Raising Steam is a literary fiction book by author Terry Pratchett.
The new Discworld novel, the 40th in the series, sees the Disc’s first train run into town.
Change is happening in Ankh-Morpork. Discworld’s first steam engine appeared, and once again Moist von Lipwig found himself a challenging new job.
It’s hard to know how to characterize this and so many other Pratchett books to convey the desired impression, which is, “If you haven’t tried them, you should really read one right now.” hour.” If a review mentions elves and gnomes, werewolves and vampires, elves and, yes, witches, it risks giving the impression completely wrong. These have nothing in common with Tolkien, and at least of them are much more human than your standard fantasy hero. If one refers to Pratchett as a brilliant humorist with a sharp wit, it suggests a self-conscious wordsmith who is half too smart. Refers to the ability to crystallize the essence of human madness with skillfully drawn conspiracies that can spark all our narrowest prejudices and assumptions with infallible precision. Mistakes suggest a weary agenda clothed with borrowed monstrosities.
It is perhaps simplest to say that his books are a treasure trove of wisdom and accumulated joy. This particular place is not the best place to start exploring as it depends on familiarity with its ancestors to fully appreciate it. After all, this is book 40. But you don’t have to go back to book one. I would recommend Going to the Post Office, which should get you on the right track for the Raising Steam characters. My personal favorite is Monster Regiment, but a quick survey of the reviews for the books Audible offers should give you an idea of other places to start. And since both of the available storytellers are great, you can’t go wrong there either.
One caveat. It may take you more than a chapter to get into everything in Disk World. In fact, one of the highlights of these books is that their meaning and relevance are gradually accumulated, shifting from singular to intellectual as each story progresses. This particular one started out a bit slower than most and was somewhat more dependent on its predecessors, but in the end I was completely satisfied. Enjoy!
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Raising Steam
- A Discworld Novel
