BBC Big Read #197 – Witches Abroad – (Terry Pratchett)

Disposition

American Girl:

I have never heard of Terry Pratchett before, I would like to attest this to the fact that I am American.  I do not think he (or she?) made it across the pond in force.  After the Once and Future King Anthology I am definitely ready for a light read.  All of this being said, when I read the back cover of this book, I instantly feel this is going to be some sort of comedic satire…..  I am funny, but I am not really a comedy person.  I like dry comedy, not slapstick, play on words comedy.  This has me a bit concerned, mostly because there are MANY Terry Pratchett books on this list.  Granted, if this many Pratchett books are on this list, I am hopeful the People of England have not let me down…. In full disclosure, I should mention my 10 year old picked this book up today, read the back cover, giggled to herself, then asked if she could start reading the first few pages in the car.  Okay, maybe I need to give this a proper chance.  And you never know, it may be a story I can share with my kids someday soon as well.

Brit Boy:

Being British and hanging around in Fantasy circles during my formative years (steady on American Girl, not that kind of fantasy) I’ve obviously heard of Terry Pratchett. Having said that although I was aware of his books I had only read two of them before. “MORT” I purchased around 1992 and read it in my halls of residence at University and the Truckers trilogy which are touted as children’s books which I think I may try and get a copy of as I think my kids may enjoy them.

Unfortunately Sir Terry Pratchett has made the headlines more recently with his much publicized battle with Altzheimer’s disease.

Witches Abroad is the third book in the witches series, the character of Granny “Esmerelda” Weatherwax featuring in all the books.

Its been so long since I’ve read one of his books I was looking forward to this and hopefully getting some of my “British Humour” on…..

Editorial

This was definitely a welcome break after the “Once and Future King”.  It is a light and airy satire and was a very easy read.  This is a story of three witches who go on a journey to stop a “happy ending” ensuring a servant girl doesn’t marry the prince.  Along the way it entangles many well known fairy tales and other well known magical creatures, including vampires, dwarfs, the big bad wolf, fairy god mothers, and of course Cinderella.  Early on the reader is made well aware that you will be in for a ride with this unlikely trio….

“There’s the basic unwritten rule of witchcraft, which is “Don’t do what you will, do what I say.”  The natural size of a coven is one.  Witches only get together when they can’t avoid it.”

American Girl, I too was ready for what I felt was a much needed reading break after the hard slog which was the “Once and Future King”. And I must admit this book didn’t disappoint, I loved Sir Terry’s (as I like to call him) writing style which was more akin to listening to the stories of a much loved but maybe slightly barking mad relative, who unlike White didn’t take themselves seriously. I loved the extravagant use of footnotes throughout the early part of the book, which were well placed and in the most part very humorous. He definitely has my sense of humour.

While an easy read, I was very put off at the lack of any “chapters”.  It did make me feel as if the book continuously ran on until it just came to an abrupt end.  I did however find myself laughing at many points.  The dry humour would border on racy at times, but it always gave me a bit of a giggle.  Albeit, amidst all the humour, Pratchett still managed to touch on some deeper meanings.

“A human mind is a great sullen lightning-filled cloud of thoughts, all of them occupying a finite amount of brain processing time.  Finding whatever the owner thinks they’re thinking in the middle of the smog of prejudices, memories, worries, hopes, and fears is almost impossible.”

Chapters!! American Girl….?? Well I must admit, although I didn’t take it as personally as you, I did also suffer from chapteritis more because of my style of reading. I generally dip and out of a book rather than partaking in long reading sessions and the chapters certainly help the framing of this activity. That being said I’m sure some of the books on this list may chapter us to death so the next Pratchett book on the list may once again be a welcome relief.

 I did really enjoy this book and I am looking forward to more sojourns into discworld, I won’t tell you how many more of his books are on the list, you will just have to wait and see.

I must admit, I think I may have missed some of the overall story, and do not have a firm grasp on the entire point.  Partly due to the fact that each character seemed to be referred to in a variety of different names throughout the book.  (I kind of felt I should have drawn a flow chart so I could understand how each character fit together.)  

I think part of the problem here is the fact that the characters have been introduced in two earlier books, so Sir Terry may have expected normal people to read them in order (he obviously didn’t legislate for two nutters following a book list..).

Comparing the book with Brit Boy in the end helped me piece some of it together, but for an “easy” read, I felt it was taking quite a bit of my brainpower.  (I am hopeful in Pratchett’s future books on this list, that he picks a name for the characters and sticks with it.)    Overall though this bumbling story pokes fun at fairy tales in all the right places, and you are left questioning everything up until the bitter end.  Are these three witches the good witches, or are they the bad witches…, but then the bad witch thinks she’s good, so does that make her good, or is she really bad….?  Well, don’t ask me to clarify, you’re going to just have to read it yourself….