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Friday, 18 October 2013 05:00 pm
Book Review: Guards! Guards!
As I said before, Terry Pratchett's first and latest (tho not for much longer) Discworld novels, The Colour of Magic and Snuff, could hardly be less similar and still belong to the same series. From my perspective, Guards! Guards! was the missing link. It retains much of the former's focus on invoking and subverting cliches and some of its focus on the supernatural, including Death personified, while putting the latter's hero in the spotlight for what I assume is the first time.
The story takes place almost entirely in Ankh-Morpork, the old city that has devolved to a filthy crime capital. Lord Vetinari, called the Patrician, appears to be the tyrant the city needs to run at anything better than pandemonium. Like Baron Klaus von Wulfenbach in "Girl Genius," he's not all that rotten at heart, just pragmatic in cruelty. Unlike the Baron, he calls for very few laws. As a result, the City Watch has become a powerless joke populated by seemingly useless men. It's strange for me to see Captain Samuel Vimes constantly drunk in the beginning, given his good life and awesomeness by Snuff. I guess Pratchett gained optimism.
But while I don't share quite such a dreary view of humanity, I grinned many times while reading. Here at last is the level of humor that made Discworld so big a hit. It contains several characters who rate offhand mentions on irrelevant forums I read. My favorite might be the innocent, ignorant, yet effective new guard Carrot. My mom's favorite (and she should check it out) would have to be the Librarian, a man-turned-speechless-orangutan who nevertheless retains high competence and strong opinions. I'm afraid there aren't many females this time around, but the incomparable Lady Sybil Ramkin, caretaker of swamp dragons, makes a grand entrance. The humor wanes a little in the second half as the crisis intensifies, but it gets better in the end.
Warning: Do NOT read the Harper Collins summary on the back cover. It spoils too much.
Next on my list is The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein. From what little I've gathered, it won't turn into a hippiefest like Stranger in a Strange Land.
The story takes place almost entirely in Ankh-Morpork, the old city that has devolved to a filthy crime capital. Lord Vetinari, called the Patrician, appears to be the tyrant the city needs to run at anything better than pandemonium. Like Baron Klaus von Wulfenbach in "Girl Genius," he's not all that rotten at heart, just pragmatic in cruelty. Unlike the Baron, he calls for very few laws. As a result, the City Watch has become a powerless joke populated by seemingly useless men. It's strange for me to see Captain Samuel Vimes constantly drunk in the beginning, given his good life and awesomeness by Snuff. I guess Pratchett gained optimism.
But while I don't share quite such a dreary view of humanity, I grinned many times while reading. Here at last is the level of humor that made Discworld so big a hit. It contains several characters who rate offhand mentions on irrelevant forums I read. My favorite might be the innocent, ignorant, yet effective new guard Carrot. My mom's favorite (and she should check it out) would have to be the Librarian, a man-turned-speechless-orangutan who nevertheless retains high competence and strong opinions. I'm afraid there aren't many females this time around, but the incomparable Lady Sybil Ramkin, caretaker of swamp dragons, makes a grand entrance. The humor wanes a little in the second half as the crisis intensifies, but it gets better in the end.
Warning: Do NOT read the Harper Collins summary on the back cover. It spoils too much.
Next on my list is The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein. From what little I've gathered, it won't turn into a hippiefest like Stranger in a Strange Land.