Terry Pratchett.

One of the brightest literary minds died today. I am sad but also I am reminded of the joy he brought into my life. 

I wrote this back in 2013 It obviously still holds true. 

I can't bring myself to write more about it now other than to say: I think the best gift you can give someone is a Terry Pratchett book. If it's their first they are in for a lifetime of joy. If it's not their first they want another. 

Vacation to Terry Pratchett's Literary Discworld

(originally published Sept 8, 2013)

I know times can be tough and funds can get low. I also know many people schlepped through the summer, always with the thought of a theoretical vacation taking place in the future when they had a bit of spare scratch -- plans that never came to fruition.

Well, the cheapest form of a vacation is to read, and boy oh boy, do I have some books for you.

If you don't know who Terry Pratchett is, I honestly feel bad for you. The sheer amount of joy Pratchett has brought into my life, and into the lives of his readers, can't be measured.

Pratchett is a British writer best known for his ponderously huge Discworld series. If you want a good vacation from everyday life, read some Discworld books.

What is the Discworld? It's a world of magic and it's in the shape of a disc. It sits on the back of four elephants that stand on the back of a giant turtle that flies through space. A more accurate definition of Discworld may be that it's a space for Pratchett to riff on the human experience. The Discworld stories are funny, thrilling, interesting, poignant, touching, nostalgic and biting. They're the kind of books that punch you in the stomach and then lay you down on the couch with a bowl of ice cream while telling you how lucky you were that the punch wasn't a few inches lower.

They're hard to explain, other than I am pretty sure anyone who reads them will find something to love.

There are more than 40 Discworld books out there. While some fans, me included, have built complex charts to show how each book interacts with the rest in some sort of coherent time line, you are safe to just pick one up and start reading.

I started to write out some of the basic tenets of these stories before realizing how impossible that would be in the space provided. For example, one book, entitled "Witches Abroad," explores the role of fairy tales in modern life, talks about the power of stories, pokes fun at elderly folk going on vacation, makes fun of the culture of Louisiana and provides an insightful look at the economic effects of colonialism.

Apart from all this though, and what makes Pratchet's Discworld books especially good for taking a vacation with, is the fact that these books transcend what any reasonable person can expect from a story shelved in the humorous fantasy section.

They are funny books, hilarious in fact. Unlike a lot of funny writers though, these books have amazing stories that stick with you. Everything I just wrote about "Witches Abroad" is true, but it wasn't what I was thinking about while I read it. While I was reading it, I was totally sucked into the world and living right along with the characters.

The more I write here the more I realize how hard it is to categorically say why these books are so good. Let me put it to you this way: I read a lot of books. I have close to a literal ton of books sitting in my home that I've read and another ton of books I'm planning on reading. I've read fantasy series and detective stories and westerns and science fiction and literary fiction and classic literature and French literature and British literature and Russian literature and experimental literature and on and on and on.

Never have I gotten so much pure joy and literary elation as I get from Terry Pratchett's Discworld books.

So go find some and start reading.