and opens with a wizard giving his power to the eigth son of an eigth son. Because he is in a hurry, however, and because the father is convinced the child is going to be a boy, they don't discover that the son is actually a daughter until after the transferance of power ritual is completed. The girl, named Eskarina (Esk for short) is raised normally until the age of eight, when a family friend, the witch Esmerelda ("granny") Weatherwax, offers to raise the child and help her with her gift, which had recently manifested itself after an incident between Esk and her brothers. From there, Esk begins to question the way of things, that all wizards are men and all witches are women, and decides that she is going to be the first female wizard. Thus begins their journey to the city of Ankh-Morpork to take Esk to the Unseen University, the center of magic on Discworld.
I suggest you read the first two Discworld books first, however it's not necessary: This book contains almost no references to the first book. It's also a short read, so pull up a chair, get something to eat, and hold on to your hat (and broomstick) as Terry Pratchett takes us once again to the beautiful, waterfall encircled world of Discworld.
Rating:
Summary: Witchcraft vs. wizardry on Discworld
Review: When Eskarina was born she was bestowed with a dying wizard's magic staff and his powers because the wizard mistakenly thought she was the eighth son of an eighth son. Granny Weatherwax, the town witch who delivered young Esk, knows that the girl must now learn to control the extraordinary powers she has been bequeathed before they start to control her. She takes Esk under her wing and begins to teach her about witchcraft and magic. After Esk has had several years of apprenticeship, Granny decides to enroll Esk in Unseen University, the training ground for wizards. The two of them set off for Ankh-Morpork, the home of the famous wizard school. But everyone in Discworld knows that wizardry is the bastion of men and that a woman can never become a wizard... or can she?
In "Equal Rites," Terry Pratchett parodies gender stereotyping and discrimination as Esk is confronted with society's view of the differences between witchcraft, a traditionally feminine profession, and wizardry, an exclusively male domain. As Granny sees it, wizardry is high magic composed of science, "jommetry" and power, while witchcraft is a magic grounded in nature, herbs and "headology." Esk feels she can handle either type of magic and she turns wizardry on its ear as she proceeds to demonstrate what she can accomplish. Before reading this book, I thought that Rincewind was the most bumbling of wizards. I now realize that Unseen University is full of them!
This book is not as wickedly funny as the two books that precede it, but it does contain several humorous scenes such as the magic conjuring duel between Granny and the Archchancellor of the university. Although Pratchettisms are sprinkled here and there throughout the book, the story line takes precedence over the satire. Sometimes the metaphorical descriptions of the landscape and sunlight of Discworld go a bit overboard. As a result I give the book only four stars instead of the five I gave the previous books in the series. I did enjoy the story, however, especially the characterization of strong-minded and wise Granny, who is depicted as a non-stereotypical witch who abhors flying on broomsticks and who looks down upon the traditional fortune telling and parlor tricks favored by so many other witches. I look forward to reading the other Discworld witch books.
Eileen Rieback
Rating:
Summary: Whatever happened to Esk?
Review: Drum Billett, an elderly wizard, is dying, and is waiting to pass on his magical staff to the newborn eighth son of an eight son before he expires. Unfortunately, the eighth son turns out to be a daughter, but Drum Billett finds this out too late, he's already given her the staff. Eskarina grows up showing signs of having strong magical powers, so her perplexed parents apprentice her to the witch Granny Weatherwax (making her first apperance in the saga). Granny becomes convinced that Esk really does have wizard powers, so they set off on the long journey to Ankh-Morpork to try and convince the wizards of Unseen University that Esk is fit to be a wizard. Nobody at Unseen University has any time for Esk, except a young apprentice wizard called Simon. It seems there are sinister forces at work in the university, and only Esk and Simon can stop them. Granny Weatherwax is a less complex character in this book than she later becomes, but still formidable. The magical battle between Granny and Cutangle, the chancellor of the University, is one of the highlights of the book. One thing about this story ahs always puzzled me though. At the end of the book, Cutanlge decides that Esk can be admitted to the University, and he is considering admitting more female students. He even suggest an exchange programme with Granny Weatherwax (with whom he seems rather smitten). But in subsequent Discworld novels, the charming Esk has vanished without trace, and Unseen University is as much a male bastion as ever. I wonder why? This was the first Discworld novel I ever read, and it is still one of my favourites.
Rating:
Summary: I was warned
Review: Some friends told me that Equal Rights was quite a departure from the first two Discworld books, and they were right. When I first started the book, I felt a bit like I was reading a different author. I struggled to find the humor in the book. The characters were interesting, but did not seem as flawed as Twoflower and Rincewind. The story kept me in it though, and I'm glad it did. The end was just what I have come to expect from Pratchett. I happen to think that the exchange between Granny and the Head Wizard is some of his funniest writing so far, which is saying something.
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