May You Live In Interesting Times

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May You Live In Interesting Times
A Review of Pratchett's 17th Discworld Novel
2005-11-16
Article Written by: Jillian Smith

For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the writings of Terry Pratchett, there are a few things you need to know before diving into the series and drowning in a sea of satiric fantasy. Most importantly, you need to understand that the Discworld revolves on the backs of four great elephants that stand on the shell of a giant turtle that perpetually swims through the multi-verse. This may sound far-fetched, but let me assure you that this author's witty style and sarcastic observational-ism will keep you smiling with every page you turn. Despite the fact that his stories revolve around a world full of wizards, witches, dwarfs, elves, and even Death—the entity, not the act—Pratchett always manages to maintain a poignant sense of realism. Interesting Times , like most other titles in the series, is a shining example of the author's seamless blending and balance of reality and fantasy.

It is not necessary to read all of the Discworld series to enjoy many of the titles therein, but it does allow you to catch a few subtle jokes and references that you will otherwise miss. This is by no means meant to imply that you will not find the book funny if you have not read others; I often find myself chuckling and laughing out loud at Pratchett's writings. After reading a few, though, you will find yourself seeking out the stories with your favorite recurring characters. (Death is my personal favorite.) If you have already delved in to other tales and you enjoyed the antics of the inept "Wizzard" Rincewind, you may particularly enjoy this book.

The title of the book is based on the curse "may you live in interesting times" and, in the story, the action and conflict are set into motion by a slightly-less-than-friendly game that takes place between the gods. More precisely, Fate opposes the mysterious Lady (Luck, that is) in a match of "The Fall of Great Houses" or "Destinies of Nations Hanging by a Thread." This game, though, requires a Great Wizard, so Rincewind is called for in the midst of a political crisis involving a dying emperor, five noble families contending for power, a revolutionary cadre and a mythical army. With a little bit of magic, a dash of quantum physics and a touch of archaeology, he is transported to the Aurient, across the Disc from Ankh Morpork to the Agatean Empire on the Counterweight Continent. Accompanying Rincewind on his journey through the country is Cohen the Barbarian, as well as an ant-farm-powered computer named Hex, a fractal weather-making butterfly with mandelbrot wings, and a ferocious, albeit geriatric and slow-moving army of six old men called the Silver horde. Their mission is to either defend or destroy the Forbidden City of Hunghung, but as Rincwind himself puts it: "Luck is my middle name…mind you, my first name is Bad."

If you are in fact familiar with and fond of Rincewind, you will see a distinct change in his character through the course of this story. In the beginning, he is the same spectacularly un-great and unlucky fool that he always is. As evidence of this, Rincewind finds himself working with this cadre of young revolutionaries—known as the Red Army—who are determined to overthrow the Agataen Empire. Usually, he is a mild character who is happy to be called a coward because it means that he lives to run away another day. After he has failed at every conceivable means of escape, though, a transformation occurs in Rincewind. Tired of listening to the troops' extraordinarily obtuse and ridiculous slogans that are recited in blind support of their cause, he becomes angry and explodes in a fit of righteous anger at the sheer evil that men do. Thereafter he is a fierce fighter for truth, justice and the Ankh-Morporkian way. In one of my favorite moments of angry clarity he sets the Red Army straight on the topic of their "leaders": "I know about people who talk about suffering for the common good. It's never bloody them! When you hear a man shouting, ‘Forward, brave comrades!' you'll see he's the one behind the bloody big rock and the one wearing the only really arrow-proof helmet!"

In addition to Rincewind, Interesting Times also features appearances by a few other recurring Discworld players, including Two-Flower (from The Color of Magic and The Light Fantastic ), the entire faculty of Unseen University and The Patrician, otherwise known as Lord Vetinari. You'll even get the usual, but never boring, cameo by Death.

As with most of my experiences with the Discworld series, the plot weaves very intricately and develops quickly as the story line picks up speed and the plot thickens until it reaches a dramatic conclusion. I can't bring myself to reveal the most satisfying parts of any Discworld book because the twists and turns add to the reader's overall experience. All I will say in conclusion is that Pratchett continues to show his impeccable talent for gently mocking some of our most well known cultural and political icons. In Interesting Times he gives his revolutionaries and political leaders the same treatment he gives, for example, the press in The Truth , religion in Small Gods and Hollywood in Moving Pictures . No matter what your personal politics may be, whatever your philosophy, you are guaranteed to find plenty of new challenges and fresh ideas.

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