how to read this series

[Kusuriuri]

I have been seeing this discworld:death collection series for a while in my local library. for what i have been searching theres 30+ volumes to this. Its a continuous story or can i read the volumes in any order? i seen some people saying that its the same universe but different storys but i dont had a definitive answer to my question. Thank you in advance

[Dennis]

you can read them in any order.

[Richard]

Colour of magic helps as a first taste I guess but it's not essential

[Steven]

Search for the Discworld Series on wikipedia. They have a handy list that breaks up each book into what characters are featured. All Discworld books take place on the Discworld. A disc shaped *planet* rotated by 4 elephants atop the giant space turtle A'tuin. It's pretty much soup to nuts of the sci-fi/fantasy world. I started reading the series for the first time last september. I'm now on book 23, 'Carpe Jugulum'. Though it has it's ups and downs I've found every book enjoyable. It does not matter what order you read them in.

[Kusuriuri]

i was afraid to start in any order becouse i dont think that every book will have a description of the basis of the world the "disc shaped planet" etc description, so im thinking of doing it in order.

[Chris]

The books can be read in any order you come across them. Each book tends to feature a character (and have major appearances by those characters surrounding them), but there is no central theme to the Discworld series.

There is an order in which they were written, and many people prefer to read them in that order. You can find that order ... here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discworl...

In practice, it doesn't really matter. Every book is constructed so that you can pick it up and begin reading without any foreknowledge.

That having been said, some characters are the featured character in multiple books (such as Rincewind, Granny Weatherwax, Tiffany Aching, Sam Vimes, Death, and Susan Sto Helit, to name a few of the more prominent ones). It can be a bit more enjoyable to read the more connected sets in the chronological order in which they were written.

Many people will suggest beginning with The Color of Magic, which was the first book written. Personally, I found that to be one of the weaker books, although many people love it.

I'd suggest beginning with ... Hogfather, Small Gods, or Guards! Guards!.

Or The Wee Free Men, which is technically a YA book, but is one of my favorites (and is followed directly by three more books with a more traditional "series" feel to them).

The books are hilarious, pick one up and start reading.

[Mitali]

There are three possible ways to get into the Discworld series. I've summarized the three below:

1) You can start from the beginning and work your way up to the later books. There are 40 Discworld novels so far, including the YA novels (and a whole lot of related books), which may seem like a huge undertaking, but believe me, it's worth it! The books are amazing: hilariously funny, as well as thought-provoking, and always entertaining.

2) Take a look at this reading order guide: http://www.lspace.org/books/reading-o.... Please note that it's only a guide, not a hard-and-fast rule. You can technically read in any order, but the series will make most sense to you read all the related books in order. For example, you can read all the Watch books, then go back to read all the Death books, then all the Witches books, etc. - which is what I did, and I found it a great way to read the series.

3) Pick any book and start reading. You'll figure out the necessary background easily enough. The following books could make good starting points: Guards! Guards!, Mort, Going Postal, The Wee Free Men or Small Gods.

[Kusuriuri]

wow..that guide doesnt make any sense to me xD

[Gwen]

Chris wrote: "The books can be read in any order you come across them. Each book tends to feature a character (and have major appearances by those characters surrounding them), but there is no central theme to t..."
You forgot The Librarian............OOOKKKK!

[Mitali]

Rui wrote: "wow..that guide doesnt make any sense to me xD"

What's so complicated about it? It shows that there are four major sub-series within the Discworld series: Rincewind (the name of a wizard), the Witches, Death (who is a character), and the Watch. There are also several other novels that don't fall into these categories, but which connect to them in various minor or major ways. Basically, it just shows which order the story flows within these sub-series, so that you know which book to read next that features the same characters as the previous one that you read.

[Steven]

Since it's free and this is all confusing; I suggest you pick up the Death Collection at your library. If you like Pratchett's writing style then you've got a new series to read. If not, then on to something else.