Wossname – August 2020 – Main issue
Aug. 31st, 2020 07:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wossnameWossname
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
August 2020 (Volume 23, Issue 8, Post 1)
********************************************************************
WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works of Sir Terry Pratchett. Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for members of the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, including the North American Discworld Society and other continental groups, Wossname is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in Roundworld.
********************************************************************
Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Mss C, Alison not Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancer: Jason Parlevliet
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
INDEX:
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) THE TIME TRAVELLING CAVEMAN: EXTRACTS AND NEWS
04) ODDS AND SODS
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
07) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
08) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
09) CLOSE
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
"I believe in freedom, Mr. Lipwig. Not many people do, although they will, of course, protest otherwise. And no practical definition of freedom would be complete without the freedom to take the consequences. Indeed, it is the freedom upon which all the others are based."
– Lord Vetinari, in Going Postal
"One day it's the ringing of the bells and the casting down of the evil tyrant, and the next it's everyone sitting around complaining that ever since the tyrant was overthrown no one's been taking out the trash."
– Guards! Guards!
"I recorded this quite certain we wouldn't win the Hugo Award for the Good Omens tv series. I was wrong. We won. This one is for Terry."
– Neil Gaiman, on Good Omens winning the Best Longform Dramatic Presentation 2020 Hugo award
"A lawyer would use the term 'inspired' to cover up misselling[sic] and misrepresentation. I believe that is what people believe has happened. Simon Allen using his own stories and characters. Only the character names are 'inspired' by the work of Terry Pratchett."
– tweeter Mark Alex Pidd gets it right about The Watch
"I read Fighting Fantasy a lot as a kid. I used to get in trouble with my local library for not bringing them back. I remember a threatening letter that they were going to take me to court if I didn't return one of the books. I was reading a lot and I managed to lose it under my bed."
– sounds like Rhianna Pratchett takes after her reading-mad father in their respective childhoods
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR
Still in severe lockdown. Hard to remember what month this is... is it 2021 yet?
Did you know that Good Omens has been translated into more than thirty languages so far? The latest version is a "new" translation into Russian, with cover art that ties in with the Amazon-BBC miniseries. But as it turns out, that new translation is an old one. Eksmo (Эксмо) is a major publisher, responsible for releasing some thirty per cent of all books in Russia; Eksmo published a "Black Edition" translation by Margarita Yurkan in 2012 and again in 2019 with the TV tie-in cover. But the first Russian translation was an unofficial (samizdat) one by Vadim Filinnov, who also translated the works of Douglas Adams. Two or more versions of Filinnov's translation were in circulation during the 1990s and had a large fan following, but when Eksmo decided to publish their own version they set out to crush these... but then did the right thing, bought the rights to the Filinnov version and republished *that* this year! And there are several covers, including one featuring Paul Kidby's miniseries-influenced Crowley. Confused? You will be, as an old telly soap used to say. At any rate, there's more info about all this on Colin Smythe's website – and if you have or know anyone who has one of the early translation versions, Colin would love the hear from you:
https://colinsmythe.co.uk/terry-pratchett/good-omens-neil-gaiman/
Also, the new cover illustrator's take on Aziraphale is... um... unusual, as is his apparent decision to portray Crowley as a perfect facsimile of the actor Liev Schreiber! See Images of the Month, below.
*
The Time-Travelling Caveman is published next week. Have you ordered yet? I have! See links in item 3.2
And now, on with the show...
– Annie Mac, Editor
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
03) THE TIME TRAVELLING CAVEMAN
3.1 REMINDER: EXTRACTS
The Time Travelling Caveman is officially released next week! Dates as given by Penguin/Doubleday are 1st September (hardback) and 3rd September (ebook and audiobook/CD/download); there's also a deluxe slipcover version due out on the 8th of October. In the meantime, here be some extracts in case you missed them last month.
* From "The Tropnecian Invasion of Britain", courtesy of The Guardian:
"Tropnecia is a very small country somewhere in the Tosheroon Islands, but once upon a time it very nearly conquered Great Britain. In AD 411, when the last of the Romans had just left, a small Tropnecian sailing ship that happened to be passing spotted the coast of England, and thought it would be a good place to conquer. That was how things were done in history. As soon as you saw a place, you had to conquer it, and usually the English Channel was full of ships queuing up to come and have a good conquer. ‘If you’ve got nothing to do,’ chieftains would tell their sons, ‘go and conquer England.’ Anyway, the Tropnecians arrived on a Sunday, when there was no one about, so the first thing they did was build a road. That’s another thing you have to do. Either you burn down houses or you build roads and walls, otherwise you don’t stand much chance of being put in the history books.
"Tropnecian roads can always be recognised because they never go in straight lines. The roads were all designed by the famous Tropnecian architect General Bulbus Hangdoge, and he wasn’t very good at drawing straight lines. Very good on the corners, but very bad on the straight lines. So all the roads were a little wobbly. At that time England was full of Picts, Scots, Druids, Angles, Saxons, Vikings, Stonehenges, wet weather and various kinds of kings, the most famous of which was King Rupert the Never Ready, of Wessex. He was never ready for anything, which was why England kept getting conquered. People would say, ‘Are you ready to fight the Vikings if they try to conquer us?’ and he would say, ‘I don’t think so.’ The next thing you knew, Vikings were all over the place, burning down houses...."
To read the whole extract, go to: https://bit.ly/330UPYV
* From "The Hole in Time", courtesy of Penguin Books via Terry Pratchett.com:
"One morning, at about half past eight, there was a giant bang from the Blackbury University Science Institute and all the clocks in the town suddenly stopped. A dozen fire engines rushed up there, then wondered why they’d bothered. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong. A lot of people in white coats were rushing all over the place, but apart from that there was nothing out of the ordinary. ‘What’s going on here?’ asked the head of the institute, Mr Plinth, who had just arrived for work. He still had his mug of tea in his hand. A woman in a white coat, wearing thick spectacles, rushed up. ‘Something terrible has happened!’ she gasped. ‘We’ve lost Doctor Hughes! And her laboratory! They’ve gone!’ ‘Blown up, you mean?’ asked Mr Plinth, visibly shocked. ‘No, they’ve disappeared! Look.’ Dr Spectacles (for this was her name) pointed at what was actually just a patch of grass, next to the institute. ‘Looks like just a patch of grass to me,’ said Mr Plinth. ‘Well, there was a brick building standing there just a moment ago. Now it’s vanished.’ Mr Plinth scratched his head. Then he gingerly edged one of his boots onto the patch of grass where the brick building had been, while the laboratory workers stood around wondering whether he might vanish too. A few began to back away from Mr Plinth . . . and the patch of grass.
"Then it started to snow. At least, it snowed on that little patch of ground. Mr Plinth stared up and saw grey clouds. He stepped off the grass and suddenly the sun was shining again. He stepped back onto the grass, and into a snowdrift. ‘This here ground has got its own weather,’ he said. ‘It’s in the middle of January there, by the looks of it, while everywhere else is in August.’ ‘Ah, but which January – ’ began a portly whitecoated man, who then stopped rather suddenly as Dr Spectacles gave him a chilly look that would have made it snow outside the patch of grass, as well as inside it...."
To read the whole extract, and view the reproduced illustrations, go to: https://bit.ly/34mFWRk
3.2 ORDERING INFO
The Time Travelling Caveman can be ordered from:
Penguin: https://bit.ly/3g3PhAt and Penguin Australia: https://bit.ly/3hXdjOj
Discworld.com: https://bit.ly/3fa7sD8
Discworld Emporium: https://bit.ly/39MT8zL
Foyles: https://www.foyles.co.uk/all?term=9780857536020
Waterstones: https://bit.ly/3gFsLxB
Blackwells: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/9780857536020
Hive: https://bit.ly/2CNrtTe
...and in Fourecks...
Booktopia: https://bit.ly/2ChTemc
QBD Books: https://bit.ly/3f5IYLn
Readings: https://bit.ly/2Cn9jqs
Dymocks: https://bit.ly/3fd4AX9
Angus and Robertson: https://bit.ly/31ZRicE
...and other places, including that evil one your Editor refuses to promote, ever.
If at all possible, please support your local independent bookshop!
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
04) ODDS AND SODS
4.0 HUGO AWARD FOR THE GOOD OMENS MINISERIES
From the Guardian:
"[B]est longform dramatic presentation went to Good Omens, written by Neil Gaiman and directed by Douglas Mackinnon. Accepting the prize, Gaiman said that he only made the show because the late Pratchett .wanted me to.. .Terry never won a Hugo. The only time he was nominated he withdrew the novel from consideration, telling people that if he had a book nominated it would ruin his WorldCon. It wasn’t that he didn’t care, it was that he cared too much,. said Gaiman. Pratchett had thought, said Gaiman, that a Hugo would never go 'to anything funny.. .Thank you,' he told fans, 'for giving Terry Pratchett his Hugo award'..."
https://bit.ly/2ELW83J
Neil Gaiman's acceptance speech (video, 2:39): https://bit.ly/2EvPUp5
...and the transcript:
"Terry never won a Hugo, the only time he was nominated for a Hugo Award, he actually withdrew the novel from consideration, telling people that if he had a book nominated for a Hugo it would ruin his WorldCon worrying. It wasn’t that he didn’t care. It was that he cared too much. For all the wards that he got, for call the acclamation, for all the honors and the love heaped upon Terry during his lifetime, the one he really cared about was the Hugo Award. And he would grumble about it to me, pointing out that he was never going to get one, because they were never going to give a Hugo Award to anything funny..."
To read the entire transcript, go to https://bit.ly/3jtVO8Z and scroll to the penultimate item at the bottom.
4.1 THE PRATCHETT PROJECT UPDATES
"The Pratchett Project at Trinity College Dublin is seeking expressions of interest from outstanding candidates who would like to apply for a Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship in order to complete a PhD in a subject related to Terry Pratchett's life and/or work from September 2021. If you are interested, please formulate an abstract of no more than 300 words. Be sure to include:
* The overarching research question
* A step-by-step methodology
* A clear list of the materials your study will draw on
* A justification for why the answer to this research question is a valuable contribution to human knowledge
* Any contextual information that a reader needs to understand the other four points.
Once you have your abstract, please send it to James Hadley (hadleyj@tcd.ie). The most promising applicants will receive assistance in crafting their full proposals."
For more information about the scheme, including the minimum requirements for applicants, go to:
http://research.ie/funding/goipg/?f=postgraduate
https://bit.ly/3lwSwDw
REMINDER: the Pratchett Project virtual conference takes place next month, on the 17th and 18th September. The two-day symposium will cover topics including Utopian Critique in Nation (David Farnell), Space in Pratchett's Narrative Networks (Matthew Roughan), Political idealism in the Discworld Novels (Ruchira Mandal), Humour, parody and satire in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels (Kamil Kaaras), Pratchett and Contemporary Pessimism (Oliver Rendle), The Move from Fantasy Parody to Moral Complexity and Literary Fiction in the Ankh-Morpork Novels (Ricarda Krenn), Bad Faith and the Crab Bucket (Samuel Poots), and Incorporating Terry Pratchett's Fiction in the University Curriculum (Olena Tykhomyrova), among others.
"Split into four sections over the two days, the conference will focus on The Space of Ideas, Translation and Humour, Ethics and Identity, and Research and Teaching. Scheduled sessions include The Big Wahoonie: Ankh-Morpork as Cross-Media Urban Imaginary; Translating Pratchett into Ukrainian: Strategies and Challenges; The Move from Fantasy Parody to Moral Complexity and Literary Fiction in the Ankh Morpork-novels; and 'Lies to children': From folk to formal science in Terry Pratchett's Discworld."
For more details, go to: https://bit.ly/2P50Uv5
To sign up, go to: https://bit.ly/39EQ34k
https://bit.ly/2ExDwED
4.2 UPDATES: THE TERRY PRATCHETT BOOK CLUB
On the website of publishers Tor, Emmet Asher-Perrin continues a Discworld discussion page. This time around it's the last part of The Light Fantastic and the first parts of Equal Rites.
On the end section of The Light Fantastic:
"I dearly appreciate how Pratchett describes the smell of Ankh-Morpork through analogy for a very particular reason – I have a terrible sense of smell. So really, the analogy is more evocative for me on a number of levels. It was something that I had to bring up because scent is, of course, one of the most evocative of our five senses (tied to memory and all that), but often harder to describe than the others. So, I have a lot of emotion-things about Twoflower putting his profound lack of common sense to good use, turning all of Rincewind’s complaints back on him and literally saying .I’m here because I don’t know any better, but what about you?. I also have a lot of emotion-things about the fact that Twoflower doesn’t crack the spines of books because I am one of those weirdos, too, even though I wish I wasn’t. Sorry, it’s very silly, I know that, but I don’t like doing it because then you can’t read the spines and it’s a thing I’m finicky about... It’s also pretty great to see Trymon get his comeuppance. I didn’t really get into it throughout the book, but you have to appreciate the way Pratchett walks a line with this character: He doesn’t say that the old ways are the best ways – he acknowledges that the old ways are often pretty ridiculous while simultaneously acknowledging the fact that new ways can sometimes be heinously abused by those who want to introduce them. The problem with Trymon isn’t that he has newfangled thoughts, it’s that he’s using that system purely for personal gain. The fact that he’s Rincewind’s contemporary is important in this because they’re both outcasts in the wizardly ways of doing things, but one of them is decidedly less power-hungry and world-endy..."
https://bit.ly/2YNF705
...and the start of Equal Rites:
"This book actually began with a talk that Pratchett gave on gender and magic (which you can incidentally access the text for here) in 1985. In addition, Esk was apparently based on his daughter, Rhianna. And in his conceit for the premise, outlined by this speech, he basically says that his belief in the difference between what is labeled 'men’s magic' and 'women’s magic' is not truly down to sexism and devaluing women’s labor and expertise, but in fact a bit more cerebral – he believes that wizards are about what people hope they could be if they had power, and witches are about what we fear we might become. Which, you know, it’s a totally valid way of looking at branches of magic and how we depict them in literature..."
https://bit.ly/3bbgDTz
...continued...
"Plenty of fantasy tomes and games trade on the concept of 'races' and 'peoples' and throw around words like 'gypsy' and 'bandits', and you find yourself cringing because why do it at all? Categorization is needed in parts of worldbuilding, but it’s often an ugly and deeply biased exercise, no matter how hard an author tries to be smart and sensitive about their construction of a fictional world. I think one of the reasons that Pratchett manages it far better than others is the reason why Discworld continues to be so relevant and sharp decades later – he knows that people are just people..."
https://bit.ly/3lwSH1E
[As previously mentioned, these are well worth a read, and feel free to join in the comments! – Ed.]
4.3 YORKSHIRE TAKES ON THE AMAZING MAURICE
Sheffield animation studio Red Star has a new project on the go. Some might find it amusing that founder Mr Smith was "acclaimed for the visual effects used in Lost in Space". At least he's not *Doctor* Smith!
"Red Star 3D creates its own films which are shown in cinemas, theme parks, museums and other venues. Its most recent creation, StarDog and TurboCat, opened in cinemas last December and is currently available on Amazon. Founded in 2004 by Ben Smith and Jan Rogowski, it is recognised as one of the leading independent studios of its type worldwide and has won dozens of awards and nominations at film festivals. The company, which currently employs 10 people at the Electric Works base, is planning to create an additional 40 jobs in the next two years... A second feature production, The Amazing Maurice – based on the book by Sir Terry Pratchett – is just getting underway..."
https://bit.ly/2ELKZQs
4.5 PTERRY AND ROALD DAHL: A MEETING OF GIANTS
Way back in the late 1960s, when Sir Terry was a young journalist, he interviewed a certain local writer who was waiting to see if another of his books would be turned into a film... in The Telegraph, Dalya Alberge tells a bit about it:
"As two of English literature’s best-loved writers of comic fantasy, the discovery of a previously-unknown conversation between the late Sir Terry Pratchett and Roald Dahl would be the stuff of fantasy for legions of fans worldwide. But evidence that they met and discussed the dearth of plots and the difficulty of writing children’s books, among other topics, has been unearthed. It is an interview that Pratchett conducted with Dahl in 1969, overlooked until now. Long before he found fame with his Discworld series, a collection of satirical fantasy novels, he was a 21-year-old journalist on a local newspaper with dreams of publishing his first novel. Dahl, then 52, had already published his children’s classics, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and James and The Giant Peach, as well as short stories for adults and screenplays..."
https://bit.ly/3gIsYjt
The original article reveals all sorts of things most of us might not have known – that Dahl, was mostly known back then in Britain as the husband of actress Patricia Neal and the screenwriter for the Bond film You Only Live Twice, that he was a Squadron Leader in the RAF during the Second World War, and that overall he wasn't terribly impressed with artists who thought their art was important – but what the article also shows is hints of the young Pratchett's clean and succinct writing style: "The recently published Penguin edition of ‘Kiss Kiss’, a collection that first appeared in 1959, has as its gripping cover design a man slowly sinking into a mincing machine. This is a gross libel on some of his stories. The horror is often more subtle than that. So it is perhaps surprising that Mr. Dahl, at 53, has been building up for some years a reputation as a writer for children. His fourth book, ‘Boggis, Bunce and Bean’, is at the publishers. The best-known of the other three, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’, has sold over 100,000 in America and is selling more every month..."
[Editor's note: the entire transcript is on the Wossname blog at https://bit.ly/3gHji8E – hopefully, no one will rise from the distant past to complain. Many thanks to Colin Smythe for providing your Editor with an iconograph of the article!]
4.6 THE MERCH CORNER
This month's feature is Discworld stage adaptations! Oberon Books, a Bloomsbury imprint, have published a number of Stephen Briggs' Discworld stage adaptations in paperback...
* The Rince Cycle
"As a punishment, failed wizard Rincewind is given the task of guiding and safeguarding the Disc’s first tourist, Twoflower (with his magical luggage on legs). As they travel the city and beyond, they meet the world’s oldest hero, Cohen the Barbarian. With him, and with Bethan (a qualified sacrificial victim), they encounter druids, trolls, adventurers, a hairdresser and a power-crazed wizard. Oh, and Death. But not fatally. Did we mention that Rincewind also has to save the world from destruction by a huge red star that will collide with the Discworld at Hogswatch? The Rince Cycle is mostly based on The Light Fantastic, with bits of The Colour of Magic and Sourcery added for good measure."
https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/the-rince-cycle-9781783191963/
* Unseen Academicals: https://bit.ly/34O84x2
* Feet of Clay: https://bit.ly/3gIJnnG
* All the Discworld's a Stage: Volume 1 (omnibus edition, includes The Rince Cycle, Unseen Academicals, and Feet of Clay):
https://bit.ly/2EJVaVI
* All the Discworld's a Stage: Volume 2 (omnibus edition, includes The Shakespeare Codex, Lords and Ladies, and Hogfather) will be released later this year. More details as soon as available!
And not forgetting...
Interesting Times: https://bit.ly/32DPogG
The Fifth Elephant: https://bit.ly/32CWwtH
Jingo: https://bit.ly/3gJJfof
Going Postal: https://bit.ly/3b85fbd
Monstrous Regiment: https://bit.ly/34MOaCz
The Truth: https://bit.ly/2YQ9lzP
Night Watch: https://bit.ly/34NqgXm
Many of these are also available in ebook form.
Oberon on Mr Briggs: "As all children know, the way you get into a fantasy world is by accident… You go into the wardrobe, looking for somewhere to hide and – bingo. And that’s how Stephen Briggs found Discworld. In 1990, he wrote to ask Terry if he could stage Wyrd Sisters. That was the first time anyone, anywhere in the world, had dramatised Terry’s work. He had no idea it would go any further than one play (possibly two). But it did. So far, he has now adapted, staged and published twenty-two plays. He and Terry also worked together to produce the original Discworld Maps and Diaries, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook, The Discworld Companion (now called Turtle Recall) and The Wit & Wisdom of Discworld."
http://oberonbooks.com/discworld-collection
https://www.stephenbriggs.com/the-plays
* Reminder: The Ankh-Morpork Archives Volume One
"Think you know Ankh-Morpork? Think again. In this top-secret guide, travellers will receive a first-hand experience of the real city. If you’ve ever wondered where Unseen University students wet their whistles (while managing to avoid their teachers doing the same), or just what the Assassins’ Guild constitutes a proper means of inhumation – there are standards to be upheld, after all – then this is the book for you. That’s right, have yourselves a peek into the inner workings of city’s societies. Cut the chaff, glimpse behind the curtain, see how the sausage gets made . . . err, you get the idea. Just don’t let the Thieves’ Guild catch you with this book. They won’t appreciate their methods being flogged behind their back. Flogging’s their job. Completely revamped and redesigned, this full-colour book contains material from Discworld Diaries across the decades."
Each copy of The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume One is priced at £25. For more info, and to order, go to https://bit.ly/3gi8nCg
* The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume Two
"Containing material unavailable for twenty years – this is a comprehensive guide to the capital city of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, getting to the heart of Ankh-Morpork’s secrets, societies and guilds. Ankh-Morpork is a bottomless pit of secrets. It’s time to unearth a few more . . . In the second volume of this confidential guide, brave travellers are made privy to the inner workings of more illustrious Ankh-Morpork societies. Disabuse yourself of notions of professionalism under which you may hold the City Watch; discover what serious business is undertaken by the Fools’ Guild (joking is no laughing matter); and, should you be lucky, achieve true enlightenment through the teachings of Lu-Tze. One thing’s for sure: after you’ve read this book, Ankh-Morpork’s Guilds are going to need to come up with new ways of doing things. Completely revamped and redesigned, this full-colour book contains material from Discworld Diaries across the decades."
Each copy of The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume Two is priced at £25 and will be published on 29th October 2020. For more info, and to pre-order, go to:
https://bit.ly/3lxmhUV
* Reminder: Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal
"In a city like Ankh-Morpork, where Assassins assassinate, thieves thieve and seamstresses, um . . . don’t, Law and Order can be a complicated business. Thankfully His Grace, His Excellency, The Duke of Ankh, Commander Sir Samuel Vimes (Blackboard Monitor) and the Ankh-Morpork City Watch are here to keep the peace. The finest body of men, women, dwarfs, trolls, werewolves, golems, Igors, gnomes, Feegles, vampires (and whatever Nobby Nobbs is) on the face of the Discworld! The Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal provides jotting space for your notes, reports, observations and investigations, so kick back, relax and take down your particulars. To help you keep on the straight and narrow, you’ll be aided and abetted by some choice quotes from Terry Pratchett’s seminal City Watch novels."
Each Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal ("Exclusively embossed with Terry's signature and sealed with his coat of arms") is priced at £17. For more info, and to pre-order, go to:
https://bit.ly/31jaHVy
* Reminder: The Magic of Terry Pratchett (biography)
"Journalist, comedian and Pratchett fan Marc Burrows delves into the back story of one of UK's most enduring and beloved authors, from his childhood in the Chiltern Hills to his time as a journalist, and the journey that would take him – via more than sixty best-selling books – to an OBE, a knighthood and national treasure status. The Magic Of Terry Pratchett is the result of painstaking archival research alongside interviews with friends and contemporaries who knew the real man under the famous black hat, helping to piece together the full story of one of British literature's most remarkable and beloved figures for the very first time."
There are several versions that will be available, starting with the standard edition (currently priced at £16), the fancier Snapcase edition (£21), and the Patrician Box (£35.00, featuring various extras). For more information, and to order, go to:
https://www.askmeaboutterrypratchett.com/s/shop
https://twitter.com/20thcenturymarc
4.7 LIBRARIANS, THROWING SHADE? SURELY NOT... NOT
Librarians rock! Of course, we already knew that. Those of you who follow https://twitter.com/OED, the Oxford English Dictionary's Twitter account, may have noticed that account's frequent shade-throwing over the past few years in the form of its "Word of the Day" tweets, a great number of which are subtle yet plain digs at current events. But some bibliophile – school librarian or perhaps English teacher – has take that to the next level, with a display of carefully chosen book titles lining the shelves behind a certain prime minister as he made a speech about er um education-related current events...
"Meanwhile, the bookshelf behind him seemed to make a statement of its own. Lining the shelf just behind Mr Johnson's head were titles with rather unflattering associations for any political leader, including 'The Twits', 'The Subtle Knife', 'The Resistance', and 'Betrayed'. And sticking out like a sore thumb was 'Fahrenheit 451', a dystopian novel about a society where books are banned. If you look closely, 'Guards! Guards!', a Terry Pratchett novel, can also be glimpsed behind the PM's right shoulder. The story follows a plot by a secret brotherhood to overthrow a corrupt patrician and install a puppet king..."
Of course, The Patrician in question, as *we* know, isn't corrupt. If only life would imitate art more often.
https://bit.ly/3lwTu2C
You might also enjoy reading the many replies to the official Pterry Twitter account's "caption contest" for that iconograph:
https://twitter.com/terryandrob/status/1298652299766702082
Meanwhile, in the Department of Plausible Deniability:
"Now it has been revealed that the books were in fact a message, left by the school’s former librarian. But the librarian, who left the role around six months ago, says it was actually intended for the school’s bosses... 'I did it as a message for the school management before I left in February... They obviously never actually noticed, and it went untouched for six months'..."
https://bit.ly/2EPw5si
4.8 GAMING WITH MY DAD: RHIANNA PRATCHETT INTERVIEW
Here be a delightful interview with Junior Pratchett, by Tom Tivnan for The Bookseller. Great fun to read!
"'I’ve been playing video games since I was six years old. At first, dad played the games and I used to watch them and map the games out; it was a bit of a spectator sport, a bonding time between us. He had this very big office chair and I would kind of tuck myself behind him like a human bolster cushion. In my teens, we would watch each other play and we would be emotionally in it together. I got his hand-me-down machines, so I used to play games that he had played first...' Gaming wasn’t just with her dad. A friend’s father worked for HP, so she always had the most up-to-date kit and the two would play 'a lot of age-inappropriate stuff' like Leisure Suit Larry, the somewhat infamous classic whose adult-themed story line has the titular character, a 40-year-old, balding, double-entendre-spewing nerd, trying to seduce young women. 'It was very educational,' Pratchett insists. 'To get past the "are you over 18" test you had to answer "adult" questions about things like the American political system, which I had to look up. I learned the word prophylactic from the game when I was about 11.' Outside of Leisure Suit Larry, much of Pratchett's early life seems very wholesome. Her father’s books didn’t hit the bestseller lists until the late '80s so the family didn’t have that much money for much of her childhood. She says: 'It was very rural and pastoral. We lived in a little cottage on the edge of a valley, had a veggie patch, chickens and ducks in the back garden and goats in the front. You could probably find people doing this in Islington, but they do it for hobbies – we did it because we needed the food and the milk. I used to run around the valley, climb trees, go walking...I was probably among the last generation of kids allowed to be free in nature. And, I could milk a goat and knew how to spin wool, probably very useful in a post-apocalyptic scenario....'"
https://www.thebookseller.com/insight/rhianna-pratchett-1216975
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
Still no news. But keep an eye out for possible forthcoming Discworld plays later in the year. We must keep the knowledge of Discworld circulating!
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
Remember, one day, possibly in the not too distant future, Discworld fans will be able to meet in the real Roundworld again. So keep this information handy! Also note there are a few updates below.
The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld Group"
BrokenDrummers@gmail.com or nicholls.helen@yahoo.co.uk or join their Facebook group at https://bit.ly/3jtYLGo
NOTE: the Drummers are still meeting occasionally via Zoom. Check out the above links for updates!
*
Drumknott's Irregulars
Facebook https://bit.ly/31FlSrq or Google Groups https:groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars or join us at our next event."
*
The Victorian Discworld Klatch
https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch
*
"The Gathering of the Loonies (Wincanton chapter)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/
*
The Pratchett Partisans
https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula directly at uwilmott@yahoo.com.au
*
The City of Small Gods
www.cityofsmallgods.org.au
UPDATE: "What are we doing while we're stuck at home due to COVID-19? Given that our normal social gatherings can't happen while everyone's under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are instead trying to host regular activities and discussions online. Most of these will be done via our Discord Server – https://discord.gg/3RVzsyJ – which has several text chat channels and a few voice chat channels as well. We will still use our Facebook group – https://facebook.com/groups/cityofsmallgods – to coordinate scheduled events. When things get back to normal... (semi-) regular social meetings are generally held on the last Thursday of the month at a pub or restaurant in Adelaide. We have dinner at 6.30pm followed by games until 9pm."
*
The Broken Vectis Drummers
broken_vectis_drummers@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) meets at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn when social gatherings are possible.
*
The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of Flatalists normally meet at The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the Discworld Stamps forum: http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/
*
Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder)
Contact Sue (aka Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers https://bit.ly/2EKSCqu – or message Alexandra Ware directly at <alexandra.ware@gmail.com>
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
07) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
Blogger Sorcha "Nordie" Ogle reviews Mort:
"I reread this in 2020, during the pandemic, and I definitely consider this as a *Comfort* read. Yes, every reader needs to decide what they class as *comfort* and some may see reading a book where the main character collects souls as a bit morbid, but that is not what I take from this. This book has Love, Romance, Morals, Doing the Right Thing, Responsibility, Thinking of the long game (and others), self identity, cultural perception and ultimately, the delivery of a damn fine line – preferably whilst walking through a wall like it is not there. Some of the comfort for me came from the expectation of certain lines/jokes, some of which did not appear in this book (It turns out I miss the stories of the other 3 horsemen of the apocalypse going down the pub more than I realised). That means they appear in other books, so I need to do a full re-read..."
https://bit.ly/2QDRRSB
Blogger Book Beach Bunny found some aspects of Reaper Man confusing:
"Death is forcibly retired and goes to work on a farm- one I knew I would like because I like Death… And the damned trolleys had me so confused! Don’t get me wrong this was still a good Discworld but like so many other things in Discworld it was the damned wizard part that confused it... I enjoyed the book overall and the stuff with Death is actually really deep and meaningful. In some ways I’ve found this the most meaningful Discworld book yet which is probably why the comedy felt so off for the first time..."
https://bit.ly/3b8WcXv
...whereas blogger Hedwig caught on sooner:
"One thing that I was pushed to understand at first was what exactly the disaster was or might be that was coming to mess up the city this time and how exactly it tied in to what was happening between death and the Wizard story line... It was hard to tie how this thing represented itself and how it could possibly tie in with the other chaos where in the last few books it was becoming clear after a bit where these events are linked to each other. That being said however, this is a character book more than anything. There are two main perspectives here, Death of course but also Windle Poons the old wizard that I have often pointed out has the perfect name for a cat. That was something that I wasn’t set up for so I felt very much like I was lacking on the Death content when I first started reading. However old Poons does grow on you very quickly and by the end of the book I was VERY attached to him and his heroics and struggles..."
https://bit.ly/32FKAra
Blogger Rosie Writes reviews Marc Burrows' biography:
"Burrows is not uncritical of Pratchett, pointing out where reality and the Pratchett anecdote diverge. We learn about the masks STP wore for different audiences. His interviews were always filled with prepared one liners that could seem to be ‘off the cuff’ remarks, and he was a ‘jolly old elf’ for fans at conventions and signings. Possibly his wife and closest friends saw the real Terry. It’s not really for us to know, let him remain the ‘jolly old elf’ telling stories, filled with anger at the unfair ways of the world and the message to be decent to each other. This biography highlights the breadth of his oeuvre, and the continuing themes that arose in the much tweaked The Carpet People and continued across all his books..."
https://bit.ly/3bcjegg
...as does blogger 8outof10:
"After his untimely death in 2015, I kicked myself that I’d never felt the urge to try and meet him, and tell him how much his work meant to me, or maybe even shake his hand. Unlike a lot of fans I never went to any book signings or conventions; I guess I thought I was too young to begin with, and as an adult I was afraid I’d meet my hero and be disappointed. Crucially, I think I was more afraid he’d be disappointed in me, so there wasn’t a cat in Hell’s chance I’d jeopardise my special bond with Terry by doing something stupid like actually meeting him. Nevertheless, after he passed, I was more than a little sad that I’d missed the chance to know the man behind all those wonderful stories, however brief that experience might have been. I’m happy to say then, that in reading The Magic of Terry Pratchett, by journalist, musician and comedian Marc Burrows, I have the next best thing... If you’re also a fan of trivia, like me, you’ll revel in the many fascinating and often funny titbits regarding the author’s life and work. From Terry’s profound appetite for reading, to how Good Omens (in collaboration with the excellent Neil Gaiman) came to be, right down to explaining (sort of) where the city of Ankh-Morpork gets its name, there are plenty of moments that will make you laugh out loud or mutter 'bloody hell!' where Burrows highlights some of Terry’s more astounding achievements.
"This isn’t to say that this book leaves Pratchett up there on a pedestal though. I was afraid that any biography about Terry might be tediously fawning or – worse still – mean-spirited, but you may rest assured that Burrows’ book hits the mark perfectly here, celebrating Terry’s life and work while depicting him honestly as a human being with the same imperfections as the rest of us..."
https://bit.ly/3jqcn5y
Blogger and author D K Powell's take on Strata:
"I am a big Terry Pratchett fan and simply adore his Discworld novels. I’m not going to be completely unbiased then when it comes to his work. And what a gem ‘Strata’ promised to be! One of his earliest books, written in 1981, exploring in infant form what would become the Discworld itself. What an opportunity to see an early foray into that universe. Well, sure enough, it was fascinating – but it wasn’t the well-honed Pratchett I know and love. The story was pretty much a sci-fi of the type that was very common in the 80s, post-Star Wars. The were plenty of witty remarks from the gaggle of characters, but none of the brilliant humour and repartee that the author’s later characters would engage in. The Discworld itself is a shadow – almost a caricature – of what that world would come to be. All of this makes for disappointment. But – and this is important – it is still Pratchett, and this means that, even in this early attempt, the writing is solid – the story as good as anything else that was on the market at the time. As a throwaway trashy sci-fi it is perfect. You would certainly read this book and be perfectly satisfied before then sending it off to the charity shops, rather than keep it on your shelves..."
https://bit.ly/2GdcpiX
Blogger Steve takes on the entire Discworld series:
"I initially confused Discworld with a different book I saw on my brother’s bookshelf as a child – Ringworld or something like that. The cover had someone riding a dragon and an island city floating in the clouds? I didn’t expect the humorous wizzarding antics of Rincewind in the first novel at all, but it was a refreshing change of pace and escape from current events, so I settled in for a good long listen thinking it would be some good fun. Humor is not the whole of these books, though. The insights to come caused me to pause the audiobook at several points, rewind, replay, and then pause again so I could think for a bit, completely taken aback at the insight Pratchett just threw at me... I think these books are important. I want my children to read these. I want my wife to read these. I want my parents to read these. I want to talk to someone about this stuff who gets it. I want to reminisce about moments both funny and profound. I want to have deep conversations at the pub about metaphysical quandaries regarding the speed of light and the speed of dark..."
https://yourturndad.com/2020/07/30/discworld/
Blogger The Reading Bug is back with a review of Going Postal:
"It is quickly apparent that Gilt is the villain of the piece, is behind the deaths of the previous Postmasters, and plans to remove Moist as soon as possible. This is just the beginning of an extraordinarily action-packed novel – there’s a wonderfully rich cast of junior characters such as pin-collector Stanley Howler; Sacharissa Cripslock, reporter for the Ankh-Morpork Times (first introduced in The Truth); and Anghammarad, a nineteen thousand year-old golem waiting for the end of the world. There’s a fire, a visit to the Mended Drum, a race to Genua, and guest appearances from the Watch and the wizards of the Unseen University, to mention just a few highlights. Romance is provided by another of Pratchett’s amazing strong women: golem-rights activist and chain smoker Adora Belle Dearheart. It’s all utterly wonderful. Moist is another brilliantly realised creation in all his complexity and carries the weight of the narrative effortlessly. The moment he realises his responsibility for Adora’s loss of her job (which the television adaptation made even more dramatic in a very effective edit) is extraordinary... In fact, I am giving serious consideration to starting my own minor religion based on the words of wisdom found in Going Postal alone. If you read a sentence like this in a book of philosophy you would almost certainly nod your head in agreement and appreciate the author’s wisdom and sagacity..."
https://bit.ly/2YNpKES
...and of The Wee Free Men:
"Pratchett’s ability to create fully-rounded female characters always astounds me, and here he does it again, entering imaginatively into the mind of a precocious young girl and getting it pitch perfect. I can’t think of another author of his generation who writes such brilliantly fierce, independent and strong women as Pratchett. They are not just adornments to his novels, they are centralised and given distinctive voices which articulate the reality of their lives. Of course a man can never fully understand what it is to live the life of a woman, but Pratchett does an amazing job of trying. And he defies stereotypes at each turn, not in a self-conscious .I am going to create a gender-fluid character to show how progressive I am. way, but because such characters genuinely interest him. Although this is a younger reader’s novel, there’s nothing patronising or simplified about the story – it is nuanced, layered, and contains several moments of genuine peril. The bad guys have grim-hounds, dream-stealers and things too scary to describe, and are led by a witch several times scarier than anything in Narnia..."
https://bit.ly/3lBxkN0
Blogger Jessica Bookworm's review of Lords and Ladies:
Let’s face it, in times of trouble, stress and general craziness, we all need a bit of Terry Pratchett in our lives... Boy, is there a lot going on in this book, but somehow it just all works! I never really thought anything could come close to how much I love the madcap Wyrd Sisters, which is the first book to feature the witches and is also another Shakespearian parody, of Macbeth in this case. But apparently, Pratchett and Shakespeare must be a match made in heaven for me... So all in all, I thought Lords and Ladies was another hilariously fun read, which I laughed my way through whilst out basking in the early, Spring sunshine..."
https://bit.ly/2GdclzJ
Blogger Burfoa read Nation together with his teenaged son:
"Pratchett compares and contrasts the disparate cultures and beliefs upon which Mao[sic] and Daphne’s respective views of the world are founded and blends their different knowledge and skills to combat their vulnerability and attendant dangers. It’s a thrilling adventure. Babies to be birthed, raiders to be repelled, food to be chewed for the toothless. Indeed, part of the book’s appeal is possibly this Dahl-esque indulgence in the unexpected, the violent, the gross. But, it is also touching in parts and even the burgeoning relationship between the two main characters was tolerated in all its subtle sensitivity. In many ways this is a ‘right[sic] of passage’ book and the emergence of the two young adults, stepping out into their prescribed futures, forever bonded by their experience, is quite uplifting..."
https://burfobookish.blog/2020/08/12/nation-building/
And finally, blogger Come to the Pedlar enthuses over Wyrd Sisters:
"Discworld stories featuring the Witches tend to be among Terry Pratchett’s best, especially for the consistency of their parody... The brilliance of the witches as characters is their no-nonsense bathos in respect of absolutely everything. This allows Pratchett to have his cake and eat it. In the city of Lancre, surrounded by vertiginous cliffs and sentient permanent storms, he constructs a sincere story of an evil Duke and Duchess who kill the king, take over the kingdom, and are threatened by the presence of folk magic and by the possibility that the long-lost heir may one day return. But Granny Weatherwax (returning from Equal Rites), Nanny Ogg and Magrat don’t have any truck with narrative, and the biting questions of Granny and Nanny especially seek to undercut anything overblown with basic country common-sense and a hilariously literal way of understanding the world... But perhaps the most important character introduced in this book is Lancre itself, briefly seen in Equal Rites but coming here into full focus. The hills, forests and creatures of this mountainous region even manifest a personality, the land aggrieved at finding itself under a new king who hates it. And the land itself begins affecting everything, including the theatre..."
https://bit.ly/3gIvgPs
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
08) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
American educators Jennifer Quinn and Mark Owen Martin's "light art" collaboration made to commemorate the Good Omens series' Hugo Award. Sir Pterry and science, a perfect combination:
https://twitter.com/markowenmartin/status/1293212838404616192
The cover of the "new" Russian translation of Good Omens, idiosyncratically illustrated by Anatoly Dubrovik:
https://bit.ly/3ltToca
Some superb Discworld art by Loopydave! Granny and Nanny:
https://bit.ly/3jxCvvv
The Band with Rocks In: https://bit.ly/2Qzxeai
The Night Watch: https://bit.ly/3lvPQGr
Ridcully: https://bit.ly/31M4BgB
...and a fabulous one of Moist von Lipwig, mounted of Boris:
https://bit.ly/2YNZGK0
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
09) CLOSE
Right then, that's it for now. Mind how you go, and we hope to see you next month!
– Annie Mac
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The End. If you have any questions or requests, write: wossname-owner (at) pearwood (dot) info
Copyright (c) 2020 by Wossname for the Klatchian Foreign Legion
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
August 2020 (Volume 23, Issue 8, Post 1)
********************************************************************
WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works of Sir Terry Pratchett. Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for members of the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, including the North American Discworld Society and other continental groups, Wossname is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in Roundworld.
********************************************************************
Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Mss C, Alison not Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancer: Jason Parlevliet
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
INDEX:
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) THE TIME TRAVELLING CAVEMAN: EXTRACTS AND NEWS
04) ODDS AND SODS
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
07) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
08) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
09) CLOSE
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
"I believe in freedom, Mr. Lipwig. Not many people do, although they will, of course, protest otherwise. And no practical definition of freedom would be complete without the freedom to take the consequences. Indeed, it is the freedom upon which all the others are based."
– Lord Vetinari, in Going Postal
"One day it's the ringing of the bells and the casting down of the evil tyrant, and the next it's everyone sitting around complaining that ever since the tyrant was overthrown no one's been taking out the trash."
– Guards! Guards!
"I recorded this quite certain we wouldn't win the Hugo Award for the Good Omens tv series. I was wrong. We won. This one is for Terry."
– Neil Gaiman, on Good Omens winning the Best Longform Dramatic Presentation 2020 Hugo award
"A lawyer would use the term 'inspired' to cover up misselling[sic] and misrepresentation. I believe that is what people believe has happened. Simon Allen using his own stories and characters. Only the character names are 'inspired' by the work of Terry Pratchett."
– tweeter Mark Alex Pidd gets it right about The Watch
"I read Fighting Fantasy a lot as a kid. I used to get in trouble with my local library for not bringing them back. I remember a threatening letter that they were going to take me to court if I didn't return one of the books. I was reading a lot and I managed to lose it under my bed."
– sounds like Rhianna Pratchett takes after her reading-mad father in their respective childhoods
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR
Still in severe lockdown. Hard to remember what month this is... is it 2021 yet?
Did you know that Good Omens has been translated into more than thirty languages so far? The latest version is a "new" translation into Russian, with cover art that ties in with the Amazon-BBC miniseries. But as it turns out, that new translation is an old one. Eksmo (Эксмо) is a major publisher, responsible for releasing some thirty per cent of all books in Russia; Eksmo published a "Black Edition" translation by Margarita Yurkan in 2012 and again in 2019 with the TV tie-in cover. But the first Russian translation was an unofficial (samizdat) one by Vadim Filinnov, who also translated the works of Douglas Adams. Two or more versions of Filinnov's translation were in circulation during the 1990s and had a large fan following, but when Eksmo decided to publish their own version they set out to crush these... but then did the right thing, bought the rights to the Filinnov version and republished *that* this year! And there are several covers, including one featuring Paul Kidby's miniseries-influenced Crowley. Confused? You will be, as an old telly soap used to say. At any rate, there's more info about all this on Colin Smythe's website – and if you have or know anyone who has one of the early translation versions, Colin would love the hear from you:
https://colinsmythe.co.uk/terry-pratchett/good-omens-neil-gaiman/
Also, the new cover illustrator's take on Aziraphale is... um... unusual, as is his apparent decision to portray Crowley as a perfect facsimile of the actor Liev Schreiber! See Images of the Month, below.
*
The Time-Travelling Caveman is published next week. Have you ordered yet? I have! See links in item 3.2
And now, on with the show...
– Annie Mac, Editor
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
03) THE TIME TRAVELLING CAVEMAN
3.1 REMINDER: EXTRACTS
The Time Travelling Caveman is officially released next week! Dates as given by Penguin/Doubleday are 1st September (hardback) and 3rd September (ebook and audiobook/CD/download); there's also a deluxe slipcover version due out on the 8th of October. In the meantime, here be some extracts in case you missed them last month.
* From "The Tropnecian Invasion of Britain", courtesy of The Guardian:
"Tropnecia is a very small country somewhere in the Tosheroon Islands, but once upon a time it very nearly conquered Great Britain. In AD 411, when the last of the Romans had just left, a small Tropnecian sailing ship that happened to be passing spotted the coast of England, and thought it would be a good place to conquer. That was how things were done in history. As soon as you saw a place, you had to conquer it, and usually the English Channel was full of ships queuing up to come and have a good conquer. ‘If you’ve got nothing to do,’ chieftains would tell their sons, ‘go and conquer England.’ Anyway, the Tropnecians arrived on a Sunday, when there was no one about, so the first thing they did was build a road. That’s another thing you have to do. Either you burn down houses or you build roads and walls, otherwise you don’t stand much chance of being put in the history books.
"Tropnecian roads can always be recognised because they never go in straight lines. The roads were all designed by the famous Tropnecian architect General Bulbus Hangdoge, and he wasn’t very good at drawing straight lines. Very good on the corners, but very bad on the straight lines. So all the roads were a little wobbly. At that time England was full of Picts, Scots, Druids, Angles, Saxons, Vikings, Stonehenges, wet weather and various kinds of kings, the most famous of which was King Rupert the Never Ready, of Wessex. He was never ready for anything, which was why England kept getting conquered. People would say, ‘Are you ready to fight the Vikings if they try to conquer us?’ and he would say, ‘I don’t think so.’ The next thing you knew, Vikings were all over the place, burning down houses...."
To read the whole extract, go to: https://bit.ly/330UPYV
* From "The Hole in Time", courtesy of Penguin Books via Terry Pratchett.com:
"One morning, at about half past eight, there was a giant bang from the Blackbury University Science Institute and all the clocks in the town suddenly stopped. A dozen fire engines rushed up there, then wondered why they’d bothered. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong. A lot of people in white coats were rushing all over the place, but apart from that there was nothing out of the ordinary. ‘What’s going on here?’ asked the head of the institute, Mr Plinth, who had just arrived for work. He still had his mug of tea in his hand. A woman in a white coat, wearing thick spectacles, rushed up. ‘Something terrible has happened!’ she gasped. ‘We’ve lost Doctor Hughes! And her laboratory! They’ve gone!’ ‘Blown up, you mean?’ asked Mr Plinth, visibly shocked. ‘No, they’ve disappeared! Look.’ Dr Spectacles (for this was her name) pointed at what was actually just a patch of grass, next to the institute. ‘Looks like just a patch of grass to me,’ said Mr Plinth. ‘Well, there was a brick building standing there just a moment ago. Now it’s vanished.’ Mr Plinth scratched his head. Then he gingerly edged one of his boots onto the patch of grass where the brick building had been, while the laboratory workers stood around wondering whether he might vanish too. A few began to back away from Mr Plinth . . . and the patch of grass.
"Then it started to snow. At least, it snowed on that little patch of ground. Mr Plinth stared up and saw grey clouds. He stepped off the grass and suddenly the sun was shining again. He stepped back onto the grass, and into a snowdrift. ‘This here ground has got its own weather,’ he said. ‘It’s in the middle of January there, by the looks of it, while everywhere else is in August.’ ‘Ah, but which January – ’ began a portly whitecoated man, who then stopped rather suddenly as Dr Spectacles gave him a chilly look that would have made it snow outside the patch of grass, as well as inside it...."
To read the whole extract, and view the reproduced illustrations, go to: https://bit.ly/34mFWRk
3.2 ORDERING INFO
The Time Travelling Caveman can be ordered from:
Penguin: https://bit.ly/3g3PhAt and Penguin Australia: https://bit.ly/3hXdjOj
Discworld.com: https://bit.ly/3fa7sD8
Discworld Emporium: https://bit.ly/39MT8zL
Foyles: https://www.foyles.co.uk/all?term=9780857536020
Waterstones: https://bit.ly/3gFsLxB
Blackwells: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/9780857536020
Hive: https://bit.ly/2CNrtTe
...and in Fourecks...
Booktopia: https://bit.ly/2ChTemc
QBD Books: https://bit.ly/3f5IYLn
Readings: https://bit.ly/2Cn9jqs
Dymocks: https://bit.ly/3fd4AX9
Angus and Robertson: https://bit.ly/31ZRicE
...and other places, including that evil one your Editor refuses to promote, ever.
If at all possible, please support your local independent bookshop!
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
04) ODDS AND SODS
4.0 HUGO AWARD FOR THE GOOD OMENS MINISERIES
From the Guardian:
"[B]est longform dramatic presentation went to Good Omens, written by Neil Gaiman and directed by Douglas Mackinnon. Accepting the prize, Gaiman said that he only made the show because the late Pratchett .wanted me to.. .Terry never won a Hugo. The only time he was nominated he withdrew the novel from consideration, telling people that if he had a book nominated it would ruin his WorldCon. It wasn’t that he didn’t care, it was that he cared too much,. said Gaiman. Pratchett had thought, said Gaiman, that a Hugo would never go 'to anything funny.. .Thank you,' he told fans, 'for giving Terry Pratchett his Hugo award'..."
https://bit.ly/2ELW83J
Neil Gaiman's acceptance speech (video, 2:39): https://bit.ly/2EvPUp5
...and the transcript:
"Terry never won a Hugo, the only time he was nominated for a Hugo Award, he actually withdrew the novel from consideration, telling people that if he had a book nominated for a Hugo it would ruin his WorldCon worrying. It wasn’t that he didn’t care. It was that he cared too much. For all the wards that he got, for call the acclamation, for all the honors and the love heaped upon Terry during his lifetime, the one he really cared about was the Hugo Award. And he would grumble about it to me, pointing out that he was never going to get one, because they were never going to give a Hugo Award to anything funny..."
To read the entire transcript, go to https://bit.ly/3jtVO8Z and scroll to the penultimate item at the bottom.
4.1 THE PRATCHETT PROJECT UPDATES
"The Pratchett Project at Trinity College Dublin is seeking expressions of interest from outstanding candidates who would like to apply for a Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship in order to complete a PhD in a subject related to Terry Pratchett's life and/or work from September 2021. If you are interested, please formulate an abstract of no more than 300 words. Be sure to include:
* The overarching research question
* A step-by-step methodology
* A clear list of the materials your study will draw on
* A justification for why the answer to this research question is a valuable contribution to human knowledge
* Any contextual information that a reader needs to understand the other four points.
Once you have your abstract, please send it to James Hadley (hadleyj@tcd.ie). The most promising applicants will receive assistance in crafting their full proposals."
For more information about the scheme, including the minimum requirements for applicants, go to:
http://research.ie/funding/goipg/?f=postgraduate
https://bit.ly/3lwSwDw
REMINDER: the Pratchett Project virtual conference takes place next month, on the 17th and 18th September. The two-day symposium will cover topics including Utopian Critique in Nation (David Farnell), Space in Pratchett's Narrative Networks (Matthew Roughan), Political idealism in the Discworld Novels (Ruchira Mandal), Humour, parody and satire in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels (Kamil Kaaras), Pratchett and Contemporary Pessimism (Oliver Rendle), The Move from Fantasy Parody to Moral Complexity and Literary Fiction in the Ankh-Morpork Novels (Ricarda Krenn), Bad Faith and the Crab Bucket (Samuel Poots), and Incorporating Terry Pratchett's Fiction in the University Curriculum (Olena Tykhomyrova), among others.
"Split into four sections over the two days, the conference will focus on The Space of Ideas, Translation and Humour, Ethics and Identity, and Research and Teaching. Scheduled sessions include The Big Wahoonie: Ankh-Morpork as Cross-Media Urban Imaginary; Translating Pratchett into Ukrainian: Strategies and Challenges; The Move from Fantasy Parody to Moral Complexity and Literary Fiction in the Ankh Morpork-novels; and 'Lies to children': From folk to formal science in Terry Pratchett's Discworld."
For more details, go to: https://bit.ly/2P50Uv5
To sign up, go to: https://bit.ly/39EQ34k
https://bit.ly/2ExDwED
4.2 UPDATES: THE TERRY PRATCHETT BOOK CLUB
On the website of publishers Tor, Emmet Asher-Perrin continues a Discworld discussion page. This time around it's the last part of The Light Fantastic and the first parts of Equal Rites.
On the end section of The Light Fantastic:
"I dearly appreciate how Pratchett describes the smell of Ankh-Morpork through analogy for a very particular reason – I have a terrible sense of smell. So really, the analogy is more evocative for me on a number of levels. It was something that I had to bring up because scent is, of course, one of the most evocative of our five senses (tied to memory and all that), but often harder to describe than the others. So, I have a lot of emotion-things about Twoflower putting his profound lack of common sense to good use, turning all of Rincewind’s complaints back on him and literally saying .I’m here because I don’t know any better, but what about you?. I also have a lot of emotion-things about the fact that Twoflower doesn’t crack the spines of books because I am one of those weirdos, too, even though I wish I wasn’t. Sorry, it’s very silly, I know that, but I don’t like doing it because then you can’t read the spines and it’s a thing I’m finicky about... It’s also pretty great to see Trymon get his comeuppance. I didn’t really get into it throughout the book, but you have to appreciate the way Pratchett walks a line with this character: He doesn’t say that the old ways are the best ways – he acknowledges that the old ways are often pretty ridiculous while simultaneously acknowledging the fact that new ways can sometimes be heinously abused by those who want to introduce them. The problem with Trymon isn’t that he has newfangled thoughts, it’s that he’s using that system purely for personal gain. The fact that he’s Rincewind’s contemporary is important in this because they’re both outcasts in the wizardly ways of doing things, but one of them is decidedly less power-hungry and world-endy..."
https://bit.ly/2YNF705
...and the start of Equal Rites:
"This book actually began with a talk that Pratchett gave on gender and magic (which you can incidentally access the text for here) in 1985. In addition, Esk was apparently based on his daughter, Rhianna. And in his conceit for the premise, outlined by this speech, he basically says that his belief in the difference between what is labeled 'men’s magic' and 'women’s magic' is not truly down to sexism and devaluing women’s labor and expertise, but in fact a bit more cerebral – he believes that wizards are about what people hope they could be if they had power, and witches are about what we fear we might become. Which, you know, it’s a totally valid way of looking at branches of magic and how we depict them in literature..."
https://bit.ly/3bbgDTz
...continued...
"Plenty of fantasy tomes and games trade on the concept of 'races' and 'peoples' and throw around words like 'gypsy' and 'bandits', and you find yourself cringing because why do it at all? Categorization is needed in parts of worldbuilding, but it’s often an ugly and deeply biased exercise, no matter how hard an author tries to be smart and sensitive about their construction of a fictional world. I think one of the reasons that Pratchett manages it far better than others is the reason why Discworld continues to be so relevant and sharp decades later – he knows that people are just people..."
https://bit.ly/3lwSH1E
[As previously mentioned, these are well worth a read, and feel free to join in the comments! – Ed.]
4.3 YORKSHIRE TAKES ON THE AMAZING MAURICE
Sheffield animation studio Red Star has a new project on the go. Some might find it amusing that founder Mr Smith was "acclaimed for the visual effects used in Lost in Space". At least he's not *Doctor* Smith!
"Red Star 3D creates its own films which are shown in cinemas, theme parks, museums and other venues. Its most recent creation, StarDog and TurboCat, opened in cinemas last December and is currently available on Amazon. Founded in 2004 by Ben Smith and Jan Rogowski, it is recognised as one of the leading independent studios of its type worldwide and has won dozens of awards and nominations at film festivals. The company, which currently employs 10 people at the Electric Works base, is planning to create an additional 40 jobs in the next two years... A second feature production, The Amazing Maurice – based on the book by Sir Terry Pratchett – is just getting underway..."
https://bit.ly/2ELKZQs
4.5 PTERRY AND ROALD DAHL: A MEETING OF GIANTS
Way back in the late 1960s, when Sir Terry was a young journalist, he interviewed a certain local writer who was waiting to see if another of his books would be turned into a film... in The Telegraph, Dalya Alberge tells a bit about it:
"As two of English literature’s best-loved writers of comic fantasy, the discovery of a previously-unknown conversation between the late Sir Terry Pratchett and Roald Dahl would be the stuff of fantasy for legions of fans worldwide. But evidence that they met and discussed the dearth of plots and the difficulty of writing children’s books, among other topics, has been unearthed. It is an interview that Pratchett conducted with Dahl in 1969, overlooked until now. Long before he found fame with his Discworld series, a collection of satirical fantasy novels, he was a 21-year-old journalist on a local newspaper with dreams of publishing his first novel. Dahl, then 52, had already published his children’s classics, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and James and The Giant Peach, as well as short stories for adults and screenplays..."
https://bit.ly/3gIsYjt
The original article reveals all sorts of things most of us might not have known – that Dahl, was mostly known back then in Britain as the husband of actress Patricia Neal and the screenwriter for the Bond film You Only Live Twice, that he was a Squadron Leader in the RAF during the Second World War, and that overall he wasn't terribly impressed with artists who thought their art was important – but what the article also shows is hints of the young Pratchett's clean and succinct writing style: "The recently published Penguin edition of ‘Kiss Kiss’, a collection that first appeared in 1959, has as its gripping cover design a man slowly sinking into a mincing machine. This is a gross libel on some of his stories. The horror is often more subtle than that. So it is perhaps surprising that Mr. Dahl, at 53, has been building up for some years a reputation as a writer for children. His fourth book, ‘Boggis, Bunce and Bean’, is at the publishers. The best-known of the other three, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’, has sold over 100,000 in America and is selling more every month..."
[Editor's note: the entire transcript is on the Wossname blog at https://bit.ly/3gHji8E – hopefully, no one will rise from the distant past to complain. Many thanks to Colin Smythe for providing your Editor with an iconograph of the article!]
4.6 THE MERCH CORNER
This month's feature is Discworld stage adaptations! Oberon Books, a Bloomsbury imprint, have published a number of Stephen Briggs' Discworld stage adaptations in paperback...
* The Rince Cycle
"As a punishment, failed wizard Rincewind is given the task of guiding and safeguarding the Disc’s first tourist, Twoflower (with his magical luggage on legs). As they travel the city and beyond, they meet the world’s oldest hero, Cohen the Barbarian. With him, and with Bethan (a qualified sacrificial victim), they encounter druids, trolls, adventurers, a hairdresser and a power-crazed wizard. Oh, and Death. But not fatally. Did we mention that Rincewind also has to save the world from destruction by a huge red star that will collide with the Discworld at Hogswatch? The Rince Cycle is mostly based on The Light Fantastic, with bits of The Colour of Magic and Sourcery added for good measure."
https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/the-rince-cycle-9781783191963/
* Unseen Academicals: https://bit.ly/34O84x2
* Feet of Clay: https://bit.ly/3gIJnnG
* All the Discworld's a Stage: Volume 1 (omnibus edition, includes The Rince Cycle, Unseen Academicals, and Feet of Clay):
https://bit.ly/2EJVaVI
* All the Discworld's a Stage: Volume 2 (omnibus edition, includes The Shakespeare Codex, Lords and Ladies, and Hogfather) will be released later this year. More details as soon as available!
And not forgetting...
Interesting Times: https://bit.ly/32DPogG
The Fifth Elephant: https://bit.ly/32CWwtH
Jingo: https://bit.ly/3gJJfof
Going Postal: https://bit.ly/3b85fbd
Monstrous Regiment: https://bit.ly/34MOaCz
The Truth: https://bit.ly/2YQ9lzP
Night Watch: https://bit.ly/34NqgXm
Many of these are also available in ebook form.
Oberon on Mr Briggs: "As all children know, the way you get into a fantasy world is by accident… You go into the wardrobe, looking for somewhere to hide and – bingo. And that’s how Stephen Briggs found Discworld. In 1990, he wrote to ask Terry if he could stage Wyrd Sisters. That was the first time anyone, anywhere in the world, had dramatised Terry’s work. He had no idea it would go any further than one play (possibly two). But it did. So far, he has now adapted, staged and published twenty-two plays. He and Terry also worked together to produce the original Discworld Maps and Diaries, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook, The Discworld Companion (now called Turtle Recall) and The Wit & Wisdom of Discworld."
http://oberonbooks.com/discworld-collection
https://www.stephenbriggs.com/the-plays
* Reminder: The Ankh-Morpork Archives Volume One
"Think you know Ankh-Morpork? Think again. In this top-secret guide, travellers will receive a first-hand experience of the real city. If you’ve ever wondered where Unseen University students wet their whistles (while managing to avoid their teachers doing the same), or just what the Assassins’ Guild constitutes a proper means of inhumation – there are standards to be upheld, after all – then this is the book for you. That’s right, have yourselves a peek into the inner workings of city’s societies. Cut the chaff, glimpse behind the curtain, see how the sausage gets made . . . err, you get the idea. Just don’t let the Thieves’ Guild catch you with this book. They won’t appreciate their methods being flogged behind their back. Flogging’s their job. Completely revamped and redesigned, this full-colour book contains material from Discworld Diaries across the decades."
Each copy of The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume One is priced at £25. For more info, and to order, go to https://bit.ly/3gi8nCg
* The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume Two
"Containing material unavailable for twenty years – this is a comprehensive guide to the capital city of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, getting to the heart of Ankh-Morpork’s secrets, societies and guilds. Ankh-Morpork is a bottomless pit of secrets. It’s time to unearth a few more . . . In the second volume of this confidential guide, brave travellers are made privy to the inner workings of more illustrious Ankh-Morpork societies. Disabuse yourself of notions of professionalism under which you may hold the City Watch; discover what serious business is undertaken by the Fools’ Guild (joking is no laughing matter); and, should you be lucky, achieve true enlightenment through the teachings of Lu-Tze. One thing’s for sure: after you’ve read this book, Ankh-Morpork’s Guilds are going to need to come up with new ways of doing things. Completely revamped and redesigned, this full-colour book contains material from Discworld Diaries across the decades."
Each copy of The Ankh-Morpork Archives, Volume Two is priced at £25 and will be published on 29th October 2020. For more info, and to pre-order, go to:
https://bit.ly/3lxmhUV
* Reminder: Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal
"In a city like Ankh-Morpork, where Assassins assassinate, thieves thieve and seamstresses, um . . . don’t, Law and Order can be a complicated business. Thankfully His Grace, His Excellency, The Duke of Ankh, Commander Sir Samuel Vimes (Blackboard Monitor) and the Ankh-Morpork City Watch are here to keep the peace. The finest body of men, women, dwarfs, trolls, werewolves, golems, Igors, gnomes, Feegles, vampires (and whatever Nobby Nobbs is) on the face of the Discworld! The Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal provides jotting space for your notes, reports, observations and investigations, so kick back, relax and take down your particulars. To help you keep on the straight and narrow, you’ll be aided and abetted by some choice quotes from Terry Pratchett’s seminal City Watch novels."
Each Ankh-Morpork City Watch Journal ("Exclusively embossed with Terry's signature and sealed with his coat of arms") is priced at £17. For more info, and to pre-order, go to:
https://bit.ly/31jaHVy
* Reminder: The Magic of Terry Pratchett (biography)
"Journalist, comedian and Pratchett fan Marc Burrows delves into the back story of one of UK's most enduring and beloved authors, from his childhood in the Chiltern Hills to his time as a journalist, and the journey that would take him – via more than sixty best-selling books – to an OBE, a knighthood and national treasure status. The Magic Of Terry Pratchett is the result of painstaking archival research alongside interviews with friends and contemporaries who knew the real man under the famous black hat, helping to piece together the full story of one of British literature's most remarkable and beloved figures for the very first time."
There are several versions that will be available, starting with the standard edition (currently priced at £16), the fancier Snapcase edition (£21), and the Patrician Box (£35.00, featuring various extras). For more information, and to order, go to:
https://www.askmeaboutterrypratchett.com/s/shop
https://twitter.com/20thcenturymarc
4.7 LIBRARIANS, THROWING SHADE? SURELY NOT... NOT
Librarians rock! Of course, we already knew that. Those of you who follow https://twitter.com/OED, the Oxford English Dictionary's Twitter account, may have noticed that account's frequent shade-throwing over the past few years in the form of its "Word of the Day" tweets, a great number of which are subtle yet plain digs at current events. But some bibliophile – school librarian or perhaps English teacher – has take that to the next level, with a display of carefully chosen book titles lining the shelves behind a certain prime minister as he made a speech about er um education-related current events...
"Meanwhile, the bookshelf behind him seemed to make a statement of its own. Lining the shelf just behind Mr Johnson's head were titles with rather unflattering associations for any political leader, including 'The Twits', 'The Subtle Knife', 'The Resistance', and 'Betrayed'. And sticking out like a sore thumb was 'Fahrenheit 451', a dystopian novel about a society where books are banned. If you look closely, 'Guards! Guards!', a Terry Pratchett novel, can also be glimpsed behind the PM's right shoulder. The story follows a plot by a secret brotherhood to overthrow a corrupt patrician and install a puppet king..."
Of course, The Patrician in question, as *we* know, isn't corrupt. If only life would imitate art more often.
https://bit.ly/3lwTu2C
You might also enjoy reading the many replies to the official Pterry Twitter account's "caption contest" for that iconograph:
https://twitter.com/terryandrob/status/1298652299766702082
Meanwhile, in the Department of Plausible Deniability:
"Now it has been revealed that the books were in fact a message, left by the school’s former librarian. But the librarian, who left the role around six months ago, says it was actually intended for the school’s bosses... 'I did it as a message for the school management before I left in February... They obviously never actually noticed, and it went untouched for six months'..."
https://bit.ly/2EPw5si
4.8 GAMING WITH MY DAD: RHIANNA PRATCHETT INTERVIEW
Here be a delightful interview with Junior Pratchett, by Tom Tivnan for The Bookseller. Great fun to read!
"'I’ve been playing video games since I was six years old. At first, dad played the games and I used to watch them and map the games out; it was a bit of a spectator sport, a bonding time between us. He had this very big office chair and I would kind of tuck myself behind him like a human bolster cushion. In my teens, we would watch each other play and we would be emotionally in it together. I got his hand-me-down machines, so I used to play games that he had played first...' Gaming wasn’t just with her dad. A friend’s father worked for HP, so she always had the most up-to-date kit and the two would play 'a lot of age-inappropriate stuff' like Leisure Suit Larry, the somewhat infamous classic whose adult-themed story line has the titular character, a 40-year-old, balding, double-entendre-spewing nerd, trying to seduce young women. 'It was very educational,' Pratchett insists. 'To get past the "are you over 18" test you had to answer "adult" questions about things like the American political system, which I had to look up. I learned the word prophylactic from the game when I was about 11.' Outside of Leisure Suit Larry, much of Pratchett's early life seems very wholesome. Her father’s books didn’t hit the bestseller lists until the late '80s so the family didn’t have that much money for much of her childhood. She says: 'It was very rural and pastoral. We lived in a little cottage on the edge of a valley, had a veggie patch, chickens and ducks in the back garden and goats in the front. You could probably find people doing this in Islington, but they do it for hobbies – we did it because we needed the food and the milk. I used to run around the valley, climb trees, go walking...I was probably among the last generation of kids allowed to be free in nature. And, I could milk a goat and knew how to spin wool, probably very useful in a post-apocalyptic scenario....'"
https://www.thebookseller.com/insight/rhianna-pratchett-1216975
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
Still no news. But keep an eye out for possible forthcoming Discworld plays later in the year. We must keep the knowledge of Discworld circulating!
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
Remember, one day, possibly in the not too distant future, Discworld fans will be able to meet in the real Roundworld again. So keep this information handy! Also note there are a few updates below.
The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld Group"
BrokenDrummers@gmail.com or nicholls.helen@yahoo.co.uk or join their Facebook group at https://bit.ly/3jtYLGo
NOTE: the Drummers are still meeting occasionally via Zoom. Check out the above links for updates!
*
Drumknott's Irregulars
Facebook https://bit.ly/31FlSrq or Google Groups https:groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars or join us at our next event."
*
The Victorian Discworld Klatch
https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch
*
"The Gathering of the Loonies (Wincanton chapter)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/
*
The Pratchett Partisans
https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula directly at uwilmott@yahoo.com.au
*
The City of Small Gods
www.cityofsmallgods.org.au
UPDATE: "What are we doing while we're stuck at home due to COVID-19? Given that our normal social gatherings can't happen while everyone's under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are instead trying to host regular activities and discussions online. Most of these will be done via our Discord Server – https://discord.gg/3RVzsyJ – which has several text chat channels and a few voice chat channels as well. We will still use our Facebook group – https://facebook.com/groups/cityofsmallgods – to coordinate scheduled events. When things get back to normal... (semi-) regular social meetings are generally held on the last Thursday of the month at a pub or restaurant in Adelaide. We have dinner at 6.30pm followed by games until 9pm."
*
The Broken Vectis Drummers
broken_vectis_drummers@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) meets at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn when social gatherings are possible.
*
The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of Flatalists normally meet at The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the Discworld Stamps forum: http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/
*
Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder)
Contact Sue (aka Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers https://bit.ly/2EKSCqu – or message Alexandra Ware directly at <alexandra.ware@gmail.com>
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
07) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
Blogger Sorcha "Nordie" Ogle reviews Mort:
"I reread this in 2020, during the pandemic, and I definitely consider this as a *Comfort* read. Yes, every reader needs to decide what they class as *comfort* and some may see reading a book where the main character collects souls as a bit morbid, but that is not what I take from this. This book has Love, Romance, Morals, Doing the Right Thing, Responsibility, Thinking of the long game (and others), self identity, cultural perception and ultimately, the delivery of a damn fine line – preferably whilst walking through a wall like it is not there. Some of the comfort for me came from the expectation of certain lines/jokes, some of which did not appear in this book (It turns out I miss the stories of the other 3 horsemen of the apocalypse going down the pub more than I realised). That means they appear in other books, so I need to do a full re-read..."
https://bit.ly/2QDRRSB
Blogger Book Beach Bunny found some aspects of Reaper Man confusing:
"Death is forcibly retired and goes to work on a farm- one I knew I would like because I like Death… And the damned trolleys had me so confused! Don’t get me wrong this was still a good Discworld but like so many other things in Discworld it was the damned wizard part that confused it... I enjoyed the book overall and the stuff with Death is actually really deep and meaningful. In some ways I’ve found this the most meaningful Discworld book yet which is probably why the comedy felt so off for the first time..."
https://bit.ly/3b8WcXv
...whereas blogger Hedwig caught on sooner:
"One thing that I was pushed to understand at first was what exactly the disaster was or might be that was coming to mess up the city this time and how exactly it tied in to what was happening between death and the Wizard story line... It was hard to tie how this thing represented itself and how it could possibly tie in with the other chaos where in the last few books it was becoming clear after a bit where these events are linked to each other. That being said however, this is a character book more than anything. There are two main perspectives here, Death of course but also Windle Poons the old wizard that I have often pointed out has the perfect name for a cat. That was something that I wasn’t set up for so I felt very much like I was lacking on the Death content when I first started reading. However old Poons does grow on you very quickly and by the end of the book I was VERY attached to him and his heroics and struggles..."
https://bit.ly/32FKAra
Blogger Rosie Writes reviews Marc Burrows' biography:
"Burrows is not uncritical of Pratchett, pointing out where reality and the Pratchett anecdote diverge. We learn about the masks STP wore for different audiences. His interviews were always filled with prepared one liners that could seem to be ‘off the cuff’ remarks, and he was a ‘jolly old elf’ for fans at conventions and signings. Possibly his wife and closest friends saw the real Terry. It’s not really for us to know, let him remain the ‘jolly old elf’ telling stories, filled with anger at the unfair ways of the world and the message to be decent to each other. This biography highlights the breadth of his oeuvre, and the continuing themes that arose in the much tweaked The Carpet People and continued across all his books..."
https://bit.ly/3bcjegg
...as does blogger 8outof10:
"After his untimely death in 2015, I kicked myself that I’d never felt the urge to try and meet him, and tell him how much his work meant to me, or maybe even shake his hand. Unlike a lot of fans I never went to any book signings or conventions; I guess I thought I was too young to begin with, and as an adult I was afraid I’d meet my hero and be disappointed. Crucially, I think I was more afraid he’d be disappointed in me, so there wasn’t a cat in Hell’s chance I’d jeopardise my special bond with Terry by doing something stupid like actually meeting him. Nevertheless, after he passed, I was more than a little sad that I’d missed the chance to know the man behind all those wonderful stories, however brief that experience might have been. I’m happy to say then, that in reading The Magic of Terry Pratchett, by journalist, musician and comedian Marc Burrows, I have the next best thing... If you’re also a fan of trivia, like me, you’ll revel in the many fascinating and often funny titbits regarding the author’s life and work. From Terry’s profound appetite for reading, to how Good Omens (in collaboration with the excellent Neil Gaiman) came to be, right down to explaining (sort of) where the city of Ankh-Morpork gets its name, there are plenty of moments that will make you laugh out loud or mutter 'bloody hell!' where Burrows highlights some of Terry’s more astounding achievements.
"This isn’t to say that this book leaves Pratchett up there on a pedestal though. I was afraid that any biography about Terry might be tediously fawning or – worse still – mean-spirited, but you may rest assured that Burrows’ book hits the mark perfectly here, celebrating Terry’s life and work while depicting him honestly as a human being with the same imperfections as the rest of us..."
https://bit.ly/3jqcn5y
Blogger and author D K Powell's take on Strata:
"I am a big Terry Pratchett fan and simply adore his Discworld novels. I’m not going to be completely unbiased then when it comes to his work. And what a gem ‘Strata’ promised to be! One of his earliest books, written in 1981, exploring in infant form what would become the Discworld itself. What an opportunity to see an early foray into that universe. Well, sure enough, it was fascinating – but it wasn’t the well-honed Pratchett I know and love. The story was pretty much a sci-fi of the type that was very common in the 80s, post-Star Wars. The were plenty of witty remarks from the gaggle of characters, but none of the brilliant humour and repartee that the author’s later characters would engage in. The Discworld itself is a shadow – almost a caricature – of what that world would come to be. All of this makes for disappointment. But – and this is important – it is still Pratchett, and this means that, even in this early attempt, the writing is solid – the story as good as anything else that was on the market at the time. As a throwaway trashy sci-fi it is perfect. You would certainly read this book and be perfectly satisfied before then sending it off to the charity shops, rather than keep it on your shelves..."
https://bit.ly/2GdcpiX
Blogger Steve takes on the entire Discworld series:
"I initially confused Discworld with a different book I saw on my brother’s bookshelf as a child – Ringworld or something like that. The cover had someone riding a dragon and an island city floating in the clouds? I didn’t expect the humorous wizzarding antics of Rincewind in the first novel at all, but it was a refreshing change of pace and escape from current events, so I settled in for a good long listen thinking it would be some good fun. Humor is not the whole of these books, though. The insights to come caused me to pause the audiobook at several points, rewind, replay, and then pause again so I could think for a bit, completely taken aback at the insight Pratchett just threw at me... I think these books are important. I want my children to read these. I want my wife to read these. I want my parents to read these. I want to talk to someone about this stuff who gets it. I want to reminisce about moments both funny and profound. I want to have deep conversations at the pub about metaphysical quandaries regarding the speed of light and the speed of dark..."
https://yourturndad.com/2020/07/30/discworld/
Blogger The Reading Bug is back with a review of Going Postal:
"It is quickly apparent that Gilt is the villain of the piece, is behind the deaths of the previous Postmasters, and plans to remove Moist as soon as possible. This is just the beginning of an extraordinarily action-packed novel – there’s a wonderfully rich cast of junior characters such as pin-collector Stanley Howler; Sacharissa Cripslock, reporter for the Ankh-Morpork Times (first introduced in The Truth); and Anghammarad, a nineteen thousand year-old golem waiting for the end of the world. There’s a fire, a visit to the Mended Drum, a race to Genua, and guest appearances from the Watch and the wizards of the Unseen University, to mention just a few highlights. Romance is provided by another of Pratchett’s amazing strong women: golem-rights activist and chain smoker Adora Belle Dearheart. It’s all utterly wonderful. Moist is another brilliantly realised creation in all his complexity and carries the weight of the narrative effortlessly. The moment he realises his responsibility for Adora’s loss of her job (which the television adaptation made even more dramatic in a very effective edit) is extraordinary... In fact, I am giving serious consideration to starting my own minor religion based on the words of wisdom found in Going Postal alone. If you read a sentence like this in a book of philosophy you would almost certainly nod your head in agreement and appreciate the author’s wisdom and sagacity..."
https://bit.ly/2YNpKES
...and of The Wee Free Men:
"Pratchett’s ability to create fully-rounded female characters always astounds me, and here he does it again, entering imaginatively into the mind of a precocious young girl and getting it pitch perfect. I can’t think of another author of his generation who writes such brilliantly fierce, independent and strong women as Pratchett. They are not just adornments to his novels, they are centralised and given distinctive voices which articulate the reality of their lives. Of course a man can never fully understand what it is to live the life of a woman, but Pratchett does an amazing job of trying. And he defies stereotypes at each turn, not in a self-conscious .I am going to create a gender-fluid character to show how progressive I am. way, but because such characters genuinely interest him. Although this is a younger reader’s novel, there’s nothing patronising or simplified about the story – it is nuanced, layered, and contains several moments of genuine peril. The bad guys have grim-hounds, dream-stealers and things too scary to describe, and are led by a witch several times scarier than anything in Narnia..."
https://bit.ly/3lBxkN0
Blogger Jessica Bookworm's review of Lords and Ladies:
Let’s face it, in times of trouble, stress and general craziness, we all need a bit of Terry Pratchett in our lives... Boy, is there a lot going on in this book, but somehow it just all works! I never really thought anything could come close to how much I love the madcap Wyrd Sisters, which is the first book to feature the witches and is also another Shakespearian parody, of Macbeth in this case. But apparently, Pratchett and Shakespeare must be a match made in heaven for me... So all in all, I thought Lords and Ladies was another hilariously fun read, which I laughed my way through whilst out basking in the early, Spring sunshine..."
https://bit.ly/2GdclzJ
Blogger Burfoa read Nation together with his teenaged son:
"Pratchett compares and contrasts the disparate cultures and beliefs upon which Mao[sic] and Daphne’s respective views of the world are founded and blends their different knowledge and skills to combat their vulnerability and attendant dangers. It’s a thrilling adventure. Babies to be birthed, raiders to be repelled, food to be chewed for the toothless. Indeed, part of the book’s appeal is possibly this Dahl-esque indulgence in the unexpected, the violent, the gross. But, it is also touching in parts and even the burgeoning relationship between the two main characters was tolerated in all its subtle sensitivity. In many ways this is a ‘right[sic] of passage’ book and the emergence of the two young adults, stepping out into their prescribed futures, forever bonded by their experience, is quite uplifting..."
https://burfobookish.blog/2020/08/12/nation-building/
And finally, blogger Come to the Pedlar enthuses over Wyrd Sisters:
"Discworld stories featuring the Witches tend to be among Terry Pratchett’s best, especially for the consistency of their parody... The brilliance of the witches as characters is their no-nonsense bathos in respect of absolutely everything. This allows Pratchett to have his cake and eat it. In the city of Lancre, surrounded by vertiginous cliffs and sentient permanent storms, he constructs a sincere story of an evil Duke and Duchess who kill the king, take over the kingdom, and are threatened by the presence of folk magic and by the possibility that the long-lost heir may one day return. But Granny Weatherwax (returning from Equal Rites), Nanny Ogg and Magrat don’t have any truck with narrative, and the biting questions of Granny and Nanny especially seek to undercut anything overblown with basic country common-sense and a hilariously literal way of understanding the world... But perhaps the most important character introduced in this book is Lancre itself, briefly seen in Equal Rites but coming here into full focus. The hills, forests and creatures of this mountainous region even manifest a personality, the land aggrieved at finding itself under a new king who hates it. And the land itself begins affecting everything, including the theatre..."
https://bit.ly/3gIvgPs
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
08) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
American educators Jennifer Quinn and Mark Owen Martin's "light art" collaboration made to commemorate the Good Omens series' Hugo Award. Sir Pterry and science, a perfect combination:
https://twitter.com/markowenmartin/status/1293212838404616192
The cover of the "new" Russian translation of Good Omens, idiosyncratically illustrated by Anatoly Dubrovik:
https://bit.ly/3ltToca
Some superb Discworld art by Loopydave! Granny and Nanny:
https://bit.ly/3jxCvvv
The Band with Rocks In: https://bit.ly/2Qzxeai
The Night Watch: https://bit.ly/3lvPQGr
Ridcully: https://bit.ly/31M4BgB
...and a fabulous one of Moist von Lipwig, mounted of Boris:
https://bit.ly/2YNZGK0
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
09) CLOSE
Right then, that's it for now. Mind how you go, and we hope to see you next month!
– Annie Mac
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The End. If you have any questions or requests, write: wossname-owner (at) pearwood (dot) info
Copyright (c) 2020 by Wossname for the Klatchian Foreign Legion
