A must for all Discworld fans! (Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents -Terry Pratchett)

Member Name: grogling

Product:	Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents -Terry Pratchett
Date:	07/03/02 (110 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Extremely entertaining, Highly re-readable

Disadvantages: Only in hardback at present

Having been a Pratchett fan since 'The Colour of Magic' I wasn't going to let the fact that this book was aimed at a younger market bother me. After all, I thoroughly enjoyed Truckers.
The first thing that any Pratchett fan will notice (apart from the great cover picture) is chapters. I know a Discworld book with chapters if like Corporal Carrot with a guilty conscience but they work very well. Each one begins with an extract from the book 'Mr Bunnsy has an Adventure'. Like a lot things the author does, they don't make sense to start with but become a very important part of the story.
So what is it about? Friendships, moral dilemmas, the battle between good and evil, the struggle to improve oneself, a search for dreams. Oh, and a Cat and some Rats!
Maurice is a smart feline, and we aren't talking about being able to open a fridge to pinch the chicken here. He is a streetwise, intelligent, self centered con artist with the ability to talk and often to manipulate people.
The rats are also intelligent but are struggling to come to terms with their new found intellect. Does the fact that they can talk and reason make them better than keekees (normal rats)?
Throw in a dopy looking kid who plays music and Maurice comes up with the 'perfect' con. Go to a small town, get his friends, the rats, to make a nuisance of themselves and then get the dopy kid to lure them out of town. After all, everyone knows about pipers leading rats out of town.
All goes well until they try it in Bad Blintz. Something is lurking beneath the cellars. Something that Maurice and his educated rodents hadn't expected...
This book may be aimed at a slightly younger element but I haven't met an adult yet who didn't enjoy it just as much as the other Discworld novels. Personally I would put it down as one of my favourites along side 'The Last Hero' because of it's refreshingly new approach. It is also quite dark in p
laces and hilariously twisted.
Overall, it's well worth buying no matter what your age. Just remember 'don't eat the green wobbly bit'!

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