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[elspeth_vimes]

So I have gotten sick two weekends in a row! It is a skill. But more to the point, one of the ways I cope with being sick is by reading things. The weekend before last featured me devouring Terry Pratchett's Carpe Jugulum, one of the few Discworld books I still hadn't read, rather than food. And so, some thoughts:

- I think that Carpe Jugulum,

Comments

[genarti]

Yessss to all of this. Especially to the characters (I love them allll) and the Pratchettian logic. And also the generational shift; I've never gotten the impression that he was really sure where to go with that, for all that I love every witches book, and so I liked the tactic of going over to Tiffany who can tap into a wider witch community without getting caught up in the question of who exactly is stuck making the tea for Granny and Nanny and so forth.

Also, I reread Night Watch the other day (Viiiiiiiimes) and have Small Gods in my bag and am resisting the urge to take on a giant reread I completely do not have time for. You're NOT HELPING.

[elspeth_vimes]

haha this followed my annual Night Watch reread. I AM GLAD TO NOT HELP.

[mirthalia]

Since I've now added this to my list, I demand that this one make yours in recompense.

[elspeth_vimes]

SO MANY BOOKS. SO LITTLE TIME.

[mirthalia]

BUT THIS BOOK. I JUST- THERE ARE NOT WORDS TO DESCRIBE THE MAGNIFICENCE.

[karakael]

Its been a long time since I've reread Carpe Jugulum, and I don't remember it being one of my favorites, though Monstrous Regiment is.

Its a weird book for me because a bunch of things are different after it; for example animatemush says that the reason for the Black Ribboner movement that gives us all of the really fun vampires is because of how bad stuff went in Carpe Jugulum. Sally, Maladicta and Otto are so completely different than the vampires in Carpe Jugulum that its hard to even compare them.

I think one of the reasons I like Masquerade so much more than Carpe Jugulum is because of the focus on Agnes, and the deletion of Magrat. (I just don't like Queen Magrat. And I don't think Pratchett does either, given that she doesn't show up much after Carpe Jugulum.) But maybe I should give it a reread, especially given the current vampire trends.

[elspeth_vimes]

I actually really appreciated it because of how different things are after it. It's like how I've always liked seeing Detritus in books before Men at Arms because it's a way of tracking how Pratchett is thinking about trolls. Carpe Jugulum really shows you how Pratchett thinks about vampires, before he works out a way to establish them constructively in-universe. If I was going from Carpe Jugulum to the others I think it would be a lot more jarring, but with the order I've read things in I find it fascinating.

I admittedly haven't read Maskerade in a long time, but I actually feel I like Agnes more in Carpe Jugulum because she's more in her own story, while in Maskerade she's just caught up in the staging of someone else's. And I like Queen Magrat, actually, though I agree Pratchett's not sure how to deal with her following Lords and Ladies.

[karakael]

I tend to reread Carpe Jugulum when I'm doing Pratchett binges, so its always in comparison to other (usually earlier) books. Perhaps it functions better as a stand alone?

Maybe I'm just biased because I know someone who looks and acts like Angnus who sings in an opera company. XD

[elspeth_vimes]

I'm willing to bet it does- I think the straightforward seriousness in it probably works better when you aren't immediately comparing it to other things where he's been able to be serious and comedic.

...See that might actually make me more upset. The ending of Maskerade where Agnes sheer skill and talent is passed over for "star power" pisses me off.