Reviews with content warning for Death - Terry Pratchett: A Life With Footnotes: The Official Biography

Far more interesting than it deserves to be considering it’s about a man who spent most of his time sitting down. It’s one for fans of Pratchett rather than fans of biography. Don’t come to it expecting Ackroyd or Tomalin. Wilkins has the disadvantage of being too close to his subject.

On the other hand, he has the advantage of being close to his subject. It’s intimate. It’s not a hagiography. There are numerous examples of Pratchett being a total arsehole. Particularly well done is his charting of Pratchett’s dementia. This might make you tear up at times. Of course, I didn’t because I’m a big brave boy. Having read the books as they came out I didn’t notice any effect on them until Raising Steam. There’s obviously something wrong with the novel. But then The Shepherd’s Crown is incomplete but what’s on the page is fine. What’s shocking is what a state he was in long before that. It beggars belief how he was able to continue for so long. Wilkins’s account of the writing of these two novels is very interesting.

It’s well written. Very readable, and the tone is spot on.

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arrianne's review against another edition

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funny reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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rosieoh's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective slow-paced

5.0

Cried my eyes out. 5 stars.

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_m0's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring slow-paced

5.0

Things I liked:

The beginning was a little slow, but I did enjoy the many details and wry humor, and especially when it got to the part of his career when things were really taking off
Rob's description of their long working relationship and friendship made it much more personal and engaging
Fascinating to see behind the scenes of the progress of certain books -- for example, how closely the Tiffany Aching books drew on his own upbringing and experiences (the original trilogy is among my favorites, and this just goes to show why!)
The footnotes, of course!

And, of course, the ending was more than a little heartbreaking. GNU Terry Pratchett.

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cyluho's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.75

This book made me happy and it made me furious and it made me laugh and it made me bawl tears on a Saturday morning: a perfect tribute in my mind.

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katiewhocanread's review against another edition

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emotional funny sad medium-paced

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fishrgreat's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

4.75

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