Rating: 
Summary: My First Pratchett
Review: and I loved it! I confess, I majored in journalism (a hundred years ago) and am a news and political junkie. I have no prior Pratchett experience - so no comparisions - simply "stand-alone" reaction.I found it humorous and yet very insightful as to the relationships (media to politicians, media to police) and the challenges (what is "the truth" and what is "news"). The inclusion of the "Inquirier" was classic ... as well as the "everyman's" response around the morning breakfast table. Must reading for anyone in media or politics.
Rating: 
Summary: The Truth
Review: Terry Pratchett does his usual roller-coaster romp through the streets of Ankh-Morpork. Sadly, the place it is a-changing. But there is nothing so certain as change so it might as well get on with it in the usual AM style. The two newest central characters don't seem as strong as other characters in the series though de Worde may get better with time but he was a milchetoast to begin with so he can only get better. The vampire Otto was the best character of all and, of course, Wuzzy's testimony was a riot.
Rating: 
Summary: What just happened?
Review: ...I just finished The Truth; when does it get good? I'll agree with previous reviewers on one point only: the Discworld series has been in need of new blood. The established groups of characters have all had many books devoted to them, have grown in complexity and humanity, and have become quite beloved among the fans, but at the same time they may have begun to run out of stories. Pratchett himself seems to be sensing this; both Carpe Jugulum (the most recent Witches book) and The Fifth Elephant (the last Watchmen book) had a strong feeling of finality about them, as if he was determined to put his all into one last brilliant work featuring Granny Weatherwax or Sam Vimes. And of course, with the seeming passing of former casts, new blood is being introduced. That's the first trouble with The Truth. Most of Pratchett's Ankh-Morpork stories (and all of his best ones) have featured Sam Vimes as the (anti-) hero. Now Vimes has been replaced by idealistic newspaper editor William de Worde, and Lady Sybil by William's lady friend, Sarcharissa. I realize I'm going to sound like a Crochety Old Discworld Fan here, but William and Sarcharissa are no substitutes. William is appealing and likable, but he's just not very interesting. Pratchett paid surprisingly little attention to him for a main character; if he had then he might have come to life, but as is, the author's done this sort of thing better before. Sarcharissa also has more of the stock Pratchett heroine from his very early books in her than anything else. Okay, so now that I've made plenty of enemies by bashing the new characters, let's talk about the plot. Discworld plots usually range from perfect to somewhat hit-or-miss, but this one downright misses. Too many satiric targets are being aimed at. The Truth tries to make fun of both the press in general and of Nixon and Watergate in specific, thus making it both a book in the vein of Soul Music, which goes after a pop-culture phenomenon, and one like Jingo, which shoots for a specific topic. With all of this plus an almost entirely new cast, neither the characters nor either plot is given enough time, and in the end it suffers from a severe lack of development or resolution. You get the sense that you have missed a crucial scene somewhere; you're never quite sure how things got from A to B. So if the characters aren't so good, and the plot isn't so good, what is left but humor? A mediocre Pratchett book in terms of the other two factors usually has the saving grace of being funny, but no such luck here. The style is as amusing as ever, but much of the descriptions of the city- I couldn't tell if they have been actually reused from other books or are so similar that you I couldn't tell the difference. There are a number of cameos from famous characters (the Bursar's scenes being a case in point) that don't have any place in the plot; these only serve to distract instead of adding humor or easing the transition to William's story. As for the villians, Mr. Pin and Mr. Tulip...they're funny, all right, but did anyone else think that they read like out-and-out parodies of Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere? The resemblence was too similar for me to ever take the New Firm seriously nor laugh at them very much. The Truth, appropriate to its subject, is at least free of the typographic errors that plagued The Fifth Elephant (except on one memorable occasion when a character called Deep Bone has his name written "Deep Throat".) The cover, rendered in not two but three nasty colors, is not pretty, but it does the job and doesn't hurt like the last one. The real reason that I had such a problem with The Truth is its author. We are now so used to Pratchetts' churning out brilliant book after brilliant book that our standards may have become too high. If anyone else had written this book I would have liked it far more, but compared to Jingo or The Fifth Elephant, it doesn't stand a chance. Is The Truth an excellent novel? Of course. Is it an excellent Pratchett novel? Not really. And you can quote me.
Rating:
Summary: The Truth Shall Make Ye Fred!
Review: Beautiful! Absolutely the best Pratchett book since Small Gods! This book is absolutely hilarious. With this book, Pratchett has taken his eye for thigs that could be funnty, and sets it on the press, and investigative journalism. The mayhem starts when William de Worde gets hit with a press. From there, he starts the "Ankh-Morpork tImes", and hires some of the best characters ever: prim Sarchissa and reformed vampire Otto (a flash iconographer). And he is opposed by the best villans ever: Mr. Pin and Mr. Tulip. Both are quite charming: Mr. Pin handles the thinking, while Mr. Tulip goes "-ing" a lot and snorts everything-from flour to drain cleaner. And it has the best ending yet: it keeps you guessing as much as Feet of Clay did: you read, guessing who's behind it all, and then-bam!-the pieces all fall into place. This is a must read-they don't give me enough stars to properly rate the book. They only reason I didn't buy it is 'cause it's a hardcover-it's going to be one long year. Thanks, Pratchett.
Rating:
Summary: Great (But Not Quite Perfect) Pratchett
Review: The master of Discworld, racing along these days without a drop in quality, offers us a surprisingly upbeat look at journaliism through the eyes of the founder of Ankh-Morprok's first newspaper. Trouble is afoot, and William DeWorde is going to get tot he bottom of it, with or without the help of the Watch, and with the help of a Rosalind Russell-esque Girl Friday and a vampire with an iconograph. Everything but the plot clikcs perfectly after a fairly slow start. The plot is a bit familiar - perhaps echoing "Feet of Clay" a bit too much - but the characters and naarative make up for it. Willaim DeWorde is a welcome addition to the family of colorful residents of Ankh-Morpork, and Vetinari, Reg Slant, and Sam Vimes are also along for the ride. This is not quite the book that "Jingo" or "Men at Arms" is, but it's fun, fast-paced, and clever in the ways that things by Pratchett should be. Plus, it has the added bonus of lacking too many silly jokes or silly wizards (I don't like the wizrds much). But it, and read it fast!
Rating:
Summary: The Truth shall set you free!
Review: I am a bona fide Pratchett fanatic and I loved the latest book. Pratchett, I think, stumbled just a bit with Jingo and Continent... I was not superimpressed with either, though the ONLY "bad" book he ever wrote was, in my opinion, Moving Pictures. The books between have been good... but I have not FLIPPED over a Pratchett novel for a while. I always get excited about them, I always order the hard cover, and I NEVER regret it. Excepting MP, he can't write a bad book. It's a thrill to know, after reading Truth, that he can still write REALLY GOOD ONES! One of the nicest aspects of this novel was seeing our beloved Commander Vimes from the perspective of a new equal. DeWorde, the protagonist, is yet another monkey wrench thrown into the Ankh Morporkian works and I hope to see even more of him. He, with Vimes and the Patrician, has completed a trinity of fascinating and complex men-in-power that mirrors so much of classic tale-telling: The Copper, the City Official, and the Newsman... struggling for the upper hand, enjoying the battle. The laughs are crammed into every page. Social commentary and esoteric questions abound, all delivered in the Ankh Morporkian Mystery style that works so well for Pratchett. I loved this book. Pterry, ya got your groove back!!!
Rating:
Summary: Bravo! A triumphant return to form for Terry Pratchett!
Review: After Mr. Practhett's last few installments, I was beginning to think he was resting on his laurels - it seemed he was relying too much on his previous characters and jokes to drive the series forward. How happy I was to read this book and discover that Discworld is as alive and enjoyable as ever! The main thing I like about this book is that it STANDS ALONE - it's not just another Witches book, or a Rincewind book, or a City Watch book. Albeit, there are a few cameos by the Watch, but altogether it's William De Worde's story.
Rating:
Summary: Buyitbuyitbuyit!
Review: If you are anything like me, you simply cannot walk past any new Pratchett. I confess to rampant favouritism of the ones set town; and this new one does not disappoint. What more could you ask for? There's Vimes, Vetinari, Nobby, some faceless string pullers, and some brand new characters. It will be a while before I stop grinning at the thought of Otto and flash photography. And William out-Vimesing Vimes.... Oh, everyone should read this book. It's quality.
Rating:
Summary: "The Truth will make ye fret!"
Review: "The Truth," the twenty-fifth Diskworld novel by Terry Pratchett, is a great way to celebrate a silver anniversary! Pratchett fans already know that his different novels cover several paths: certain ones follow the witches of Lancre, others Death, the Wizards of Unseen University, or the Watch of Ankh-Morpork. This is an Ankh-Morpork novel, and much in the style of "Moving Pictures," "Soul Music," or "Maskerade," a familiar cultural aspect of our own world becomes public and popular in Diskworld--creating grief and strife for everyone and a lot of fun for the reader! The usual concoction of magical, political, and sociological troubles are afoot in Ankh-Morpork when dwarves bring movable type to the city and Diskworld's first newspaper, "The Ankh-Morpork Times," (motto: The Truth Shall Make Ye Fret") hits the streets. Many of Pratchett's well-loved and familiar characters are here: Sam Vimes, Carrot and Angua, talking dog Gaspode, the irrepressible C.M.O.T. Dibbler--but the spotlight's fully upon William de Worde, determined to make the written "Truth" public. There's a solid mix of old and new characters: a vampire photographer who crumbles into ash each time his flash goes off, two ruthless assassins vaguely reminiscent of a pair from a recent pop-culture movie (down to a discussion of what they call a sausage-in-a-bun in Quirm: 'le sausage-in-a-bun'). A running subplot featuring a dastardly conspiracy against Lord Vetinari moves the action along, but it's actually the story of the struggle of William's conscience and means to bring the truth to Diskworld's population...whether they can handle it or not. A good deal of sociological truth is neatly and unobtrusively sandwiched between the witty writing, including allegories on the rise of the Internet and the ways to deal with flood problems in our own society. But it's Pratchett's sharp wit and unparalleled turn of phrase that drive the book and justly attract the fans, and his writing is as golden as ever, from the off-handed mot juste to the groan-out-loud pun (photographs taken with magical 'dark light' are referred to as 'Prints of Darkness'). I'd go as far as to say that Pratchett is the twenty-first century heir to P.G. Wodehouse (and that's the highest praise possible from me). No other contemporary writer can make an elaborate joke or off-handed comment seem so casual, so easy, so natural, that we all think 'I could do that' until we actually try to sit down and dissect what's so funny about the sentence. In the UK Pratchett sells more than Stephen King and John Grisham--he's not quite at that point here in the US, but certainly deserves to be. Finally, in my review last year of "The Fifth Elephant," I chided American publisher HarperCollins for not publishing that book simultaneous with the UK edition. I'm happy to report that we'll be able to get this one on the same date as the British friends. Thanks, HarperCollins!
Rating:
Summary: Truly Brilliant
Review: You don't have to work in the newspaper industry to enjoy "The Truth," but it helps. Pratchett once again looks at an institution of our world through the skewed lens of the Discworld and creates a masterpiece. In "The Truth," he seems to get the maximum mileage out of previously introduced concepts such as the 'beetotaler' vampires (is Otto a member of the Fresh-Start Club?). William De Worde is a character in the vein of Vimes and Vetinari, and I hope he remains in place to play against them. Prachett deftly mixes humor and gravity and creates a very involving climax (anyone else want to start an Otto fanclub?). Well done, and happy 25th.
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