Getting ready for the Spring 2024 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 9th time participating — although for the Classics Club, it’s spin #37!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 21st April 2024 we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 2nd June, 2024.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 2nd June to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before 21st April 2024.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 2nd June.

Even though my to-read pile for the next few months is on the overwhelming side, I do love these spins and don’t want to miss out. I took the two longest books off my spin list last time around (David Copperfield and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall), and although I’m tempted to add them back, the timing just isn’t right quite yet. So, I’m sticking with the same list as from spin #36, just adding in one new book to replace the one I read.

Here we go!

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. White Fang by Jack London
  7. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Tevye the Dairyman and Motl the Cantor’s Son by Sholom Aleichem
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  16. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

Wish me luck! I’ll be back on April 21st to reveal my spin result!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Spring 2023 (CCSpin33): Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
Summer 2023 (CCSpin34): Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Fall 2023 (CCSpin35): Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
Winter 2024 (CCSpin36): A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

Getting ready for the Winter 2024 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 8th time participating — although for the Classics Club, it’s spin #36!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 21st January 2024 we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 3rd March, 2024..

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 3rd March to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before 21st January 2024.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 3rd March.

I considered not participating this time around, because I already have a pretty stuffed calendar when it comes to reading commitments between now and March. In fact, I’m still a bit on the fence… but I always enjoy these spins, so I don’t really want to sit out.

To keep myself sane, I’m swapping out the two longest books remaining (David Copperfield and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall). Yes, I do still want to read them, but I’ll add them back to my spin list later in the year when the possibility of landing on them won’t stress me out as much! For now, I’m limiting my list to books under 400 pages (and actually loading it up with even shorter books) — I just can’t see being happy with the results otherwise.

Okay, that’s it for preamble! Now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. White Fang by Jack London
  7. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Tevye the Dairyman and Motl the Cantor’s Son by Sholom Aleichem
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  16. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

Wish me luck! I’ll be back on January 21st to reveal my spin result!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Spring 2023 (CCSpin33): Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
Summer 2023 (CCSpin34): Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Fall 2023 (CCSpin35): Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

Getting ready for the Fall 2023 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 7th time participating — although for the Classics Club, it’s spin #35!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 15th, October, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 3rd December, 2023.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 3rd December to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 15th October.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 3rd December.

I’m a little nervous this time around, because my reading schedule already feels overstuffed with a couple of big books related to group reads. I’m tempted to drop the longer books from my list… and yet, with a month and a half to get it done, even something on the lengthier side might be possible. Maybe. Fingers crossed.

Okay, sticking with the list I already had going, and just adding in the replacements for books I’ve already read…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
  7. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Tevye the Dairyman and Motl the Cantor’s Son by Sholom Aleichem
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  16. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

Wish me luck! I’ll be away on October 15th and for the week following, but I’ll share my spin result once I’m back online.

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Spring 2023 (CCSpin33): Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
Summer 2023 (CCSpin34): Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Getting ready for the Summer 2023 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 6th time participating — although for the Classics Club, it’s spin #34!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 18th, June, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 6th August, 2023.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 6th August to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 18th June.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 6th August.

I love doing these spins! I rarely do reading challenges, but I’m happy to make an exception for the Classics Club Spin. It’s such a great way to get me to read classics that I’ve always meant to get to, and the randomness of it all makes it feel extra fun. Once again, I’m mostly sticking with the same list as before, minus the books I’ve already read, but also swapping out a couple I’m less interested in for other classics on my master list.

And now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
  7. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Passing by Nella Larsen
  16. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

Wish me luck! I’ll post again on Sunday once the spin results are announced!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Spring 2023 (CCSpin33): Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay

Getting ready for the Spring 2023 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 5th time participating — although for the Classics Club, it’s spin #33!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 19th, March, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 30th April, 2023.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 30th April to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 19th March.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 30th April.

These Classics Club Spins are so much fun, and such great motivation for breaking out of my normal reading routines — so of course I’m going to do it again! I’m mostly preserving my list from last time, swapping out the book I just read and one other that I’m a bit less interested in right now. As for the rest of the books on my list, I’d be happy to read any of them!

And now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
  7. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Passing by Nella Larsen
  16. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. A Night to Remember by Walter Lord

Wish me luck! I’ll post again on Sunday once the spin results are announced!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather

Getting ready for the Winter 2022/2023 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that correponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 4th time participating — although for The Classics Club, it’s spin #32!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 11th, December, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 29th January, 2023.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 29th January, 2023 to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 11th December.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 29th January, 2023.

I’ve had so much fun with my previous CCSpin experiences, so of course I’m going to do it again! I’m going back to my list from last time, and other than replacing the book I just read, I’m going to leave the rest of my list as is. I’d be happy to read any of these!

And now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for my 4th Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
  7. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Passing by Nella Larsen
  16. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Porter

Wish me luck! I’ll post again on Sunday once the spin results are announced!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain

Getting ready for the Fall 2022 Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin, and I can’t wait!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that correponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 3rd time participating — although for The Classics Club, it’s spin #31!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 18th, September, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 30th October, 2022.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 30th October, 2022 to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

  • Go to your blog.
  • Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.
  • Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 18th September.
  • We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 
  • Read that book by 30th October, 2022.

I’ve had so much fun with my previous CCSpin experiences, so of course I’m going to do it again! I’m going back to my list from last time, and other than replacing the book I just read, I’m going to leave the rest of my list as is. I’d be happy to read any of these!

And now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for my 3rd Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Peony by Pearl Buck
  6. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
  7. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Passing by Nella Larsen
  16. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Porter

Wish me luck! I’ll post again on Sunday once the spin results are announced!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

Getting ready for another Classics Club Spin!

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin, and I can’t wait!

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that correponds to the “spin” number that comes up. This will be my 2nd time participating — although for The Classics Club, it’s spin #30!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 12th, June, we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 7th August, 2022.

We’ll check in here on Sunday the 7th August, 2022 to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

Go to your blog.

Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.

Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday, 12th June.

We’ll announce a number from 1-20. 

Read that book by 7th August, 2022.

I had so much fun with my first CCSpin — my book was The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer — that I can’t wait to do it again! I’m going back to my list from last time, and besides replacing the book I already read, I’m swapping out a few of my previous picks to replace them with books that have a bit more appeal for me right now.

And now for the good stuff…

Here’s my list of 20 classics for my 2nd Classics Club Spin:

  1. Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
  2. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
  3. An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
  4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  5. Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
  6. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
  7. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
  8. Howards End by E. M. Forster
  9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
  10. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
  11. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
  12. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
  13. Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  14. The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
  15. Passing by Nella Larsen
  16. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
  17. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
  18. Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
  19. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Porter

I think I’d be happy to read any of these! I’m mostly going for shorter books, trying not to be too ambitious given how many other books I already have lined up for this summer.

Wish me luck! I’ll post again on Sunday once the spin results are announced!

Discworld, #4: Mort

Mort
Published 1987
257 pages

My Discworld Challenge:

Over the summer, I committed to reading the Discworld series! I’m starting a new Discworld book on the 1st of each month, going in order of publication date.

Synopsis for Mort:

It is known as the Discworld. It is a flat planet, supported on the backs of four elephants, who in turn stand on the back of the great turtle A’Tuin as it swims majestically through space. And it is quite possibly the funniest place in all of creation…

Death comes to us all. When he came to Mort, he offered him a job.

After being assured that being dead was not compulsory, Mort accepted. However, he soon found that romantic longings did not mix easily with the responsibilities of being Death’s apprentice. 

My rating:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

My reaction:

This!

This is the book I most often hear people rave about when the subject of Discworld comes up. Now, I finally see why! Mort offers everything I was hoping for in the Discworld series, and which I haven’t quite gotten up to now.

In Mort, Death is scary, unknowable… and also really funny. When he offers gangly, awkward Mort an apprenticeship, it’s a chance for Mort to make something of himself — but he’s not really convinced that he wants to be Death (or an assistant to Death), since he’s not quite comfortable with not being able to intervene when the deaths they oversee seem unfair or unjust.

Eventually, Death decides to take a few days off and let Mort take over Death duties, so we’re treated to scenes of Death going fly fishing while Mort becomes scarier and suddenly starts talking LIKE DEATH DOES, ALL IN CAPS.

It’s silly and funny and clever. The ending doesn’t necessarily make complete sense, but I’ve found that to be true with all of the Discworld books I’ve read so far (this makes 4!!). Somewhere in the last 20% or so, Sir Pratchett piles on a ton of action that doesn’t always stick together, but it’s mostly okay.

My feeling about reading Discworld books so far is that the reader (me) should just sit back and go along for the ride. Even when the plot is clunky (which, by the way, mostly isn’t true in Mort), the writing and dialogue are the real treat and make it all worthwhile.

I’ve actually had a copy of Mort on my shelves for a couple of years now, after winning it in a giveaway, and it’s a lovely hardcover with a ribbon bookmark. The downside of a physical copy, though, is that I couldn’t highlight all the great passages like I do on my Kindle, so unfortunately, I don’t have any handy quotes to share.

That’s okay. Mort was great fun and lifted my spirits in an especially tense week. Just what I needed!

Up next:

December 2020: Sourcery

I’m a little hesitant about going back to another Rincewind book — so far, I haven’t particularly gotten along with that stream of the series. Here’s hoping I’ll like this one better…

Discworld, #3: Equal Rites

Equal Rites
Published 1987
228 pages

My Discworld Challenge:

Over the summer, I committed to reading the Discworld series! I’m starting a new Discworld book on the 1st of each month, going in order of publication date.

Synopsis for Equal Rites:

On Discworld, a dying wizard tries to pass on his powers to an eighth son of an eighth son, who is just at that moment being born. The fact that the son is actually a daughter is discovered just a little too late. The town witch insists on turning the baby into a perfectly normal witch, thus mending the magical damage of the wizard’s mistake. But now the young girl will be forced to penetrate the inner sanctum of the Unseen University–and attempt to save the world with one well-placed kick in some enchanted shins! 

My rating:

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

My reaction:

Finally, a Discworld book that I really liked! I’m three books into the series, and I have to say that the first two books were not great. (Then again, my expectations were low, since I’d already been warned about those books).

But here in Equal Rites, the 3rd book in the (vast) series, things pick up! The story is much more focused and has great main characters, so despite some messiness toward the end, it’s a charming read.

In Equal Rites, a dying wizard intends to pass along his powers to a newborn baby… but the expected boy is actually a girl. Unfortunately for the wizard, what’s done is done, and his powers flow into baby Eskarina, known as Esk as she grows up.

It’s unheard of for a female to be a wizard — it’s “against the lore”, as several wizards protest. Girls can only grow up to be witches, whom wizards dismiss as women who fiddle around with plants and herbs, not powerful magical beings like themselves.

Esk and her teacher Granny Weatherwax have other ideas, and after Esk learns all the basics about witchcraft from Granny, they realize that the wizard school Unseen University in the city of Ankh-Morpork is the best and only option for Esk.

The plot meanders a bit once Esk gets to the city, and honestly, the action sequences toward the end are a bit all over the place. But that doesn’t matter so much. As I’m learning, at least half the delight of these books is Terry Pratchett’s awesomely clever writing. The plot is nice to have, the characters are often fabulous, but the writing is what really elevates the entire thing into (pardon my saying so) magic.

Their world, bounded by an encircling ocean that falls forever into space in one long waterfall, is as round and flat as a geological pizza, although without the anchovies.

The midwife’s name was Granny Weatherwax. She was a witch. That was quite acceptable in the Ramtops, and no one had a bad word to say about witches. At least, not if he wanted to wake up in the morning the same shape as he went to bed.

Time passed, which, basically, is its job.

“How did you get here, little girl?” she said, in a voice that suggested gingerbread cottages and the slamming of big stove doors.

“I got lost from Granny.” “And where’s Granny now, dear?” Clang went the oven doors again; it was going to be a tough night for all wanderers in metaphorical forests.

It is well known that a vital ingredient of success is not knowing that what you’re attempting can’t be done.

She had found them lodgings in The Shades, an ancient part of the city whose inhabitants were largely nocturnal and never inquired about one another’s business because curiosity not only killed the cat but threw it in the river with weights tied to its feet. The lodgings were on the top floor next to the well-guarded premises of a respectable dealer in stolen property because, as Granny had heard, good fences make good neighbors.

There was a feeling that the universe had been turned inside out in all dimensions at once. It was a bloated, swollen sensation. It sounded as though the whole world had said “gloop.”

Reality returned, and tried to pretend that it had never left.

See what I mean? Esk’s adventures with Granny Weatherwax are fun, but even if they weren’t, I’d be too busy laughing and snorting over the wordplay and puns to really mind at all.

I’m absolutely looking forward to…

Up next:

November 2020: Mort

Can’t wait for this one! Everyone seems to love Mort!