Lords and Ladies – Terry Pratchett (Audiobook)

Read by Nigel Planer

Listened to: June 2012 (at age 34)

First and second times listening, never read.

If you haven’t read it:

This is the 14^th of 38 (at the time of writing) Discworld novels.  It’s part of a sequence that includes Equal Rites, Wyrd Sisters and Witches Abroad.  It’s not really necessary to have read the earlier ones, but you might as well.  They're all good.

From the back of the book (from  The Annotated Pratchett Files):

It's a hot Midsummer Night.  The crop circles are turning up everywhere -- even on the mustard-and-cress of Pewsey Ogg, aged four.  And Magrat Garlick, witch, is going to be married in the morning...

Everything ought to be going like a dream.  But the Lancre All-Comers Morris Team have got drunk on a fairy mound and the elves have come back, bringing all those things traditionally associated with the magical, glittering realm of Faerie: cruelty, kidnapping, malice and evil, evil murder. [*] Granny Weatherwax and her tiny argumentative coven have really got their work cut out this time...

 With full supporting cast of dwarfs, wizards, trolls, Morris Dancers and one orang-utan. And lots of hey-nonny-nonny and blood all over the place.

[*] But with tons of style.

  

My Reactions (spoilers!)

Overall: 

Nigel Planer must be getting better at Nanny Ogg.  Either that, or I’m getting better at listening to his voicing of her.  I didn't like his performance of  Witches Abroad, but he was very good for Lords and Ladies.  For some odd reason, my mp3 player decided to play the story twice, and I decided to listen to it twice in a row.  It was very good.  The beginning was improved by the repetition – it was easier to appreciate the juxtapositions, similes, and metaphors that were built into the story that I didn't appreciate the first time through.  From act 3 on, I didn't think it improved with repetition, but it was still good.

Rating: 5

Characters:  

The witches are my favorite characters in the Discworld, and they don’t disappoint in this book.  We get to learn a lot more about all three (Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat Garlick), but especially Magrat and Granny. 

Premise: 

The elves are breaking through to the real world.  On the day of Magrat’s wedding.  And the elves are cats, and humans are mice.  Or the elves are wasps, and the humans are bees.  Only the three witches stand in the way of the invasion.  It works.

Setting:

Fine.  The Discworld.  This is book 14 of a whole bunch.  Each book explores bits and pieces of the world.  In this case, we get to hang out in Lancre, which is a fun place to be.

Plot: 

Good.  It was sufficient on its own, rather than simply a framework from which to hang jokes.  In fact, in places, the jokes started to interfere with the story a bit.  There was a lot going on.

Readability: 

Great.  Nicely paced and fun language. 

Audiobook reader: 

Good.  Effective use of different voices and a very appropriate reading style to the material.  This one worked really well.

Other Opinions:

There are lots.  I only read a few.  Here are a couple I enjoyed:

Libwen Reviews  

Very positive review.

The Wertzone 

Another glowing one.

The Incurable Bluestocking  

Fantastic review.  Read this one.

From the sound of it, this is one of the best books in the series.  I’m in tentative agreement.  We’ll see once I get through the rest.