Equal Rites - Terry Pratchett

There’s nothing I like better than to become engrossed in a good fantasy book, and the one of the very best sets of these fantasy books is the Discworld series. I remember the day I stood in the library looking for something new to read, when the cover of one of these books caught my eye, I picked the book up and started reading the first few pages (as you do) and found myself so engrossed that I found myself a seat and spent the next couple of hours finishing the story. That book was Equal Rites and now I’m going to share why this book still holds a special place in my heart…. Before I start telling you about this actual book, perhaps I should set the scene a ...

Eskarina Smith received an unusual gift at her birth, the staff of an old, dying wizard. He was under the impression she was the eighth son of an eighth son. She may have the right equipment to be a wizard now, but she hasn’t got the equipment to be a son. Esk grows up in Bad Ass, in the Ramtop mountains of the Discworld. Granny Weatherwax , the local witch, hides the staff from her, until one day when the wizard magic fills her and even Granny Weatherwax cannot deny it any longer. Everybody knows that women cannot be wizards, stands to reason doesn’t it? Women are witches; concerned with herbs and births and the complexities of Headology. Wizards ...

The Discworld can be a funny old place but when all is said and done but it has an awful lot in common with our own world. It may be true that the Discworld has a huge natural supply of magic and, to the best of my knowledge, Earth is not flat, disc shaped or supported on the backs of four giant elephants who, in turn, stand on the back of a space turtle, but I'm talking more about the day to day lives of it?s inhabitants. Yes, many of them may be wizards, witches, adventurers and thieves but I'm referring to their emotions, values and beliefs and the trouble they often lead to. And it's nine year old Eskarina, or Esk for short, who is going to ...