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The chances are that you've already encountered the name Terry Pratchett. Bookstores usually feature him quite prominently in their displays of bestsellers. Adaptations of his stories appear as plays. And there are even TV shows based on his works. But just in case you haven't I'll introduce you to someone who is possibly the greatest fantasy writer in the world today.
First of all you have to abandon the preconceptions that you probably have about fantasy. Most fantasy writers tend to take themselves and their work very seriously. They actually believe that somehow their story of a young blacksmith's apprentice who discovers that he is the true heir to the kingdom and goes off to claim his throne is somehow different from the 30 other books that are just like it. As an astute reader you know otherwise. You may like reading such stuff, but you know that there are only about 3 different fantasy stories and all the different authors do is to change the names. Above all, the reader is expected to encounter a character called Rumkin Tingleboots, (a dwarf) or Aerial Lightwing (an elf) or The Black Sorcerer (a sorcerer) and not burst into laughter at the stupid names. Or the typecast characterisation. Or the fact that as soon as you meet the characters you know what they are going to do for the rest of the story.
Pratchett novels are different. For a start, the entire universe is that of a preindustrial world. The Discworld is just that; a flat Disc. This is carried on the back of four huge elephants, whom in turn stand on the back of an enormous Turtle. This makes space travel very different. Another way in which the Discworld is different is that the characters are not so stupid. An example will illustrate what I mean.
In your average fantasy novel, if the true heir to the throne turns up in the city, armed with a mysterious sword that he inherited from his dead and unknown parents and bearing a crownshaped birthmark as foretold in prophesy, the evil dictator will try to have him killed. In the course of fighting off the assassins he will learn of his true heritage and set off to defeat the dictator and claim the city.
In a Pratchett novel however, the dictator of a great city did not get to where he is by being stupid. He knows perfectly well what happens to dictators who try to kill such people. So he welcomes the heir in, gives him a job, and stays on his best behaviour. Now the heir is unable to overthrow him, because such characters This example also illustrates another important characteristic of the Discworld books. They are funny. And not just with simple slap stick or puns. These books contain very elaborate jokes about the entire character of fantasy novels. There are humourous references to Shakespeare and the Classical Greek scholars. There are satires on modern society, on medieval society, on ancient egyptian society. There are puns, but some of them are in Latin, and some in pretend French. There are rude jokes, religious jokes, political jokes and finally, there is slapstick. And they are all worked seemlessly into the plot so that you have to think as you read in order to get them.
Other areas in which the Pratchett books are different is in the grasp of reality. Feudal lifestyles are NOT happy and merry. even the Kings and Nobles are plagued by fleas, disease, and a myriad of troubles that are banished from a modern existence. Peasants are poor, their lives are miserable, not carefree bucolic existences. And the lives of Women and members of despised social groups are even worse. Most fantasy novels ignore this. Pratchett bases whole novels on this very fact.
Finally there is the issue of magic. On the Discworld magic exists, but it is not the kind that exists in most fantasy novels. Discworld magic is not all powerful, and it follows consistent rules. Magic also follows the rules of Physics and Thermodynamics. You may be able to slow down the speed of light, but that means that arrows exhibit relativistic effects. You can teleport to the other side of the world, but as the whole disc is spinning you will still be moving at the same velocity as you were
relative to the ground you are now standing on. For a wizard to lift a weight using the power of his mind, means that an equal and opposite force is applied to his brain, which is rather soft and squishy. This isn't just a good source of humour, it is a source of good story telling, and makes the plots really different to the usual Sword and Sorcery stuff.
As with the comments on humour, the main point is that these books make you THINK. You are forced to think to get the humour, you have to think to see what the characters are up to. You have to think to see where the plot is going, and what the messages in the book are about. And being made to think is worth reading a book for, especially ones as fun as these are. Which goes some way towards explaining why the Discworld Novels are so successful.
Opinions vary, but I recommend that you read the books in the order in which they were written. This is the order set out below. This enables you to follow the references in later books, to people, places and concepts introduced earlier. But it doesn't really matter, just read one and realize what you've been missing.
With such incredibly popular books there is the risk of them being sold out. There is also a chance that new editions or even new titles may appear. You can conduct your own search for Discworld books using this form. Or you can just click on the titles below.
And then there is a series of works by Stephen Briggs, in association with Terry Pratchett, explaining various aspects of the Discworld.
And finally there are non-Discworld books, also by Terry Pratchett. These are set on a planet called Earth, which is in the shape of a sphere. There are the Johnny Books, and the Bromeliad, both of which are series allegedly aimed at younger readers. But once you have started reading the Discworld books you'll want to read these too. Then there are The Dark Side of the Sun, Strata, The Carpet People, Good Omens, and The Unadalterated Cat, which stand alone, but are also just as good as all the others. The only solution is to read everything he has ever written. And then you'll wait until a new one is published.
Truckers: The First Book of the Bromeliad
Diggers: The Second Book of the Bromeliad
Wings: The Last Book of the Bromeliad
Good Omens : The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch
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