skygiants | (no subject)

The Truth is the first Discworld book that I own in hardcover, which means that it officially marks the point in my childhood where I caught up with Pratchett!

What it also means now is that it marks the point where my Pratchett books don't fit neatly in my tiny designed-for-paperback P-Z bookshelf and my roommates judge me for valuing an alphabetical cataloging structure over proper storage of my books. ANYWAY. The Truth is one of the ones I'd forgotten how much I liked! An incomplete list of things of reasons why:

- William de Worde, a dude who was raised with a lot of privilege and a lot of prejudice, and is aware of that and is trying really hard to be a better person than he was raised to be -- and often screws up precisely because he is trying so hard, and because no matter how hard he tries there are still ways in which he doesn't get it. And he gets called on that a lot, and keeps trying, and does not expect cookies for it, and I appreciate that enormously.

- Sacharissa Cripslock, INTREPID LADY REPORTER, emphasis on both 'reporter' and 'lady', who learns over the course of the story that if a naked man runs through your sewing circle meeting it is always very important to get his name for the paper. I like lady reporters. I also like that William is the tender-hearted, anxious one who is concerned about the morals of what they are doing, and Sacharissa is the one who points out that newspapers need to make a profit.

- Otto von Chriek, vampire photographer. I don't actually know why I like Otto so much, I just do.

- continuity! This is so relatively rare in Discworld I feel it deserves an extra pat on the back. Someone did die in the war with Klatch!

- the fact that no one actually develops into a better person over the course of the book -- in fact, they might well actually develop into worse people -- but they do develop into better reporters.

- the fact that the Watch are antagonists in this book. I love when authors let major characters dislike each other! It is the opposite of the thing I have dubbed Irritating Person Syndrome, that rule wherein anybody who dislikes the protagonist is automatically a bad person and will inevitably turn out to be a traitor, spy, or other variety of miscreant. (Mercedes Lackey loves Irritating Person Syndrome.) I love William very earnestly going out of his way to be annoying to Vimes and blow up Angua's scent of smell and so forth. It warms the cockles of my heart.

I am actually really sad that there are no more Plucky Newspaper Adventure Discworld books; I would gladly have seen this be the start of a sub-series. (I would much rather William than Moist, to be honest, although perhaps I will feel differently once I have re-read the Moist books. Sorry Moist!)

Crossposts: http://bookelfe.livejournal.com/313692.html

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

ceitfianna

Even though I RP Moist, I reread The Truth more often as its just a good solid book. Sometimes I get tired of the New Firm being look we're scary, no really we are, but I love the look at down and dirty economics. Otto is just wonderful, he's one of my favorite parts of the book.

The Moist books have a very different feel but there is continuity in them from other books.

From:

skygiants

Hah, I was all ready to be annoyed with the New Firm and then watched in increasing delight as the whole point of the New Firm was revealed to be: the New Firm thinks they're so bad but they are just NOT HARDCORE enough for Ankh-Morpork!

From:

ceitfianna

*_* I love that take, it makes them all better.

I think also when I first read or reread this, we had a version of the Old Firm in Milliways being played really badly and I conflated them a bit.

From:

skygiants

I just deeply enjoy that all they do in Ankh-Morpork is fail miserably. They try to hire a werewolf, and the entire supernatural population beats them up. They try to take a hostage, and Sacharissa Cripslock beats them up. They're completely thwarted by Foul Ole Ron and Gaspode!

ahahahaha oh I remember that VERY WELL.

From:

ceitfianna

I think I'm due a reread of The Truth then as it really is one of my favorites of the newer Discworld books.

Also I will be curious about your thoughts on the Moist books as I have issues with them. I enjoy some parts but not Pratchett's best, Moist just moved into my head.

Oh and I just read Eight Days of Luke, it really reminded me of The Game but the story felt like it held together better and had a slightly more solid ending. Though it still felt far too short but I love the interpretations of the gods.

Edited Date: 2012-11-27 02:07 am (UTC)

From:

skygiants

Oh, I'm glad you liked it! I really enjoy Eight Days of Luke -- it feels reasonably complete to me, in that it works as a snapshot that gives a window on a wider continuing story. But DWJ books always do have very abrupt endings.

From:

ceitfianna

They do and this one did wrap up, but I just liked the world I wanted more. Though that's true of really all of her books.

I loved the set up and the characters, its one I can see myself rereading to pick up on nuances.

From:

hebethen

I feel that your reportersly predilection is not entirely unexpected :P

From:

skygiants

>.> I have no idea to what you could be referring.

From:

batyatoon

The reason you love Otto so much, she said patiently, is that he's awesome. ... And possibly because he's the guy from the Old Country who has learned that being entertaining and harmless-seeming is the best way to keep people from storming your house with torches I mean what.

Sacharissa is a decidedly excellent character. I think you have definitely nailed it with "emphasis on both 'reporter' and 'lady'".

And William de Worde! How much do I love William de Worde? How much do he and Simon Tam need to talk someday?

And yes, yes on the fact that the Watch are antagonists in this one. I particularly love the bit where Vimes says to de Worde "I am Commander of the Watch, you know," and de Worde's response is "Yes, sir. And I'm not. I think that's my point."

From:

skygiants

These are both VERY GOOD reasons to love Otto. I also love him because of all the BS he calls William on, and for his genial and condescending head-patting, because that is exactly what William needs and deserves. :D

(William and Simon would have an super interesting conversation that would leave Simon feeling unexpectedly grateful for his parentage, I imagine.)

VIMES IS THE LAW AND THE LAW IS NOT MOCKED!

. . . I'm sorry, I had to.

From:

batyatoon

Vimes is the Law and knows perfectly well that the Law is mocked all the time.

(And ahahaha yes I suspect you are right.)

From:

lacewood

I LOVE THE TRUTH, but I think at least half of that can be put down to my journalism classes, so I sat there and laughed evilly at William's Moral Conundrums and also The Thrilling Alt-History of Publishing For the Masses.

But the hilarious grudge match with the Watch and the story ending on "William: Still a Jerk (but he tries so we put up with him)" were also A+ awesome. I should re-read it, now that you've reminded me XD

From:

skygiants

I ALSO LAUGHED AT ALL THESE THINGS. William de Worde: father of the concept of journalistic integrity!

I also laughed at . . . the invention of color photography . . . LOOK DON'T JUDGE ME IT'S A PRESERVATION THING.

From:

esmenet

I love The Truth so much, for all of these reasons. And because I feel like, if there is ever a Discworld/The Middleman crossover, these are the characters it should be about. (Otto will always be one of my favorites just because he does the Kooky Annoying-But-Harmless Supernatural Being thing on purpose. ...and also because PHOTOGRAPHY.)

I would say 'looks like it's time for a re-read...' but I left all my Terry Pratchett books to my brother when I moved. :(

From:

skygiants

OH DUDE AGREED SO HARD. Oh man, now I really want that crossover, what have you done to me! (Although Vimes too, because Vimes would really just want the Middleman off his turf, stat, and it would be hilarious.

And now I'm also fairly sure that whatever happened to Mr. Hong's Takeaway Fish Bar in that infamous Discworld Noodle Incident also involved the Middleman somehow.)

You could ask to borrow it back . . .? >.>

From:

ladysingsthe

This mmmmay or may not surprise you, Becca, but this was my very first Discworld book, and it remains my favorite for all these reasons and more.

From:

rymenhild

I saw your copy of the Truth once. It was ancient and well-read. I saw it before I saw it was you holding it, that day in the Oakland Airport.

From:

skygiants

I feel sure I remember discussing with you the delight that is Otto von Chriek!

From:

minkhollow

You love Otto because Otto is amazeballs, that's why!
I haven't reread this one nearly enough for how much I liked it. It's Up There on my list, to be sure.
(Trivia: If my high school had still allowed senior pranks - there was a nasty incident involving pig manure my freshman year so they said any senior prank at all meant you didn't graduate, after that - well, the side of the building happens to say The Truth Will Make You Free...)

From:

skygiants

This DOES seem to be one of the best reasons, yes!

Yeah, I haven't reread any of my Hardcover Discworlds as much as I would like -- I used to do big rereads whenever a new one came out, but as I got older I got less and less time. So everything from The Truth on is much less ingrained in my head. More delightful surprises on the reread, I expect!

(HAHAHAHA PERFECT.)

From:

minkhollow

My favorite permutation is The Truth Shall Make Ye Fred, but if I'd been able to go for it I would've gone for 'Fret.' Silly class of '01 ruining my fun! XD
(Though I think part of the prank ban is the next graduating class was actually a LOT less well-behaved than the one that did the pig manure. I think the administration was afraid of what they'd do to top it.)

From:

scifantasy

I've told you my special reason for appreciating The Truth, right?

"But news is mainly what someone somewhere doesn't want you to put in the paper--"

(Observation by Lord Northcliffe, repeated often by my grandfather: "News is what someone wants to suppress. Everything else is advertising.")

I like William, too. For a whole bunch of obvious parallelism reasons...*grin*

And yes, continuity is a very important aspect. This is one of the few times the Patrician gets it wrong--he thinks this will be like Music with Rocks In, or the Holy Wood, and it'll be some eldritch power that will go away. No, sorry, this is the beginning of something far bigger: the future. (Well, the continuation, along with the clacks--introduced previously but fully explained later.)

From:

skygiants

Hah, yeah, I can see that. :P

And yes! Continuity runs all through this book -- the Patrician being wrong genre savvy, the ongoing development of Ankh-Morpork, the growth of the Watch, all Mr. Slant's other plans to get rid of the Patrician -- and it's one of the things that makes it really work

From:

dimestore_romeo

I love this book for the discussion about dwarf marriage and worth and indebtedness - one of my favourite parts. Engaged dwarfs running a press and being fabulous! Yes!

From:

skygiants

I wanted to put in a line about the engaged dwarves because YES ADORABLE but then I forgot their names and couldn't be bothered to look it up. >.> I AM THE PROBLEM.

But yeah, I think that is a really cool cultural notion and I like how it plays out.