"Jingo" by Terry Pratchett

[agoodwinsmith]

I've been re-reading this book since Christmas, and I'm on my third go through it.  I often do that with a favorite author's book - keep it at my bedside and read a snip before sleep, and just keep on starting again when I finish.  It is a way to feed my reading habit without letting it steal my sleep on work nights.

While not my absolute favorite Pratchett, it does contain some of my favorite quotes.  Page numbers from the 1997 HarperPrism edition.

10
"Aagragaah," said Detritus mournfully.
"Don't mind me, just don't spit it on my boot," said Vimes.
"It mean--" Detritus waved a huge hand, "like...dem things, what only comes in..." he paused and looked at his fingers, while his lips moved "...fours.  Aagragaah.  It mean lit'rally der time when you see dem little pebbles and you jus' *know* dere's gonna be a great big landslide on toppa you and it already to late to run.  Dat moment, dat's aagragaah."
Vimes's own lips moved.  "*Forebodings*?"
"Dat's der bunny."

152
It was so much easier to blame it on Them.  It was bleakly depressing to think that They were Us.  If it was Them, then nothing was anyone's fault.  If it was Us, what did that make Me?  After all, I'm one of Us.  I must be.  I've certainly never thought of myself as one of Them.  We're always one of Us.  It's Them that do the bad things.

166
When someone tells you it is your lucky day, something bad is about to happen.

203
Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life.

This is also the book where several (many, lots) what-everybody-knows sayings are put through the ringer and shown to be pretty damn silly.  Mostly though the medium of the Colon and Nobbs Brain Trust (from another book, I think), but others as well.

So basically my review is: if you haven't been reading Pratchett, what the hell are you waiting for?

Comments

[jessie-c.livejournal.com]

...what the hell are you waiting for?

The next book, of course.

[agoodwinsmith.livejournal.com]

But see: you're not included in the criticism because you have been reading Pratchett all along, just as you should.

:)

[cat63.livejournal.com]

So basically my review is: if you haven't been reading Pratchett, what the hell are you waiting for?

I have encountered people, in the far reaches of Usenet, who have read Pterry books and don't like them.

I do not understand this. At all.

[jessie-c.livejournal.com]

You have encountered Pohl's Law: Nothing is so good that someone, somewhere won't hate it.