esoclectic's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
mimosaeyes's review against another edition
4.0
The first in the Witches subseries that really works, in my opinion, digging deep into the nature of stories and magic and free will. Also, really doing right by Granny Weatherwax. And let's not forget the amazing-ness that is . Very good.
Spoiler
Greebo temporarily taking on rapscallion human formhauntedbody's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
paigereitz's review against another edition
5.0
I've really been enjoying my dive into Pratchett, but this is definitely one of my favorites so far. A story about storytelling, and about the power of stories. Plus, Granny is in it, of course.
halberdbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Spooky season is here! And what better thing to read than a book about witches, about pumpkins, about the horror of being forced to become something you never were, and about cats? More than anything, Witches Abroad is about stories, and I absolutely love stories about stories. As the first Discworld book I ever read -- and the only so far -- I wanted to go back and reread it, to see if it was what I'd consider a formative text. It wasn't, really -- in retrospect, if you have to reread a text to remember what it taught you, it couldn't be THAT formative -- but it still is fantastic and well worth the reread. Problematic? Absolutely, in the original spirit of the word. But very good and very fun all the same.
celise_winter's review against another edition
5.0
"It's not staying in the same place that's the problem," said Nanny. "It's not letting your mind wander."
Witches Abroad is one of the most entertaining Discworld novels so far, if reading chronologically, in which Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat set off on an adventure to stop a peasant girl, Emberella, from marrying a prince. Along the way the witches encounter many stories, including one with a girl in a red riding hood and a rather confused big bad wolf. Not to worry though, the three witches have many talents in derailing things that are meant to be.
As usual, one's enjoyment of a Discworld novel is usually determined foremost by the cast of characters, and secondly by where on the scale of ridiculous the concept falls. Somewhere in the middle is usually good, and this one is just that. The three witches are such a perfect ensemble that the comedy comes through really well, and the story seems to unfold naturally around them. Sure, it's still ridiculous, but the parody of classic princess stories is easy to make sense of. Accompanied by Greebo, Nanny's vile cat Greebo (who could stop a stampede of bulls in its tracks with one glare), Death himself, and several recognizable storybook characters, this is will probably be one of the more memorable books once I've gotten through all 40.
Just as an extra note- I always get a kick out of how Death's never mentioned by name in most of the books besides his intro in Colour of Magic and in his own series, and is only indicated by the all-caps manner of speaking. I had a few laughs over that in this one, as small as his part might have been.
Witches Abroad is one of the most entertaining Discworld novels so far, if reading chronologically, in which Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat set off on an adventure to stop a peasant girl, Emberella, from marrying a prince. Along the way the witches encounter many stories, including one with a girl in a red riding hood and a rather confused big bad wolf. Not to worry though, the three witches have many talents in derailing things that are meant to be.
As usual, one's enjoyment of a Discworld novel is usually determined foremost by the cast of characters, and secondly by where on the scale of ridiculous the concept falls. Somewhere in the middle is usually good, and this one is just that. The three witches are such a perfect ensemble that the comedy comes through really well, and the story seems to unfold naturally around them. Sure, it's still ridiculous, but the parody of classic princess stories is easy to make sense of. Accompanied by Greebo, Nanny's vile cat Greebo (who could stop a stampede of bulls in its tracks with one glare), Death himself, and several recognizable storybook characters, this is will probably be one of the more memorable books once I've gotten through all 40.
Just as an extra note- I always get a kick out of how Death's never mentioned by name in most of the books besides his intro in Colour of Magic and in his own series, and is only indicated by the all-caps manner of speaking. I had a few laughs over that in this one, as small as his part might have been.
mewsie's review against another edition
5.0
In this tale, we are once again introduced to the three witches of the Ramtop Mountains: Esme "Granny" Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat Garlick. This time, one of their fellow witches and actual fairy godmother, Desiderata, is about to die. Since witches know exactly when they are going to die, Desiderata--who up until this point had not made any plans to train a replacement--sends her wand with instructions on fairy godmotherhood on to very unprepared Magrat right before she dies. Magrat, who still has no clue as to what she is supposed to do, reads the instructions left by Desiderate and finds out that she must travel to the land of Genua, where her charge Princess Emberella is and her other fairy godmother who is now in charge and isn't a good nor wise one either, and make sure that the princess doesn't marry the prince. Thinking that they know best, Granny and Nanny tag along to make sure that Magrat doesn't screw up.
Of course, the trip to Genua isn't an easy one either. The trio comes across a vampire, a werewolf, little red riding hoods, singing dwarves, yellow brick roads, and falling houses. It seems that the evil fairy godmother had been practicing at setting up fairy tales to occur on her way to Genua, and now the trio finds themselves cleaning up the messes along the way.
Pratchett does a very good and humorous job tying in various fairy tales into the storyline. My favorite was when the house fell on Nanny Ogg and the dwarves wanted her red shoes. However, since she wasn't dead (she was wearing her good old hat that was designed to stop a brick) this lead to a lot of confusion. I was laughing throughout the book and fully enjoyed it. Once again, Pratchett made reading a pleasure.
Of course, the trip to Genua isn't an easy one either. The trio comes across a vampire, a werewolf, little red riding hoods, singing dwarves, yellow brick roads, and falling houses. It seems that the evil fairy godmother had been practicing at setting up fairy tales to occur on her way to Genua, and now the trio finds themselves cleaning up the messes along the way.
Pratchett does a very good and humorous job tying in various fairy tales into the storyline. My favorite was when the house fell on Nanny Ogg and the dwarves wanted her red shoes. However, since she wasn't dead (she was wearing her good old hat that was designed to stop a brick) this lead to a lot of confusion. I was laughing throughout the book and fully enjoyed it. Once again, Pratchett made reading a pleasure.