Trip The Light Fantastic (The Light Fantastic - Terry Pratchett)

Member Name: wampyrii

Product:	The Light Fantastic - Terry Pratchett
Date:	22/11/01 (27 review reads)
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The Light Fantastic is the second novel in Terry Pratchett's enormously successful Discworld series. It is also the only 'sequel' in the entire series pretty much continuing on from where the last left off although I can't really say why without ruining the ending of the previous novel 'The Colour Of Magic'(see my previous review on that novel).

Do I need to explain about the Discworld? Probably so here goes again...

The Discworld is a large flat disc-shaped world which is mounted upon the back of four huge elephatns themseles standin gon top of the giant turtle A'tuin who is flying through space on an age old quest to...well probably to self destruct. The world itself was apparently inspired by a table of all things which the author saw in India and is probably the most bizarre you are ever liely to come across. The Discworld is a world populated by wizard's, elves, vampires...you name it, it lives here and is a world in which all of the natural laws of this world are there to be broken...in fact they seem very alive and mischievious if not down right malignant at times. Magic is a wild thing here, studied by some and harnessed by few with great difficulty...none more so than the failed wizard and main charcter of this novel - Rincewind. He returns along with the tourist Twoflower and his carniverous luggage who he has been assigned to protect in his trips around the Discworld to find that it may be afutile thing because A'tuin is on a collision course with a great red star which is becoming larger and brighter in the sky with each day that passes.

The Discworld needs a hero...but does that hero really have to be Rincewind - the most bumbling cowardly wizard ever to walk the face of that world? well apparently so, and the fate of the Disc now rests upon his quivering shoulders...

The Light Fantastic is another great novel from Terry Pratchett and another which is packed full of satire, wit and
some of the most bizarrely charming characters you are likely to meet. The most notable new one is Cohen The Barbarian(CONAN The Barbarian on the sleeve of the book I have before me...Must be nice to be a proof reader) who is 87, still rescuing virgins and still the toughest guy on the planet. He is one of the many characters who Rincewind and Towflower stumble across in their many and varied bizarre adventures in a novel which contains a fair number of laugh out loud moments and should keep you smiling throughout. If you are a fan then you've no doubt already read it, if not then you'll want to start with The Colour Of Magic first and then read it because its best to read this rather lengthy series in chronological order to be able to appreciate all the jokes and characters who are reintroduced regularly throughout.

The Light Fantastic is again(Like the Colour Of Magic) not one of the best in the series in my view but is still well worth the read and kicks ost other humourous novels into touch. Its easy reading, something you can no doubt complete in one sitting if you are a fast reader and something I would recommend to people of all ages although younger readers may miss out on some of the social commentary winkingly hidden about the text. The bottom line is its funny and if you want a novel, or a series of novels which poke fun at the fantasy genre and life in general then you can't do better than these ones - great stuff!

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