The Wee Librocubicularist's Reading Journal: Discworld 8: Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

Discworld 8: Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett

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I have been a fan of Terry Pratchett for a long time, after reading a few of his books when I was a teenager. I didn't read any before #10, and never any in order. Last year I decided to start again, but this time reading them in order! So far I have read;

Discworld 1: The Colour of Magic
Discworld 2: The Light Fantastic
Discworld 3: Equal Rites
Discworld 4: Mort
Discworld 5: Sourcery
Discworld 6: Wyrd Sisters
Discworld 7: Pyramids

Guards! Guards! is the 8th book in the Discworld series. The books centre around a world called the Disc, which is sitting on the back of four elephants, riding on a giant turtle, travelling through space. Each book follows a different set of characters, though some characters intermingle and turn up in other books! One good thing about the Discworld series is that you can read any of the books in any order, and you can follow what is happening. The books don't require knowledge from previous ones, although it can be more interesting when they are read in order.

Guards! Guards!
Guards! Guards! sees the introduction of Sam Vimes into Discworld. Here we join him in his adventures in the Night Watch, along with his colleagues, and a "dwarf" named Carrot. This time they need to save Ankh-Morpork from a dragon who wants to be king!

It is at this point in the series when I realised that Terry Pratchett doesn't take his work too seriously, and that's something I really admire about authors. He is just enjoying the story, and if people like it, that's fantastic. I personally didn't think this was one of his best ones, but the story is still entertaining and fun to read.

My favourite character in Guards! Guards! is probably Carrot. He travels from far away to join the Night Watch, and when he gets there he doesn't really understand the ways of the people in Ankh-Morpork. He goes about arresting people for things they are supposed to be doing, and it's quite comical. He eventually gets the ways of the Ankh-Morporkian people, and stops arresting everybody!

I would definitely recommend the Discworld series to anyone and everyone! It can be a bit difficult to get into, especially if you are starting from The Colour of Magic but I would say stick with it and you won't be disappointed!