Things that end with olly

[Leslie]

Let's get real here, friends, I love Christmas. I love this book. I have read it before and will happily ramble on about it for hours with you. Talk to me!

[Dustin]

As much as I love the idea of festive holiday spirit, I just can't deal with most of the saccharine garbage out there, so I pretty much just stick with Doctor Who holiday specials, and killing my players with scary snow men in my D&D games. So naturally, a book about murdering Santa is right up my alley.

What I'm trying to say is, thank you, thank you, thank you for picking this book. This series has been on my radar for a while. Now I'm just wondering why I waited so long, by golly.

[Leslie]

Ooh, you even ended in olly! You are in the spirit. This series holds a special place in my heart, and Hogfather ranks highly within. It is not a...hm. Traditional holiday celebration, but it is one in its own way. I still love the good saccharine specials, but I keep to my own favorites, mostly...

[Dustin]

Of course I did! I'm not a savage :)

I can certainly see why it's so highly regarded. It's my first serious dip into the series, but it won't be my last for sure. I've always had a high opinion of Pratchet, even though I've only read a few short stories over the years and never any of his novels (though I honestly don't have a reason why). Regardless, I'm excited that I finally have an excuse.

As far as holiday specials go, I'm probably a little too harsh on the traditional stuff out there. It certainly means a lot to people, or it wouldn't be so traditional, right? To me though, the best celebrations (as you so aptly put it) of Christmas and the whole holiday season are the less traditional ones, because they show just how wonderful it can be, even if you're not particularly traditional yourself. It shows that it is more than stale tradition and is absolutely worth celebrating in as many ways as there are people to celebrate it.

[Brendan]

Just finished this one. I recently started reading Discworld and am up to book 7 so this was a big jump for me. Its a big jump in tone. The story is more cohesive and character directed then the chaos of the early Rincewind stories which I prefer.

I liked Death's arc and character, and got to meet his granddaughter for the first time. I also enjoyed how he poked fun at the wrongheaded charity and self aggrandizement people have tried to layer on top of the meaning of the season. Thanks for picking it.

[Leslie]

The chaos is toned down, even in Rincewind, when you get to the later things, but yes. This is a crafted and cohesive tale.

Are you a Christmas-y person? Do you think this was well-suited to your season?

[Also, if you like Susan, you can and should read Thief of Time. It's the next book for her. The first is Soul Music.]

[Brendan]

Glad he shifts as the story goes along. I like a good story in the midst of comedy.

I am a fan of Christmas. Always enjoyed the stories and everything. As a Christian, we also have a good set of our own traditions.

I liked the talk of belief, and how believing in something is how humans learn to hope and work for a better future. Although it wasn't intended that way, I also like that since its part of the Christian tradition, to have hope and belief in God.

Also, Death is one o f my favorite characters. I like the dry, British humor that comes up, especially inadvertently in his attempts to help and be the Hogfather.

[Leslie]

I enjoy a lot of the imagery and discussions of belief, as well. I like how histories and lore are woven in and out of the whole thing.

[Dale]

Terry Pratchett had a very profound insight into what it means to be a human being. This passage is one of the most deeply insightful and moving that I have ever read:

“All right," said Susan. "I'm not stupid. You're saying humans need... fantasies to make life bearable."

REALLY? AS IF IT WAS SOME KIND OF PINK PILL? NO. HUMANS NEED FANTASY TO BE HUMAN. TO BE THE PLACE WHERE THE FALLING ANGEL MEETS THE RISING APE.

"Tooth fairies? Hogfathers? Little—"

YES. AS PRACTICE. YOU HAVE TO START OUT LEARNING TO BELIEVE THE LITTLE LIES.

"So we can believe the big ones?"

YES. JUSTICE. MERCY. DUTY. THAT SORT OF THING.

"They're not the same at all!"

YOU THINK SO? THEN TAKE THE UNIVERSE AND GRIND IT DOWN TO THE FINEST POWDER AND SIEVE IT THROUGH THE FINEST SIEVE AND THEN SHOW ME ONE ATOM OF JUSTICE, ONE MOLECULE OF MERCY. AND YET—Death waved a hand. AND YET YOU ACT AS IF THERE IS SOME IDEAL ORDER IN THE WORLD, AS IF THERE IS SOME...SOME RIGHTNESS IN THE UNIVERSE BY WHICH IT MAY BE JUDGED.

"Yes, but people have got to believe that, or what's the point—"

MY POINT EXACTLY.

This is the central thesis of The Rise And Fall Of The Third Chimpanzee in which Diamond argues that the thing that makes us human has far more to do with culture than genetics. Pratchett picks up on that in the very fun and informative The Science of Discworld II: The Globe if you like your non-fiction in easier to take chunks than Diamond give you.

[Brendan]

That was one of my favorite spots as well. Just because some things aren't material doesn't mean they don't exist or aren't important.

[Leslie]

They are formative - you can see it in the way we persist in telling stories, using names for things and crafting tiny instances of lore in our quotidian experiences

[Brendan]

I agree. We keep telling stories, using them to illustrate traits and illustrate ideals to work towards. Without stories, we would have no goals to work toward. We can't deal only in the world that is, we also need to discover what should be so we can merge them together.

[Rw]

Just wanted to drop a thanks in here to you and Brian for this pick - I read it years ago, and just had the pleasure of re-reading it thanks to your reminder of what a great book it is.

I'm looking forward to the new incarnation of the book club. I would much rather hear praise of books you enjoyed than books you suffered through.
:)
Rory