This carpet needs beating! (The Carpet People - Terry Pratchett)

Member Name: dididave

Product:	The Carpet People - Terry Pratchett
Date:	09/12/05 (188 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Imaginative concept, nice flow of action.

Disadvantages: Overly simplistic and poorly realised. Lack of any real imagery or characterisation.

“The Carpet People” by Terry Pratchett is a book with a strange history. First published when Pratchett was only seventeen in 1971 to moderate success it sold out and there was no intention to republish. Following the success of the Discworld Series the version in my possession is an edited version in that Pratchett has re-written it to reflect the change and hopefully, the improvement in his writing. As such this novel was written by a seventeen-year-old and then re-written by the same person only twenty-five years older and republished in 1992.

Such a strange book is certainly deserving of such a history. “The Carpet People” is the story of a group of tribes who live on “The Carpet”. The origins and history of the carpet are unknown but its legacy is vast. Unfortunately, the entity known only as “fray” has been ravaging the land obliterating the hairs and all tribes in its path. Directly following a visit from fray the Munrung tribe are attacked by Mouls, a merciless tribe who worship fray and use its destruction to their advantage. Can the Munrungs find a way to defeat the Mouls and is there a way to combat fray?

Being Pratchett’s very first novel this is unsurprisingly raw stuff. There is little in the way of characterisation and the imagery is largely uninspired. The concept of a carpet among which tribes live is inspired but the tribes and locations are poorly realised and in this respect it is difficult to see what forty-three year old Pratchett has done with his rewrite. Fortunately, the story itself is action packed and moves along at a great pace although it seems to end far too abruptly and obviously set up for a sequel that has never arrived. The various warring tribes throughout seem to bare a great resemblance in relationships to that of the “Dune” series by Frank Herbert. In fact the whole novel is very serious in its approach to war and the complex politics within empires. This is a tale of unity despite differences and seems to be Pratchett’s way of trying to preach equality despite racial differences. A worthy moral but one that does somewhat feel rammed home at times. Perhaps, because this is a novel aimed primarily at children but the ideas are very simplistic and the language almost approaching the Christian fervour of C.S Lewis. Ironic really considering in later novels Pratchett’s renowned cynicism regarding organised religion is nearly always in evidence yet always approached with subtlety. Add to this a complete lack of Pratchett’s trademark humour and on the whole it is difficult to see how Pratchett metamorphoses into the great writer he is today.

This is not to say this novel is a complete loss. Despite the woeful lack of characterisation and poor attempt at hidden meanings the story is akin to that of “The Two Towers” with the inevitable fantasy stand off at Pratchett’s very own “Helms Deep”. As such despite the lack of style this is an engaging if not polished read. Few who have read subsequent Pratchett efforts will think highly of this as near enough everything since improves on this but fans will want to read it to see were it all began. Non-fans will enjoy this if they do not want to concentrate and like simplistic fantasy. Probably in many respects an ideal read for the young teen although they will probably be disappointed if they have read Pratchett’s newer offering such as “The Nomes Trilogy” which this novel is clearly a trial run for.

All in all, despite being a short read at 250 pages it is very hard to recommend this to anyone but the Pratchett completist. It is an interesting journey into how it all began for Pratchett but despite of and perhaps because of the rewrite this is an ultimately disappointing read. It has the imagination of Pratchett but is missing the style and humour synonymous with him. Read pretty much anything else by him instead, as this is a poor reflection of what he is capable of.

Available on Amazon.co.uk for £3.99 in paperback.
ISBN: 0552551058

Summary: One for completists only. A poor example of what Pratchett can do.