An open letter to whomever recommended "The Hogfather" {US} - Page 13

RickyMaveety · 12-15-2008, 11:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

Witches Abroad is one of my favorites.

Don't forget to read the Tiffany Aching books, too. Any time, at this point, I would say, as they don't overlap so much with the others, and you've got enough of a handle on the rest of the witches to have good context for Tiffany.

Which books are those?? I assume that if they are part of the Discworld series, then I'll hit them at some point.

wayspooled · 12-16-2008, 03:29 AM

Tiffany Aching is The Wee Free Men (excellent), A Hat Full of Sky (excellent) and Wintersmith (not bad, I'd save Wintersmith until you have no other pratchett left or just have to have more Feegles in your life.). In that order.

I wouldn't bother with the non discworld novels until you've finished discworld

There's a good list here http://wiki.lspace.org/wiki/Bibliography I'm not suggesting that some of them aren't just as good.

My personal favorites are Wyrd Sisters, Guards! Guards!, Men at Arms, Pyramids, Small Gods and Carpe Jugulum but you could grab any you like the look of. If you read The Colour of Magic, read The Light Fantastic right after since it's the only real duology (better than the movie btw). Of the discworlds, I'd save Wintersmith and Monstrous Regiment for last as I think they're the weakest but that's just my opinion.

oops, one more note. If someone is starting with The Colour of Magic, skip all the prologue, foreword, preface stuff and go straight for the story. Get into the story before you try to learn the physics and astronomy and that background stuff Mr. Pratchett thought you needed to know. It put me off from reading the book the first few times I tried and fortunately I read a later book and got hooked, then went back and realized what it was that was so off-putting. His strength isn't world painting, it's dialogue and plot where his brilliance shines. Again, in my opinion.

RickyMaveety · 12-16-2008, 01:07 PM

I'm plugging on with reading them in publication order ... introductions and all. And, so far, that is working for me extremely well.

I rather enjoy leaving a character for awhile, moving through some other part of the Discworld, and then coming back to that character later.

I also really like the fact that I know a character's back-story (like the Librarian ---- "ook") from its beginning.

I haven't found a book I haven't really enjoyed yet ....

wayspooled · 12-16-2008, 02:35 PM

Yeah, whatever order you're enjoying them in, is the right order

nekokami · 12-17-2008, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wayspooled

Yeah, whatever order you're enjoying them in, is the right order

That sounds about right.

My younger daughter (14) is just finishing Wee Free Men. She's going to read A Hatfull of Sky next. I may see if I can pry her away from her moody goth vampire books long enough to read the rest of the Witches books, but I don't think she'd go for the others. Maybe the Susan books, though there's a lot of context she'd be missing with Soul Music--not Discworld context, either, but stuff in our world. She'd probably like The Hogfather and Thief of Time, though.

JSWolf · 12-17-2008, 06:28 PM

I found the portrayal of Death in Hogfather (movie version) to be quite good.

nekokami · 12-19-2008, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I found the portrayal of Death in Hogfather (movie version) to be quite good.

I bought it for us to watch together on Christmas Day.

So I'm dying from curiosity... how do they do THE VOICE?

GeoffC · 12-20-2008, 10:32 AM

oook....

RickyMaveety · 12-20-2008, 11:43 AM

Oook!!

mores · 12-20-2008, 11:53 AM

I think I just found out about another major gap in my education ...

RickyMaveety · 12-20-2008, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mores

I think I just found out about another major gap in my education ...

Oook, eeek!!

It does help to speak Orangutan, as well as Llamaese, and Duck, if you plan to hang around here very long. Pandaese is also a good bet.

mores · 12-20-2008, 04:10 PM

So that's why I can't get my head around most of these threads.
They have a weird green icon in front of them ... something with "unutterable silliness"

atesta · 12-28-2008, 04:45 AM

After reading the books don't forget to look at "The Annotated Pratchett File". There you can find most of the references you might have missed. There is no information on more recent books (2004), but it should be enough.

nekokami · 12-30-2008, 02:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atesta

After reading the books don't forget to look at "The Annotated Pratchett File". There you can find most of the references you might have missed. There is no information on more recent books (2004), but it should be enough.

Good site, but doesn't address one question I have: is "Hogswatchnight" partially inspired by Hogmanay? Not that Terry Pratchett isn't perfectly capable of coming up with a porcine-based holiday on his own, but when I ran into references about it today, I couldn't help but wonder.

montsnmags · 12-30-2008, 03:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

Good site, but doesn't address one question I have: is "Hogswatchnight" partially inspired by Hogmanay? Not that Terry Pratchett isn't perfectly capable of coming up with a porcine-based holiday on his own, but when I ran into references about it today, I couldn't help but wonder.

Wikipedia says "the name is a pun on "hogwash", Hogmanay and Watch Night, and possibly on the ancient holiday of Samhain" though it doesn't cite a source.

Cheers,
Marc

12-16-2008, 03:29 AM	#182
wayspooled Crab In The Dark Posts: 486 Karma: 2328180 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Virginia Device: Tablet PC until a 10" comes out that I like	Tiffany Aching is The Wee Free Men (excellent), A Hat Full of Sky (excellent) and Wintersmith (not bad, I'd save Wintersmith until you have no other pratchett left or just have to have more Feegles in your life.). In that order. I wouldn't bother with the non discworld novels until you've finished discworld There's a good list here http://wiki.lspace.org/wiki/Bibliography I'm not suggesting that some of them aren't just as good. My personal favorites are Wyrd Sisters, Guards! Guards!, Men at Arms, Pyramids, Small Gods and Carpe Jugulum but you could grab any you like the look of. If you read The Colour of Magic, read The Light Fantastic right after since it's the only real duology (better than the movie btw). Of the discworlds, I'd save Wintersmith and Monstrous Regiment for last as I think they're the weakest but that's just my opinion. oops, one more note. If someone is starting with The Colour of Magic, skip all the prologue, foreword, preface stuff and go straight for the story. Get into the story before you try to learn the physics and astronomy and that background stuff Mr. Pratchett thought you needed to know. It put me off from reading the book the first few times I tried and fortunately I read a later book and got hooked, then went back and realized what it was that was so off-putting. His strength isn't world painting, it's dialogue and plot where his brilliance shines. Again, in my opinion. Last edited by wayspooled; 12-16-2008 at 04:56 AM.

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12-16-2008, 01:07 PM	#183
RickyMaveety Holy S**T!!! Posts: 5,213 Karma: 108401 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: San Diego, California!! Device: Kindle and iPad	I'm plugging on with reading them in publication order ... introductions and all. And, so far, that is working for me extremely well. I rather enjoy leaving a character for awhile, moving through some other part of the Discworld, and then coming back to that character later. I also really like the fact that I know a character's back-story (like the Librarian ---- "ook") from its beginning. I haven't found a book I haven't really enjoyed yet ....

12-16-2008, 02:35 PM	#184
wayspooled Crab In The Dark Posts: 486 Karma: 2328180 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Virginia Device: Tablet PC until a 10" comes out that I like	Yeah, whatever order you're enjoying them in, is the right order

12-17-2008, 06:28 PM	#186
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 80,784 Karma: 150249619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	I found the portrayal of Death in Hogfather (movie version) to be quite good.

12-20-2008, 10:32 AM	#188
GeoffC Chocolate Grasshopper ... Posts: 27,599 Karma: 20821184 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Muse HD , Cybook Gen3 , Pocketbook 302 (Black) , Nexus 10: wife has PW	oook....

12-20-2008, 11:43 AM	#189
RickyMaveety Holy S**T!!! Posts: 5,213 Karma: 108401 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: San Diego, California!! Device: Kindle and iPad	Oook!!

12-20-2008, 11:53 AM	#190
mores Guru Posts: 834 Karma: 102419 Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Vienna, Austria Device: iPhone	I think I just found out about another major gap in my education ...

12-20-2008, 04:10 PM	#192
mores Guru Posts: 834 Karma: 102419 Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Vienna, Austria Device: iPhone	So that's why I can't get my head around most of these threads. They have a weird green icon in front of them ... something with "unutterable silliness"

12-28-2008, 04:45 AM	#193
atesta Banned Posts: 31 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2007 Device: TBA	After reading the books don't forget to look at "The Annotated Pratchett File". There you can find most of the references you might have missed. There is no information on more recent books (2004), but it should be enough.