I Demand Equal Rites! (Equal Rites - Terry Pratchett)

Member Name: CaptainD

Product:	Equal Rites - Terry Pratchett
Date:	27/06/06 (112 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funny, light reading...

Disadvantages: ... lacks the brilliance of later Discworld books.

Equal Rites is the third in the Discworld series of books. At the beginning an old wizard, who knows he has only a few minutes to live, journeys to a remote village with a silly name in order to pass on his staff to a deserving recipient. He knows that an eighth son of an eighth son has been born, and these are traditionally sorcerers. Off he goes then, looked at with interest by the many goats in the region, and the blacksmith’s cat. He tells the blacksmith that his eighth son, just born, will become a wizard and passes on his staff to him, and promptly dies. All is right with the world.

Except… the eighth son isn’t actually a son at all. She’s a daughter, and everyone knows that women can’t become wizards. Witches yes, but wizards? Of course not. Everyone knows this.

Everyone except the highly magical staff, that is…


Thus ensues a great battle between the universal forces that be, including in this case Granny Weatherwax, who is determined that Esk, the young girl already showing strange potential, will not become a wizard. Esk however is quite determined, and the staff seems just as single-minded. Granny tries to show her how to be a witch, but in the end the inevitable happens and Esk begins her journey to Unseen University, home of the Wizards… but will the fabric of the universe be able to understand it? Will the wizards accept a woman into their ranks for the first time, despite it being against the Lore?

Along the characters Esk meets along the way are a young stuttering wizard who has a whole new way of seeing the world, a crusty old wizard who treats her like a child (she is in fact only 8, but as with all children hates being treated like a child), and creatures from the Dungeon Dimensions. She “borrows” the mind of animals and learns all about “Headology”, which is basically about giving people what they want and portraying the image they expect. She learns all sorts of things, but the elusive information about who she actually is (or rather, should be) always seems out of her reach. She has a strong will though, even matching Granny Weatherwax’s at times, so she somehow manages to get through everything life throws at her. Until…

…



Equal Rites is typical of the early Discworld books – quite short, very readable, funny in many places, full of strange characters, and with a good plot. Like some of the other early novels set on the disc, it never quite achieves brilliance, mainly because author Terry Pratchett’s writing style hadn’t fully developed when he wrote this one. The satire is pretty straight-forward, which isn’t to say it isn’t good but it lacks depth and subtlety compared to later novels such as The Truth . There is an over-reliance on metaphor and synonyms for the humour and as such the book isn’t as funny as it could be. Despite that it’s a very enjoyable book, a perfect
light read that demands little of the reader but often rewards them well. However, if you don’t like Discworld novels, there’s little to suggest that you’d like this one any more. It is a pretty good introduction to the series because of its lightness, though I’d suggest The Light Fantastic, Soul Music, or Moving Pictures if you’re new to the series and want to try it.

Oh, and if you want to see what happens when there actually is an eighth son of an eighth son, read Sourcery


Price
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RRP: £6.99
Amazon: £5.59
Play.com: £5.49

Summary: Discworld fans will like it, non-fans won't. QED.