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Terry Pratchett is a famous writer from the UK who created books in the style of satirical fantasy. He was born April 28, 1948 and died March 12, 2015. Pratchett’s books were distinguished not only by satire, but also by unobtrusive, but deep philosophy.
The future writer was a true humanitarian, but from a young age he was interested in how the Universe works, and dreamed of becoming an astronomer. For this, he did not have enough mathematical abilities. As a result, Pratchett devoted his life not to the study of celestial bodies, but to the creation of literary stories that resonated with readers of all ages.
We present you a list of the 10 best books by Terry Pratchett: a rating of sharp and funny satirical works with deep meaning.
10 shepherd’s crown
At the center of the plot of the bookshepherd’s crown“- the story of Tiffany Bohlen, a young witch of the Discworld. This is a literary work about change, about growing up, about a girl who did not betray herself and risked moving through life in her own way.
Tiffany had to deal with a lot of problems. She was engaged in various witchcraft affairs, defended the borders of the world, and then it also became necessary to take the place of the leader. However, the young witch managed: she was good at both taking care of everything around her and solving issues related to morality.
9. Cat without embellishment
Terry Pratchett was very fond of cats and devoted a whole book to these cute creatures. “Cat without embellishment“- a work written with endless positive and irony. Pratchett writes about the habits of felines, how they behave towards people.
Immersed in the writer’s observations, it is simply impossible not to smile. He describes cats with special skill and love, sometimes going into reflections on the types of these mysterious creatures. True cat lovers will definitely like this work.
8. Witches Abroad
This is a book from the Flat World series, a sub-cycle of Witches. Readers will meet their favorite characters: Mother Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, Fairy Garlic. They are preparing to get to Orlais. Cinderella lives there, the goddaughter of the fairy. The prince invited the girl to become his wife.
In the book “Witches AbroadThe writer says that the life of fairy tales is very long, and they are repeated over and over again. The strongest stories are the ones that repeat themselves the most. The main characters will have to face invincible magical powers. Will they be able to cope with this difficult test?
The book intertwined stories of fairy tales, Voodoo magic, legends of various nations. There is also philosophical reasoning, and humor. This book is very easy and enjoyable to read.
7. Hat full of sky
The dream has come true, the teaching of witchcraft has begun! But it initially seemed a little different. No graceful spells, waving of a magic wand, light and beautiful magic – nothing like that. If everything is very difficult, you may have to forget about the beautiful and stop tormenting yourself with pipe dreams. It remains only to take care of the elderly and milk the goats.
However, Tiffany Bohlen, the main character of the book “Hat full of sky‘ is not entirely hopeless. There is one trick up her sleeve: the ability to leave the body for a while in order to observe oneself from the side. But is this activity safe? The witch is about to find out. This brave girl will not give in to difficulties.
6. Guard! Guard!
Book “Guard! Guard!“Can be somewhat compared with The Hobbit and Harry Potter, but it differs in all the same features: subtle satire and the author’s original humor. In this work, the shortcomings of society are ridiculed, dragons, gnomes and other fantastic creatures are masterfully described.
A conspiracy is about to take place against the ruler, and the Night Guardians are ready to undertake to stop the intruders. The return of calm, the restoration of order are in their hands, but, unfortunately, these are only losers who are not really capable of anything.
Noticing criminals, the guards prefer to pretend that nothing is happening. Will these characters stay like this forever? The author skillfully evokes feelings, sadness, laughter and smiles in readers.
5. Keep your brand!
In the book “Keep your brand!tells about a difficult decision: every person has to choose sometime. In the center of the plot is the story of a real specialist in creating fakes and fakes.
A swindler must choose: lead the Postal Service or be hanged? Now he must keep track of postage and delivery despite competition, bad weather, dogs, and even murders.
The swindler thought that his life from now on would be tedious and boring, but everything turned out to be completely different. He is engaged in the revival of mail and in parallel investigates the fraud of the director of the semaphore company.
The plot of the book is rather unpretentious, but it even attracts rather than repels.
4. To arms! To arms!
Heroes books «To arms! To arms!are living in difficult times. They have to ask for help from such unreliable creatures as gnomes, trolls and women. However, Ankh-Morpork has to be defended, so there is simply no choice.
The recruits are forced on Vimes, the commander, who is preparing for the wedding celebration. Happiness is overshadowed by the fact that mysterious murders are committed in the city, and during this, a previously unknown firearm was used.
The book tells about work, friendship, romantic feelings. Pratchett also brings up serious topics: for example, that a person who owns a weapon eventually turns into his slave. Other adult themes are successfully woven into the “childhood” of the book, for example, those relating to violence and sexual relations.
3. Santa Hryakus
Death has only one night to save Santa Piggy. To do this, you have to try on the outfit of a kind old man. If the balance of faith is not restored in the Universe, something irreparable and terrible will happen.
«Santa Hryakus“- this is both a magical horror story, shining with New Year’s lights, and another satirical parody of the world of people from the master of humorous works Pratchett.
2. petty gods
Everything happened in those ancient times, when people especially often talked about powerful gods and great prophets. The plump young man Brutus is a novice of the Citadel, he remembers absolutely everything. This unusual talent attracts completely unnecessary attention of others to him.
In the book “petty gods“There is another important character, the great god Om, who appears as a small turtle. Sometimes this work is even very serious, it has a lot of philosophy, but it is not without satire.
1. Grim Reaper
Can death die? What will the world be like if this suddenly happens? In the book “Grim Reaper» Death suddenly ceases to be eternal and does not know what to do after that. The first thought is to be in the world of people and spend all the time there.
Priests, vampires, mediums and many others are drawn into the events. This work is dedicated to the unbridled power of life, it makes you think about how valuable it is. The book seems to allow you to touch the soul of immortality.