The Color of Magic: A Discworld Novel (Discworld) by Terry Pratchett
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Book Reviews of The Color of Magic: A Discworld Novel (Discworld)
Book Review: Oh magic, how freakishly wonderful are thou...such possibilities!
Summary: 4 Stars
I've been collecting the Discworld books in no particular order for a few years now, mostly because my father always had an affinity for them and recommended them as hilarious and entertaining at the same time. Now that I finally got to read the first in the series I can see what the fuss is all about! There is plenty of humor, dry wit and magic, extremely complex scientific and fantastic themes and myriad of characters brighter than all the rainbows and flowers in the world combined. My head was spinning after few pages but somehow I couldn't stop reading; this incredible journey that Pratchett invites the reader on takes some time to get adjusted to, but once I let my mind go and read it slow, it all melted into a fantasy like no other. I can't really imagine kids reading it unless they are prodigies at understanding language because their little brains might pop from the amount of information given; I know mine was taken for a spin a few times!
So here we are, visiting a world that exists as a flat disc with water walling over the edges, carried by four giant elephants standing on an ancient turtle, covered in meteor holes and all sorts of space debris, swimming who knows where....In one of it's cities, Ankh-Morpork , a failed wizard by the name of Rincewind comes across Twoflower, a traveling little man with magical luggage, carved out of rare sapient pear tree that follows him everywhere on its tiny feet. Yes walking luggage, with teeth too, guarding his master and providing lots of entertainment through out the story. The two men are the only ones in the whole city who speak the same language and thus their zany adventures start. Hastily hired as a guide the magician, who sucks at magic but it awfully funny and likable, gets into all sorts of troubles with trolls, dragons, islands with lunatics chased by Death itself without trying to loose poor Twoflower who thinks the whole adventure as a great sight seeing trip, they escape all sorts of scenarios that take them form the murkiest depths of underwater caves into far away galaxies in deep space.
Seems like a lot and it is, but the novel takes all sorts of turns ad twists and one never knows what awaits our heroes on the next page. When Gods play magic dice and Fate and Death are in talks of getting them, our characters have a lot at stake and loosing such charming little fellows would certainly be horrible so the reader is constantly kept on a tight leash as the beauty of the story and its intricate pattern morphs into more fantastic scenarios. I can't even clearly say what this book is about other than being simply fantastic, albeit very complex. Folklore, mythology, fairy tales, comedy and drama, it's all here exquisitely woven for those who dare.
- Kasia S.
Book Review: Let's get started...
Summary: 3 Stars
Yay! I finally read a Discworld novel. I was introduced when a friend insisted I watch Hogfather, which I did, and I was intrigued (and slightly confused). So I decided to start at the beginning.
The basic premise is that Twoflower, a tourist with perhaps the most dangerous luggage in existence, has wandered into the twin cities of Ankh and Morpork. While there, he meets and hires the failed wizard Rincewind as a guide. As a wizard, Rincewind knows only one spell, though he's not sure what spell and it could mean the end of the world if he were to say it (who knows?). Catastrophe ensues, starting with the twin cities burning down. Rincewind can't catch a break, but it seems he's destined to watch out for Twoflower, mostly because the luggage threatens to swallow him whole if he doesn't.
Okay, that's the short version. If you've read other "classic" fantasy series, or played D&D at all, you'll enjoy the pokes and prods Discworld makes in their general direction. I thought the book was slow to start, and a bit dry, but once I got settled in Discworld, I was really enjoying it.
I've got a long way to go in the series....
Book Review: Excellent!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an extraordinary book, an excellent piece of work indeed, so amusing and full of details. And full of magic!! It's amazing to see from how many "near-death experiences" the two main characters get away hahahahhahahaha you can't help but laugh, it is very good. And to think that one of the main characters is a "perfectly ordinary, if somewhat large" piece of luggage hahahahhahahaha thumbs up for this book, and congratulations to the author.Book Review: Saved a Road trip - Part 1
Summary: 4 Stars
I have long been reading the Discworld series, and have been reading them in publication order, with this being the first book in the Discworld series, I read it quite some time ago. I purchased the audiobook for one specific reason - an 8 hour car trip with a 5 and 9 year old. Fully aware that the four of us in the car could not listen to the same music, and knowing that the portable DVD player could not be seen by both children at once, I decided to give our first audio books a shot. We listened to the first book "The Color of Magic" on the way to FL, and the second book - The Light Fantastic" on the way home. These books saved the trip!
This book is an absolute trip to read, I had never listened to an audio book before so I wasn't sure what we were in for. It turned out to be exactly what we needed. Terry Pratchett has created a brilliant fantasy world of satire and humor. To discuss the plot would be pointless, because the plot is so simple and spartan. The Discworld had it's first tourist, a man named Twoflower. Twoflower meets up with Rincewind, a failed wizard who is terrified of everything. Twoflower secures Rincewind's services as a tourguide and the two of them spend almost the entire book getting into trouble and running away from it. Twoflower never seems to be aware of the trouble he is in, and snaps picture after picture of the critters and people who are attempting to kill him.
The first couple chapters of the book (being the first CD) are perplexing and Pratchett doesn't really get into his rhythm until the crew is out of Anhk-Morpork. Once they are out of town the rollicking good time begins.
This book is perfectly fine for the little ones, there is no profanity and the tiny bit of sexuality is so deeply hidden in satire that the little ones won't pick up on it. Nigel Planer does a fantastic job of reading this story, unfortunately though, the footnotes (which are plentiful in this book) don't come across quite right and can throw you a bit if you haven't figured out the slight change in tone between the actual story and the footnotes. I would have been happier had I gotten a copy of this audiobook without the footnotes.
My two boys, aged 5 and 10 at the time, howled with laughter the entire trip through TN and GA and finally into FL. True they didn't get a lot of the humor, but they were able to understand enough that they have favorite characters and laughed until they couldn't breathe at certain parts.
FYI this book ends on a cliffhanger so bad that you HAVE to get "The Light Fantastic" to hear the rest of the story. These two books are basically part 1 and 2 of the same tale. And to parents who don't want to spend a fortune on these books, Audible.com has both of them available for download at a much cheaper rate.
These two audiobooks saved a long roadtrip... I have already purchased several others for future road trips, although the kids are so obsessed they want to listen to them NOW. I highly recommend them.
Book Review: Why is this series so popular?
Summary: 1 Stars
Pros: A few lines that made me crack a smile.
Cons: No plot, random and confusing, not very funny, beats any decent jokes into the ground.
This book is confusing from the beginning. It introduces a large number of forgettable, ridiculously named characters and places in the first ten pages or so. It then proceeds into a storyline where one event never seems to connect to another. Just as I begin to get into one scene, the story shifts to another unrelated one, making the book very hard to follow. We move from one setting to another, but the story never seems to go anywhere. Instead of ending, the books just stops. Which is probably a blessing in disguise.
This book's worst crime, however, is that it is not funny. It satirizes fantasy in some of the most predictable ways possible -- we've got Rhincewind, the inept mage, Twoflower the reckless tourist, Hrun the stupid barbarian -- you get the picture. Nevertheless, Rhincewind and Twoflower might actually be decent characters if the confused storyline didn't constantly overshadow them.
There were a few -- a very few -- jokes in this book that made me crack a smile, but every time Pratchett gets a decent joke he beats into the ground mercilessly. A giant freaking turtle that pulls the sun may be mildly amusing the first time. It is just annoying the fiftieth time.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I will say that British humor is not really my thing. Maybe if it was, I would like this book better, but I still cannot imagine giving it one of these rave reviews.
I love fantasy and I love humor, but this book was a huge disappointment.