Hey everyone!
I know it’s been a while since I posted here, but I noticed I had a couple of book review drafts I started and never finished, so I decided to go ahead and work on those!
So here is my review of Terry Pratchett’s The Color of Magic.
Summary (Courtesy of Barnes and Noble):
Imagine, if you will . . . a flat world sitting on the backs of four elephants who hurtle through space balanced on a giant turtle. In truth, the Discworld is not so different from our own. Yet, at the same time, very different . . . but not so much.
In this, the maiden voyage through Terry Pratchett’s divinely and recognizably twisted alternate dimension, the well-meaning but remarkably inept wizard Rincewind encounters something hitherto unknown in the Discworld: a tourist! Twoflower has arrived, Luggage by his side, to take in the sights and, unfortunately, has cast his lot with a most inappropriate tour guide—a decision that could result in Twoflower’s becoming not only Discworld’s first visitor from elsewhere . . . but quite possibly, portentously, its very last. And, of course, he’s brought Luggage along, which has a mind of its own. And teeth.
For those who may not be familiar with Discworld, it’s a 41-book comedic fantasy series written by Terry Pratchett during the 80s and 90s. There are a few different storylines you can follow for certain characters, such as Ricewind, the Witches, and Death. Discworld is a series where you don’t have to read it in chronological/publication order to enjoy.
I never read the series before, and when I saw this and The Light Fantastic available at a used bookstore near me, I decided to pick them both up and read them (although I still haven’t gotten to The Light Fantastic yet 😅). Although you don’t have to read them in publication order, The Color of Magic and The Light Fantastic are the first two books published in the series.
So, what are my thoughts on the Color of Magic?
Well, I enjoyed the writing style, especially the comedic tone of the story, which reminded me of Douglas Adams’ writing in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. Granted, this is fantasy, not science fiction, but I think since the two genres tend to overlap reader-wise if you liked Hitchhikers, I definitely recommend checking out Discworld.
If you want to learn more about all the different books in the series (and use the book generator to figure out what to start with!) venture on over here.
Do I recommend starting with The Color of Magic? Maybe not, as it wasn’t a story that hooked me right away, but once I got further into it, I enjoyed it a lot more. I can’t remember too many specifics since it’s been a while since I read it (although that also might tell you something about how engaged I was with this story), but I do remember finding the last half of the book more interesting than the beginning.
Overall, The Color of Magic is a decent story but not one that I fully found interest in until later in the book. However, I really enjoyed Pratchett’s writing (I think this also is one of the first books of his I read), and I want to continue reading through the series.
Since I have a copy of The Light Fantastic (which is the next book for Ricewind’s storyline), I’m going to go ahead and read that, but then I’ll probably switch to one of the other storylines (most likely the storylines following Death or the Witches, as I’ve heard a lot of good things about them).
If you’ve read Discworld though and want to let me know your thoughts on the series/your favorite storylines, let me know in the comments down below!
| Highlights! |
| Great series for readers who want to start reading fantasy, but are intimidated by the size and depth of many fantasy series |
| Great comedic writing that keeps the story light and fun, but doesn’t feel childish |
| I definitely recommend this series to fans of books such as The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy will |
I’ve actually discussed the Discworld series before in a previous blog/mini-podcast episode, where my interviewee was reading Mort. So, if you’re interested in hearing more about the Discworld universe, you can also check that out here.
I got my copy of The Color of Magic at a local used book store, but if you’re interested in getting a copy yourself, there are plenty of other places where it’s available. Head on over to Barnes and Noble, Amazon (apparently the whole/most of the series is also on Kindle Unlimited there), Blackwells, Bookshop.org*, your local library, or anywhere else books are available (:
**(Bookshop.org is my affiliate link, where I earn a 10% commission if you purchase through this link!)
On that note, thanks for stopping by, and I’ll see you in the next post!
-Erin 🦥
Eclectic Erin 