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riontelFinished it a couple of days ago but neglected to write anything. Blame it on my busy work schedule (not kidding either!).
It was fantastic. My favourite after "Small Gods" and "Good Omens", which doesn't really count because that was a collaboration. I loved it so much, in fact,
Igor is going to be buying me a copy. He just doesn't know it yet.
The story is not very original, a guy goes back in time as a result of some mishap with roofs and lightnings and time turners, and there steps on a few butterflies. And then has to wonder if all the right people got elected. Well, something like that anyway. He doesn't wonder, really, he makes sure. Because Sam Vimes is a great copper, just what any large city needs, and he will take care of his city. Again.
Pratchett did a better than usual job with words in this, nothing superficial, everything neat and precise and absolutely hilarious, in that dry cynically sarcastic way he exhibits occasionally, even when bordering on philosophical and profound. Each character is shaped perfectly and comes alive, zombies notwithstanding. And when it comes to revolutions, who can remain unmoved by People’s Republic of Treacle Mine Road's call to arms: "Truth! Justice! Freedom! Reasonably priced Love! And a Hard-Boiled Egg!" Beats the hell out of many a revolutionary slogan. Oh, and Death has a tiny little cameo, which is always nice. "Night Watch" rocks and leaves its Russian namesake in the dust.
Few quotes:
My personal favourite (I am dreaming of a T-shirt with this): "Consciousness to sarcasm in five seconds!"
'You know what day it is, Ping?' said Colon.
'Er... twenty-fifth of May, sarge.'
'And you know what that means, Ping?'
'Er...'
'It means.' said Nobby, 'that anyone important enough to ask where we're going - '
'- knows where we've gone,' said Fred Colon.
The door slammed behind them.
"Yeah, all right, but everyone knows they torture people."
"Then why doesn't anyone do anything about it?"
"'cos they torture people."
"Y'know," he said, "it's very hard to talk quantum using a language originally designed to tell other monkeys where the ripe fruit is."
"Taxation is just a sophisticated way of demanding money with menaces"
"And don't you eyeball me. I've been eyeballed by experts, and you look as if you’re desperate for the privy."
He wanted to add: you’re a cell of one, Reg. The real revolutionaries are silent men with poker-player faces and probably don’t know or care if you live or die. You’ve got the shirt and the haircut and the sash and you know all the songs, but you’re no urban guerrilla. You’re an urban dreamer. You turn over rubbish bins and scrawl on walls in the name of The People, who’d clip you round the ear if they found you doing it.
It was regrettable how many rulers of the city had been inhumed by the men in black because they didn't recognize a chance when they saw it, didn't know when they'd gone too far, didn't read the signs, didn't know when to walk away after embezzling a moderate and acceptable amount of cash. They didn't realize it when the machine had stopped, when the world was ripe for change, when it was time, in fact, to spend more time with their family in case they ended up spending it with their ancestors.
It was fantastic. My favourite after "Small Gods" and "Good Omens", which doesn't really count because that was a collaboration. I loved it so much, in fact,
Igor is going to be buying me a copy. He just doesn't know it yet. The story is not very original, a guy goes back in time as a result of some mishap with roofs and lightnings and time turners, and there steps on a few butterflies. And then has to wonder if all the right people got elected. Well, something like that anyway. He doesn't wonder, really, he makes sure. Because Sam Vimes is a great copper, just what any large city needs, and he will take care of his city. Again.
Pratchett did a better than usual job with words in this, nothing superficial, everything neat and precise and absolutely hilarious, in that dry cynically sarcastic way he exhibits occasionally, even when bordering on philosophical and profound. Each character is shaped perfectly and comes alive, zombies notwithstanding. And when it comes to revolutions, who can remain unmoved by People’s Republic of Treacle Mine Road's call to arms: "Truth! Justice! Freedom! Reasonably priced Love! And a Hard-Boiled Egg!" Beats the hell out of many a revolutionary slogan. Oh, and Death has a tiny little cameo, which is always nice. "Night Watch" rocks and leaves its Russian namesake in the dust.
Few quotes:
My personal favourite (I am dreaming of a T-shirt with this): "Consciousness to sarcasm in five seconds!"
'You know what day it is, Ping?' said Colon.
'Er... twenty-fifth of May, sarge.'
'And you know what that means, Ping?'
'Er...'
'It means.' said Nobby, 'that anyone important enough to ask where we're going - '
'- knows where we've gone,' said Fred Colon.
The door slammed behind them.
"Yeah, all right, but everyone knows they torture people."
"Then why doesn't anyone do anything about it?"
"'cos they torture people."
"Y'know," he said, "it's very hard to talk quantum using a language originally designed to tell other monkeys where the ripe fruit is."
"Taxation is just a sophisticated way of demanding money with menaces"
"And don't you eyeball me. I've been eyeballed by experts, and you look as if you’re desperate for the privy."
He wanted to add: you’re a cell of one, Reg. The real revolutionaries are silent men with poker-player faces and probably don’t know or care if you live or die. You’ve got the shirt and the haircut and the sash and you know all the songs, but you’re no urban guerrilla. You’re an urban dreamer. You turn over rubbish bins and scrawl on walls in the name of The People, who’d clip you round the ear if they found you doing it.
It was regrettable how many rulers of the city had been inhumed by the men in black because they didn't recognize a chance when they saw it, didn't know when they'd gone too far, didn't read the signs, didn't know when to walk away after embezzling a moderate and acceptable amount of cash. They didn't realize it when the machine had stopped, when the world was ripe for change, when it was time, in fact, to spend more time with their family in case they ended up spending it with their ancestors.
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Date: 2006-06-17 06:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-17 06:59 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-19 03:17 pm (UTC)My personal favourite is the story of how the original motto of "Truth! Justice! Freedom! Free Love!" was changed to "Truth! Justice! Freedom! Reasonably priced Love!" by the request of Seamstress Guild ;)
rkatsyv