Thief of Time

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good Pratchett
Review: I tried to get through "The Truth," and couldn't. I don't know what; but I picked up "The Thief of Time" cautiously. It didn't sound very interesting on the back cover. But its not...too bad.
It starts out entertainingly and amusingly enough. Pratchett holds our interest with the time "thing." Hmmm....its hard to describe the complexity/confusion of this book. Its amusing. Its got DEATH, Susan Sto Helit, Igor, a dash of Nanny Ogg and two new characters, Sweeper and Lobsang Ludd/Jeremy. These two are Monks of History. Sweeper is Lobsang's trainer and they travel time in a confusing manner. The world is going to end if they don't get to stop the Glass Clock from ticking in time. So they "slice time." The story almost reads like a mystery: who is Time's child? Thats probably the only thing that kept me going: who was it? And to see how the Auditor (more confusion) turned human ended up. Yes, the Auditor battles the Auditors with Susan in the end, an enjoyable messily written scene of battle with chocolates. If this review is confusing, its probably because I still haven't sorted the story out myself! And this is the way YOU will feel afterwards! HOWEVER: the good thing is: There is an excerpt for Pratchett's new story, Night Watch at the end.
Sam Vimes again. I'm not a big Vimes fan, but Prachett seems to slip into the glove of writing Vimes much easier and skillfully than any of the other characters. I enjoyed that wee little review much more than I did the entire "Thief of Time." Read it if you have nothing else to read. Read it if your dying for Prachett. Read it if you can't stand waiting for "Night Watch."

Rating:
Summary: Where has all the Time gone?
Review: Thief of Time, the 26th Discworld novel written by Terry Pratchett, is much more metaphysical than most of the previous books (other than Small Gods, perhaps). The book is so full of ideas that it's almost bursting, which has both its good and bad points.

This is yet another winner by Pratchett. It's nowhere near as good as The Truth, the last Discworld book I read. However, it is really good. Pratchett deals with a lot of large issues, such as the nature of time and space. He's never really been this metaphysical before. Even Small Gods was a bit minor compared to this. It can get a bit confusing at times, which is one strike against the book. If you're not that interested in these kinds of issues, then the book can drag a little. It's still worth it, though, for the many riffs on other, less "grand" things. There's a James Bond riff, a comment on the state of the educational system, even a parody of martial arts movies. You will find yourself laughing despite yourself.

I think Pratchett does a nice job of balancing everything in this one. If you've read my review of Small Gods, you'll know that I thought that it was missing the humour that is Pratchett's trademark, and it suffered a bit. This time, though, he's got the mix right. There is plenty to laugh at, but there is plenty of subtext as well for the serious reader. I really enjoyed reading about Lu-Tze and the sacred text that he follows which is based on the words of a boarding house manager ("Ah, but is it not said, 'There is a time and place for everything?'"). This isn't just funny, but turns a series of cliches on its head.

Pratchett doesn't forget the characters in this book, either. In fact, it's so full of characters that sometimes they start stepping on each other. All of them have their funny hook. The Abbott of the monastery, who is immortal only through serial reincarnation (and right now he's just been born again so he's got a baby's urges), is probably the funniest. There's also Susan, who has come to terms with the fact that being the granddaughter of an anthropomorphic projection isn't all it's cracked up to be. She wants to lead a simple life as a teacher, but she finds out that sometimes you have to get involved in things in order to make the world go right.

There are really too many characters to mention all of them, but suffice it to say you'll be entertained by them all. They are all unique characters with wonderful character hooks that get you to care about them. There's a nice mix of characters we've seen before and new characters as well. Don't worry, though. All of the returning characters are explained enough that you will be able to follow along. There is a tiny reference to Small Gods as pertains to Lu-Tze, but it's not that important if you don't get it.

The plot of this book is very large. At 427 pages, it's very long for a Discworld book, as Pratchett has a lot to say on the subject. There are times that it drags, and unfortunately one of those times is when everybody's in the thick of the problem. There are some funny moments in that sequence, but for some reason the book seems to come to a screeching halt occasionally and it takes a while to get going again. There are one or two other sequences where this happens as well (such as when Lobsang stops a timestorm from getting out of hand). In retrospect, I can see the value of these scenes, so I don't think of this as padding. The writing just lets it down so that it feels like padding as you're reading it.

The concepts in this book, though, are marvelous. I love the idea of taking time from somewhere it's not needed and putting it where it is needed (have you ever wondered, "where has the time gone?" It probably got used somewhere else while you were doing something boring). I loved most of the metaphysical and philosophical issues that Pratchett addressed. If this isn't your thing, then I think you'll still be entertained by the book. Perhaps you can just skim through the philosophy. If you do, though, you will miss a lot of the meat of the book.

I highly recommend this book with the above caveat. However, while everything is explained within the book, I would certainly not recommend that you start reading the series with this one. It's not necessarily typical of the Discworld books, and there's a lot of stuff that you won't get the nuances for if you haven't read at least some of the other books. The rest of the series is worth it, though, so I definitely suggest you do that.

Rating:
Summary: Best so far!!
Review: I've read (and own) 24 out of 26 of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels and this is waaaay up at the top! Featuring Susan, Lu Tze, and THE apocolypse (along with lots of chocolate) this is increadable entertaining! Miss Susan is now a school teacher who teaches her children to tell time by taking them to the top of a clock tower in Ankh-Morpork (I forget which one at the moment) and then to Genua. Instantaniously. Along with the rest of the classroom, cupboards and all.

The Monks of Time, set in some little valley in the ramtops, have a new member, Lobsang, who used to be a Thief in Ankh-Morpork. He is now training under Lu Tze, the sweeper, because there isn't much left to teach him about time.

And Jeremy Clockson. Employed to make a glass clock that when started will make the universe stop. He was employed by the Auditors.

Who are trying something new: incarnating. Myria LeJean, a body they spun out of raw matter is walking around Ankh-Morpork, occasionaly about 1/2 an inch above the ground. She was the one who officially employed Jeremy, and got him an Igor (from WE R IGORS). She was onced almost killed by dry toast.

And that's the SIMPLE parts. It really gets confusing when, after making figures disolve from the scent of chocolate, a milk man (Mr. Ronald Soak, hygenic dairy man "established") joins Death, War, Pestilence, and Famine for the apocalypse, Time's son is discovered in two places at once and Miss Susan has a chocolate.

But hey! Read it anyway! Enjoy it! Laugh about it! Get really confused about it! And learn that you should never, ever, trap women in class clocks.

Rating:
Summary: Woo!
Review: You'd think after 25 books, he would start to get old and run out of ideas. But this book is fresh and incredibly interesting while still reataining the magic of discworld.

Rating:
Summary: PRATCHETT ON TOP FORM WITH THIS BRILLIANT NEW TRAGI-COMEDY
Review: Terry Pratchett's wit, erudition and sheer volume of words & ideas will continue to amaze, long after he retires from Discworld writing. Even so, as he got up to the two dozen mark, some of us began to suspect that perhaps he was at last tiring of his creation. He never ran out of fresh ideas, but the way the ideas coalesced into novels started to seem mechanical. It wasn't so certain as before that he was affectionately disposed towards his lead characters. The same bit-part actors began constantly to put in cameo appearances (e.g. the irritating talking dog, the meat pie man, and so on), and to deliver the same predictable punchlines ("on-a-stick", "woof", Death talking "IN CAPITAL LETTERS", etc). For a time, even at best, it looked like writing by numbers. Worse still, the plots sometimes only worked because of holes in the narrative, essential connections between people or actions that the author withheld from the reader in a slightly contrived way (check it out for yourself if you don't believe me). Of course Pratchett remained entertaining - I think he finds it quite hard not to be - but it made me look back nostalgically to "Equal Rites" and "Small Gods".

The good news is that "Thief of Time" is a triumphant return to form. The plot runs like clockwork. The wit, simultaneously affectionate and bitingly ironic, is delivered with beautiful timing. The lead characters are gently heroic, and the villains chilling, even as they are comic. The tragi-comedy runs particularly deep with Lady LeJean, the poignancy of whose inner turmoil (and I don't want to spoil things for anyone who still has the book to look forward to) has been tackled with special warmth and compassion. She ranks as one of the finest creations in Pratchett's entire body of work.

I'm not going to waste your time or mine recycling the plot. Suffice it to say that once again the Universe is in danger of imminent demise. Once again, Pratchett develops a further strand in the cosmology of a universe that works according to the science and superstitions of our medieval ancestors. Yet another cinematic genre is held up to satire (this time the Kung Fu tradition). And once again, Pratchett makes some deceptively deep observations about the world we ourselves live in.

This is Pratchett's best book for some years. Even allowing for the fact that there as always quite a few in-jokes for long terms fans, this would be as good a place as any for a new reader to start.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: I am an absolute Pratchett fan, I thought this book was as good as any other he has written, witty and gripping, it's another of those books that you just can't put down

Rating:
Summary: It's about time...
Review: Jeremy, a clockmaker of Ankh-Morpork has just been commissioned by the odd-looking Lady LeJean to buid the first perfect, truly accurate clock, one that would render all others useless. But if he succeeds, time will stop and the world will end. And Death can feel it, so he asks his granddaughter Susan to investigate while he's trying to round up the Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

At the same time at the History Monks' monastery, Lu-Tze the Sweeper has just taken a new apprentice, Lobsang Ludd, who seems to be able to slice time very, very finely.

In Thief of Time, the 26th Discworld novel, Terry Pratchett explores time paradoxes. Aside from his unmistakable humour which, again, made me chuckle and look a bit silly on the bus (but it's OK), I found the philosophical parts a bit too... well, philosophical, and I must admit I sometimes found myself out of my depth. But as a whole, I found this novel very enjoyable. And in any case I just love Igors.

Rating:
Summary: Pratchett's aphorisms get better and better
Review: Others have reviewed the plot and characters of this outstanding Discworld novel, THIEF OF TIME, so I want to stand back and admire Pratchett's skill with wrapping concepts into a few, often ironic, words. He is the master of the succinct statement. Here are just a couple from THIEF OF TIME:

Page 321: Lobsang is saying to Susan, "It makes you wonder if there is anything to astrology after all." Susan replies: "Oh there is. Delusion, wishful thinking, and gullibility."

Page 356: Referring to Susan, Death's granddaughter: "...she would be immortal for as long as she lived."

And did you catch the wonderful pun on page 308? "Chaos...new, shiny Chaos, dancing in the heart of everything. The idea was strangely attractive." (Strange attractors, anyone?)

Rating:
Summary: Philosophy or Humor
Review: Theif of time begins as a thinking man's book, with symbolic objects and themes, but eventually becomes less serious and comical. Not bad at all. Quite an enjoyable read, though may be more enjoyed more by young adults more than kids or "serious" readers.

Rating:
Summary: Thief of Time - John Deakins for ABSOLUTE MAGNITUDE
Review: _Thief of Time_ by Terry Pratchett HarperCollins, 324 pages,
... ISBN:0-06-019956-3

HarperCollins should thank their lucky stars that their
company seems to have the lock on Terry Pratchett releases in the
U.S. Depending on what you allow as a "Discworld" book,
Pratchett has turned out twenty-five to thirty volumes. And they
all sell like ice cream in Hell on Lucifer's day off.
He has sold more words than any living British author (and
he's closing in on the dead ones). His books never fail to make
England's best sellers lists. Maybe his readers love him because
he sends us _all_ up. No stereotype of fantasy, science,
religion, philosophy, geography, or even death is safe from a
hilariously askew viewing.
The Monks of Time, for instance, can speed Time, slow Time,
pump Time from historical station to station, as needed. Once,
long ago, they had to repair the entire universe when a
(predictably) mad scientist built the almost-perfect clock. If
it had kept ticking, everything else dependent on Time would have
stopped. The damage was awful then, but a much more talented
someone is tampering again. Hired by the spectral accountants
from the Outside, who hate the chaos of life, he is too sane, but
too singleminded, not to succeed. Only a ancient, little sweeper
and a strange boy recruited on the streets of Ankh-Morpork have a
chance to stop him. (Rule One: "Do not act incautiously when
encountering a little bald wrinkly smiling man.") Of course,
there's Death's granddaughter, Susan, the perfect teacher.
Students love her and never give her trouble. How many second
graders actually get to visit, say, an erupting volcano, or have
the real option of being thrown in if they misbehave? Once she
learns to use chocolate as a weapon against the specters . . .
But that would be telling.
Similarly, you may just be surprised when the Five Horsemen
ride forth at the End of Time. (No, that's not a typo.) And
then there's the reason why yetis are only embarrassed by being
beheaded. Or the role that Igors (plural) play in the life of a
mad scientist.
If you're just a little weirdly baroque yourself, you can't
help loving Terry Pratchett. Enjoy; enjoy; enjoy.