alysmw's review against another edition
4.0
Brilliant. A lot better and more enjoyable than the Colour of Magic. Funny, well written, good plot, got a bit confused at the end but that was probably my fault....yeah. A good read. I loved the characters especially.
millie_yule's review against another edition
5.0
Very much enjoyed this book! Granny was a great character
brunobunny's review against another edition
4.0
4.75/5, rounding down because I can't remember much about this read?
Apparently I read this and never logged it on GR. luckily i wrote notes and a mini review on my bookmark. I loved this one. Nothing too profound or earth shattering as far as feminists concepts go, but pretty cool to read from an old fantasy novel published in the 80s by a man. And glittering with magic, decent basic feminism, and charming characters. Will be excited to read more about Weatherwax and Eskarina.
Apparently I read this and never logged it on GR. luckily i wrote notes and a mini review on my bookmark. I loved this one. Nothing too profound or earth shattering as far as feminists concepts go, but pretty cool to read from an old fantasy novel published in the 80s by a man. And glittering with magic, decent basic feminism, and charming characters. Will be excited to read more about Weatherwax and Eskarina.
mhedgescsus's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars. A fun read exploring sexism within magicians
I quite liked this book, and it was entertaining from start to finish. It's a smaller book and certainly doesn't "wow" the reader, but it has some interesting concepts that I have yet to see delved into in fantasy novels - while maintaining a humorous tone.
The story is about a wizard who is dying who passes his staff the eighth son of an eighth son (which is required to become a wizard). Unfortunately for him, he was a bit careless and the eighth son was actually a daughter. So this girl goes on an adventure to become a wizard in an all-male university.
It doesn't have the huge laugh out loud moments that later discworld books have, in part because Pratchett was still finding himself as an author at this stage -- but it's a good addition to the Discworld universe and serves as a solid starting point for the Witches line of Discworld books.
Check out my new youtube channel where I show my instant reactions to reading fantasy books seconds after I finish the book.
I quite liked this book, and it was entertaining from start to finish. It's a smaller book and certainly doesn't "wow" the reader, but it has some interesting concepts that I have yet to see delved into in fantasy novels - while maintaining a humorous tone.
The story is about a wizard who is dying who passes his staff the eighth son of an eighth son (which is required to become a wizard). Unfortunately for him, he was a bit careless and the eighth son was actually a daughter. So this girl goes on an adventure to become a wizard in an all-male university.
It doesn't have the huge laugh out loud moments that later discworld books have, in part because Pratchett was still finding himself as an author at this stage -- but it's a good addition to the Discworld universe and serves as a solid starting point for the Witches line of Discworld books.
Check out my new youtube channel where I show my instant reactions to reading fantasy books seconds after I finish the book.
rachel_abby_reads's review against another edition
2.0
This really isn't Pratchett's best offering. It doesn't do much to challenge the apparent status quo (wizard= male, witch= female). It does have some clever bits; I love that witches understand power is best used when least used.
My favorite line comes when the wizards meet a theoretical prodigy, a young man who's thoughts on magic and reality are brilliant and - well, a bit like string theory, really. Astounding even to those who understand it, arcane gargle-goo to those who don't.
The young man has just explained his theories to an stunned body of wizarding faculty. In discussing his presentation afterwards, realizing that they really didn't understand what he was saying, two wizards enjoy this reflection:
They both savored the strange warm glow of being much more ignorant than ordinary people, who were ignorant of only ordinary things.
I thought this captured intellectual snobbery brilliantly. There are so many things that we don't know. Literally everyone we pass knows things that we don't. But how lovely to preen ourselves on being ignorant of higher, neater, more intimidating things than the peasants who are still trying to figure out how to use a smart phone (or the remote control on their new television set, for that matter).
My favorite line comes when the wizards meet a theoretical prodigy, a young man who's thoughts on magic and reality are brilliant and - well, a bit like string theory, really. Astounding even to those who understand it, arcane gargle-goo to those who don't.
The young man has just explained his theories to an stunned body of wizarding faculty. In discussing his presentation afterwards, realizing that they really didn't understand what he was saying, two wizards enjoy this reflection:
They both savored the strange warm glow of being much more ignorant than ordinary people, who were ignorant of only ordinary things.
I thought this captured intellectual snobbery brilliantly. There are so many things that we don't know. Literally everyone we pass knows things that we don't. But how lovely to preen ourselves on being ignorant of higher, neater, more intimidating things than the peasants who are still trying to figure out how to use a smart phone (or the remote control on their new television set, for that matter).
i_read_and_i_know_things's review against another edition
3.0
Quite possibly the worst Pratchett book I've read, but still a Pratchett book.