Book Review: Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett
I had a trendy blog back in the day called The Fallen Princes. It followed my adventures with wargaming and tabletop games. Then, I lost momentum, and the blog felt like a chore; the painting didn't come naturally. So, I stopped blogging; years passed, and the old blog haunted me. It haunted me so much that I deleted it. It is a decision I've always regretted since. I wish I had that blog to revisit it and make fun of myself and my writing.
Jump forward to now and here I am blogging again? I hope to recapture those early blogging days and improve, instead of making it a more rounded hobby blog, wargaming my photos, books, and comics. I wouldn't force myself to blog. Instead, I would just let it happen naturally. So far, that is precisely what I have done, and it works for me. Though the blog is more focused on my reading than anything else, it has helped me to express my thoughts more and has helped to push me on the reading front, which is impressive.
But enough about me.
Let's jump into this newest review:
Book Stats
Title: Equal Rites (Discworld #3, Witches #1)
Author: Terry Pratchett
Publisher: Corgi
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 228 Pages
Buy the book via my affiliate link with Amazon.
Fluff: They say that a bit of knowledge is dangerous, but it is not one-half so bad as a lot of ignorance. The last thing the wizard Drum Billet did before Death laid a bony hand on his shoulder was passed on his power staff to the eighth son of an eighth son. Unfortunately for his colleagues in the chauvinistic (not to say misogynistic) world of magic, he failed to check that the baby in question was a son. Everybody knows that there’s no such thing as a female wizard. But now it’s gone and happened; there’s nothing much anyone can do about it. Let the battle of the sexes begin…
Review
My third step into the Discworld and my first into the Witches series. I love that it holds strong links to the earlier books (with the unseen university), but I love it more for showing us a completely different aspect of the Disc. This story focuses on two characters, Granny Weatherwax and Esk. Esk is meant to be the book's focus as she comes to terms with becoming the first female wizard on the disc. Through her story arc, the book explores what men and women can and can't be. Pratchett is jumping on age-old ideas and forcing the citizens of the Disc to get with the times!
Though the topic is significant, the true highlight of the book is Granny Weatherwax—a witch from Bad Ass. Granny is just as wrong as the wizards for a lack of open-mindedness. But as the story progresses, she sees what Esk could become and helps her reach her full potential. We also see Granny standing up and taking names throughout the story, and I can now see why she ends up in so many tales.
Of course, no book is ever perfect, and this one has some low points. For me, it is the ending; all seems very rushed. It felt like Pratchett suddenly ran out of pages and didn't fully realize the end. It deserved more page time to give it an ending it deserved. But, overall, it is a great read and a great intro to Granny. I can't wait to get to her next tale, but I believe next up is Mort and D'eath :)
