I thought I'd get things started with my favorite author. Hands down, it's the British author Terry Pratchett. You likely have never heard of him unless you enjoy hilarious — laugh out loud all by yourself — fantasy. He has sustained and, most importantly, evolved his Discworld series through nearly 40 books now. Harry Potter fans tried to claim plagiarism when they learned he also had a wizarding school but the allegation proved unfounded once they learned Pratchett's school predated JK Rowling's by more than a decade. <smirk>
Are you a fan of theater or Phantom of the Opera? Read Masquerade, which does happen to be available at the Guymon Library, if I recall correctly. They do have a handful of his books. The Last Continent is loosely based on a trip to Australia. Soul Music is filled with allusions to the early days of rock and roll and also happens to feature the daughter of the the series' best-loved character, DEATH, who speaks in all capital letters. Yes, on the Discworld DEATH has a daughter named Susan and she gets to ride his white horse, Binky. Many of you know about my equine obsession and let me just say that I would read this series even if there were no Binky! For me, Binky is just the proverbial icing on the cake.
Within the series are mini-series based on groups of characters and locales. There's the original group, the wizards, quickly followed by the witches, and the police series, several stand alones, and a whole host of newer characters. There's rural and there's city as well as different countries and continents. He's also spun off an award-winning young adult series.
I'm sitting here thinking about Binky and recall the war hourse with a hemorrhoid ring of Cohen the Barbarian who was a legend in his own lifetime. Let me mention a few of Pratchett's most memorable characters and confess I'm laughing out loud about Captain Carrot the 6-foot-plus human Watchman who is a dwarf and his girlfriend who sleeps in a basket three nights a month; black-ribboner vampires; Igors, the oh-so-cliched helper to mad scientists; the Patrician — one man, one vote and he's the man; Rincewind the Wizard of whom it is said if he leaves a village the magical ability of the commonfolk increases slightly, and I've already mentioned Death, who takes an apprentice so he can get a day job. There really is a Grim Reaper and it's a machine. …
I could go on and on, but I'll leave it at that. I stand in awe of — and applaud — his creativity and ingenuity.
