Equal Rites: A Discworld Novel: 3

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A book chosen for fun, not part of any project, plan, or list. Part of my new appreciation of Discworld and Terry Pratchett. This is a new thing for me, begun this year. it is well known that a vital ingredient of success is not knowing that what you're attempting can't be done.” In Equal Rites, the wizards of Unseen University (and also the conservative Granny Weatherwax) firmly believe in this ontological difference between the sexes, which is apparent in the way they find it natural that there be gender-specific forms of magic, forms more in tune with what they see as each sex’s defining attributes (the earthy, nurturing and psychological power of witchcraft for women; the logical, calculative, energy-based power of magic for men).

Okay. Almost every word in the English language has a whole slew of historic associations. People on the Disc can't possibly speak 'English' but I have to write in English. Some carefully-positioned 'translations' like 'It's all Klatchian to me' can work, but if I went the whole hog and 'discworlded' every name and term, then the books would be even more impenetrable and would probably only be read by people who like learning Klingon. I do my best -- French fries can't exist on Discworld, for example -- but I think 'gypsies' is allowable."Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique: In Dec. of 2007, Pratchett disclosed that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. On 18 Feb, 2009, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. But power is unpredictable, and these bright young students soon find themselves in a whole new dimension of trouble. Let the battle of the sexes begin...

Thankfully Granny Weatherwax, the Discworld’s most famous witch, has plenty of experience ignoring the status quo. With Granny’s help, Esk sneaks her way into the magical Unseen University and befriends apprentice wizard Simon. I have now read the first 3 books in the series and this is the first about witches. I have to say that I felt this was a bit serious. I know there were jokes in it, but Granny Weatherwax is a bit serious and it really makes for a serious tone. It gets sillier toward the end of the book when they get to Unseen University. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the humor in this book, but it was serious. At the university, the librarian seems the only one smart enough to see Esk and see her for what she is - and to be kind to her (granted, only after she gave him bananas but still). If I was not already a Terry Pratchet fan, I would be after reading this exceptional book as we are formally introduced to Granny Weatherwax, witch. Granny doesn't have her friend Nanny Ogg as conversational foil and counterpoint in this book, and it's surprising how much that limits her character. What's more, while you can see elements of the character Granny eventually becomes, there's a surprising streak of country bumpkin in here here. In later books she loses most of that (which is for the best) and while she may not be worldly, she is still self-posessed and wise.I was afraid that I wouldn't like this, the third book in the Discworld series, as much as the previous books since it wasn't starring Rincewind and Twoflower, but I shouldn't have worried. Granny Weatherwax and Esk were excellent heroines and just as fun to read about as the boys. The first book in the Discworld series - The Colour of Magic - was published in 1983. Some elements of the Discworld universe may reflect this. You could fill a whole book with witty musings from Granny W, and there were plenty in this book, but I shall just limit myself to "be shure to wear loose clowthing also that no vysitors exspected", oh and "Nevertheless I think that on the whole I would prefer you to move your hands ". I may be overthinking here and this may not be what the author meant at all, but you can replace the word magic in this quote with money. We can buy whatever we want with money but things that matter and the things that we need cannot usually be bought. If this really is what the author meant, then it adds another layer to the gender roles theme of the story, since traditionally men earn money and women take care of the household. She was already learning that if you ignore the rules people will, half the time, quietly rewrite them so that they don't apply to you.”

Overall this book had to do something right, because I pretty much tore through it in a weekend, which despite it's short length is still rather fast for me. Equal Rites is a story that I think will resonate with everybody, whether or not you are a fan of Discworld, whether or not you are a fan of the fantasy genre. The story of a young girl asking why women can't be wizards explores some themes that I think transcend genres, and while Pratchett didn't take full advantage of this opportunity to create a masterpiece, he did deliver a strong message to the rest of the world that fantasy is a relevant genre that can be used explore topical issues in ways that other genres cannot. For once the sky was clear, the high Ramtops standing out crisp and white like brides of the sky with their trousseaux stuffed with thunderstorms." Eskarina Smith-the Disc's first ever Female Wizard-is similar to Tiffany Aching in many ways. She knows her own head but has a childlike mentality about a lot of things and it seems that she shares a smattering of stubborness with Granny that makes their stand-offs great to read. However, Esk isn't as well-developed as Tiffany was (though Tiffany did get five whole books to herself) and I often felt like Esk was pushed out of the story a little to accommodate the other larger-than-life characters (Simon and the Arch chancellor of Unseen University to name just a couple). It doesn't have the huge laugh out loud moments that later discworld books have, in part because Pratchett was still finding himself as an author at this stage -- but it's a good addition to the Discworld universe and serves as a solid starting point for the Witches line of Discworld books.

Eso sí, este libro no es de los mejores del autor y menos de esta saga. Para mí por el momento me quedo con Brujas 2,3,5 y 6. También entiendo que es de los primeros libros que escribía de Mundodisco. The wizard Drum Billet knows that he will soon die and travels to a place where an eighth son of an eighth son is about to be born. This signifies that the child is destined to become a wizard; on the Discworld, the number eight has many of the magical properties that are sometimes ascribed to seven in other mythologies. Billet wants to pass his wizard's staff on to his successor. However, the newborn child is actually a girl, Esk (full name Eskarina Smith). ... Spending time with Granny Weatherwax (one of my all time favorite characters in literature) was a treasure but this time around I noticed what how much I liked Eskarina and I wonder if she was a template upon which Tiffany Aching was later drawn. Pratchett's Discworld is such a fantastic and surprising place, so different from structured reality, that it was really interesting to explore native prejudices and expectations among the inhabitants. Girls are witches and boys are wizards until Esk is born and turns those expectations on their head. Her struggles to find her place in the magical world and Granny's attempts to teach her are slightly reminiscent of The Once and Future King, but with a feminine twist.

They say that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.' The Necrotelicomnicom is another reference to the Phonebook of the Dead (see the annotation for the dedication of Equal Rites), but is also a pun on the evil book of the dead Necronomicon, used by H. P. Lovecraft in his Cthulhu stories. We are also introduced to my favourite-my MOST FAVOURITE-character of the Discworld: Granny. Here she is as cantankerous and stubborn and wonderful and ridiculous as ever, and showing power that she rarely shows in other books. We also see her wonderful flaws even this early on: not wanting to admit she's wrong so she just headbutts ignorance right full on in the face. We also get her all alone without Nanny or any other witch, so it's quite an important role she's got here as the introduction to Discworld Witches. Pratchett introduces her very well and keeps her grounded with her stubborn nature and inability to accept she doesn't know things. Equal Rites is a comic fantasy novel by Terry Pratchett. Published in 1987, it is the third novel in the Discworld series and the first in which the main character is not Rincewind. The title is wordplay on the phrase " Equal Rights". They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.’

Her experiences while trying to get to the Unseen University make Esk doubt whether it is possible for a girl to step into the wizardry world, which is a man’s land. Since the Discworld society expects boys to seek fortune and girls to seek boys with fortune, she wonders that perhaps girls don’t have fortunes to seek. She almost decides to give up even before reaching the university, which is sadly common for many girls in the real world too. Fortunately, Granny’s guidance and her inner spirit make her fight on.