You never see your loved one’s flaws. You fall in love too quickly, in a rush of delight at finding such a person, a burst of wonder that, in all this wide and fragile world, there exists a mind just like your own. Before long, they have settled down inside of you, in the vulnerable parts of your chest. Any doubt, any flaw, is drowned out by the rhythmic thump of a voice that says you are not alone.
It’s like that with books.
There are so many books, so many writers I could tell you about, which would make me look clever, or deep, or wise. But let’s be honest with each other for a moment: those are not the books which live within you. The books you fall in love with are the books with flaws. They are the books you devoured late at night under the sheets, until their spines cracked, until you had parts of them memorised. They are the books you read and read again, like comfort food on a cold night. They’re the books which make you laugh.
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels are the single greatest achievement in the English language. I will brook no argument. Don’t come to me with your Shakespeares or your Miltons – I will have none of them. The Discworld series comes in forty slices of perfection, served with custard. Discworld is where my heart lives.
Let me explain. I first began to read the Discworld books at around the age of twelve. I’d read some fantasy before, but not enough to really understand all the jokes in the first two novels, The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic, which are mostly a straight parody of various fantasy themes and stock characters. Still, the bits I did get were really, really funny, so I carried on. The books are set on the probably-fictional Discworld, a flat disc supported on the back of four elephants, in turn standing upon a cosmic turtle moving through space. Magic holds the Discworld together, but the intrusion of modern technology often drives the plot, when it’s not creatures from the Dungeon Dimensions. You don’t really need to read the series in order, but there are a few storylines which develop around groups of characters, which do reward a chronological approach: the jokes are a lot funnier that way. My favourites are the Witches and the City Watch.
I carried on reading and enjoying in a cheerful fashion (my local library had the set) until I reached the 29th novel, Night Watch. This is the best novel I have ever read. It’s simultaneously a time-travel romp, a parody of Les Misérables, a bildungsroman, a crime thriller, and an absolute punch in the gut by the end. I sobbed like I’d never sobbed before. Suddenly it didn’t seem to matter that I was pale, and lonely, and so very, very ginger. Samuel Vimes, the hard-boiled cop with a heart of gold, took up residence in my chest then, and he’s never left.
The Discworld books are getting darker and more cynical (most readers acknowledge that) and it could be that that’s what I was beginning to notice. But even when I read the early ones now, I see that the stories are really about humanity, in all its petty, venal, greedy, glorious and generous forms. I could tell you about Pratchett’s deft plotting and structure, the brilliance of jokes whose punchlines come three books later, the amusing trappings of a world run on magic. I could even tell you about the flaws of the series, the bits that don’t quite work. But really the Discworld lives in my heart because, as a lonely teenager, it said to me: people are strange. You are not alone.
Jennifer. Ook.
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Reblogged this on wordsicannotsay6 and commented:
Yes. So many yeses.
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Reblogged this on Quilt Musings and commented:
Though we had a Blogging 101 Assignment in January that encouraged us to reblog a post from another blogger, I never felt I had found the right post. This one has nothing to do with quilting, but it speaks to a connection that I feel myself. Tarry Pratchett is the only author, and I think the only public figure come to think of it, whose death moved me to tears.
Do you have an author whose books live in your heart?
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Pratchett’s books are present at key moments of my life. The first book my husband gave me was a Discworld novel. I can’t wait to introduce my kids to his Diggers series.
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True Love Exists
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Tôi không hiểu.
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V-good
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Terry didn’t just create books, he invented an entire Universe. What an amazing and imaginative mind he had to create such vivid characters. What a character he himself was. I feel for his loved ones and I also feel for us. Because no more tales of Discworld will be told. We have not just lost Terry, we have also lost an entire World’s worth of characters. I hope they are all with him in the beyond.
My fave is the Wee Free Men, can’t help it hahaha.
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Reblogged this on abcde222 and commented:
True love never defeat
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Reblogged this on abcde222 and commented:
True love never defeat
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Reblogged this on Manes Beauty & Brains.
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Totally
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I have never read a Terry Pratchett novel and this is something I need to remedy, will definitely do so now1
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Reblogged this on mohamedfazaal and commented:
An interesting article.
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Amazing discovery when I was young these books opened my world up to reading.
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thanks for following. nice site you have here.
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glad you found your guiding force, your reading pleasure and the word ook. It means many things to many people, and all of them understand.
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Small Gods is his finest work in my opinion, but the Wee Free Men is my favorite. I cried when I learned about the Alzheimer’s and am equally devastated by his passing. Terry was my favorite writer. The chalk of the downlands where Tiffany became a witch is my home. Granny Aching is my granny. I feel so sad.
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Reblogged this on Confesiones y letras.
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Well said. Night Watch is my favorite novel. It made me feel things I didn’t know I had the depth to feel. RIP Sir Terry! 😦
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Loved this post, thank you! I too am a huge fan of Terry Pratchett and have read a large number of the Discworld series, but many years ago… so last year I set out on a challenge to myself to read all of the Discworld books in the order that the storylines follow.
Have you read his co-authored book (with Neil Gaimann) – Good Omens? Hilarious!
He truly was a genius author!
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I love that you can read them in all sorts of different orders 🙂 Good Omens is brilliant, isn’t it? Did you hear the radio adaptation recently?
Jennifer
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No I did not…. must have been pretty funny 🙂
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Amazing …..
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just triggered my curiousity
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I feel this way about James Axlers Deathlands series. Great post!
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You’re so right! falling in love with a book is just like that. I’m so going to read that book
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Reblogged this on tuba3's Blog and commented:
Yessss……absolutely…… ☺☺☺
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