Terry Pratchett diagnosed with Alzheimers

Sun Jul 27, 2008 3:28 am

Frelga, Wampus, and whoever else might be interested, would you like to have the discussion of Pratchett's works split into a separate thread from the discussion of his illness? Or does it not really matter?

Post by **Frelga** » Sun Jul 27, 2008 4:26 am

V, thank you for the offer. I don't see enough Pratchett-related traffic to justify two threads. Perhaps I ought to PM Aravar and ask if he would mind renaming the thread.

Post by **WampusCat** » Sun Jul 27, 2008 4:32 am

It doesn't matter to me at all.

Post by **WampusCat** » Wed Jul 30, 2008 3:44 am

I carefully studied the chart to determine which book I should read next.

Before making it to the bookstore, I put a toe into Good Omens and became hooked (which is painful for the toe, as you can imagine).

By the time I was standing in Borders, I had forgotten which book I'd wanted to read next. So I walked out with five Pratchetts.

I was glad to see upon checking the chart again that I had done well: Feet of Clay, Jingo, The Fifth Elephant, Night Watch and Wyrd Systers. My silly reading quotient is satisfied for a while!

Post by **Frelga** » Wed Jul 30, 2008 4:08 am

When you finish Feet of Clay, tell me if you still think it's silly.

Not to imply that it's not hilarious, of course.

What a mess the world was in, Vimes reflected. Constable Visit had told him the meek would inherit it, and what had the poor devils done to deserve that?

That was my first Pratchett.

Post by **WampusCat** » Wed Jul 30, 2008 4:31 am

That's great. What amazes me about the 2 1/4 books of his I've read so far is how very many lines are quotable. They either make me giggle or sit straight, jaw descended, stuttering "That's so so so True! I never thought of it like that!"

(But they're still silly)

Post by **Frelga** » Wed Jul 30, 2008 5:00 am

I'm so glad you are enjoying Pratchett! The trouble with quoting him, of course, is that it's impossible to stop.

"Is dere any trouble?" [Detritus] said.

The crowd backed away.

"None at all, officer," said Mr. Raddley. "You, er, just loomed suddenly, that's all..."

"Dis is correct," said Detritus. "I am a loomer. It often happen suddenly. So dere's no trouble, den?"

"No trouble whatsoever, officer."

"Amazing t'ing, trouble," rumbled Detritus thoughtfully. "Always I go lookin' for trouble, an' when I find it people say it ain't dere."

Post by **WampusCat** » Wed Jul 30, 2008 5:36 am

Most of the members of the convent were old-fashioned Satanists, like their parents and grandparents before them. They'd been brought up to it and weren't, when you got right down to it, particularly evil. Human beings mostly aren't. They just get carried away by new ideas, like dressing up in jackboots and shooting people, or dressing up in white sheets and lynching people, or dressing up in tie-dye jeans and playing guitars at people. Offer people a new creed with a costume and their hearts and minds will follow.

Post by **Frelga** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 5:17 am

In breaking *crash* news - it is now finally going to be Sir Terry Pratchett

In the entertainment world, a knighthood for Terry Pratchett is recognition for a writing career that has seen him sell more than 55 million books worldwide, including his best-known Discworld series.

"There are times when phrases such as 'totally astonished' just don't do the job," said Sir Terry about the honour.

The 60-year-old has become a campaigner for more research into Alzheimer's disease after being diagnosed with the illness in 2007.

Next thing you know, he'll be a Duke!

Post by **WampusCat** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 5:29 am

That would be appropriate!

I'm glad to hear of the honor for Sir Terry. Well deserved.

Post by **solicitr** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:00 pm

Congrats and well deserved!

But what a shame that an earlier age's rather stricter Honours standards didn't permit Sir John (or Sir Ronald).

Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:12 pm

I had the same thought, soli.

Post by **Inanna** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 11:22 pm

Incredible, incredible. Soooo well deserved.

Post by **Frelga** » Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:31 pm

The best LOLCeleb of the year is here. Click, enjoy, and vote for it to be included on the main page.

Post by **Aravar** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 11:31 am

JRRT did get the CBE, which is the next one down from a K.

Post by **solicitr** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:29 pm

Yes he did- but it's not the same, is it? Dangling a prefix before the name.... well, "Paul McCartney MBE" just doesn't measure up to "Sir Paul." And that goes for a C as much as an M or an O.

Interestingly, CS Lewis was offered a knighthood- but turned it down.

Post by **Teremia** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:43 pm

Well, I'm on p. 401 of Night Watch just at the moment (I mean, the book was literally in my hand until I started to type), and it's all Frelga's fault!!!

She lent me Hogfather after the latest little SF moot.

I had already been primed by a happy encounter with the Amazing Maurice a few years ago.

But now I'm hooked!

Thank heavens he has written so many books, but oh how absolutely awful that a brain as clever as his should be attacked by Alzheimer's. Puts the kabosh on the theory that Clever Brain Exercises will stave off the disease, doesn't it?

I just read "Nation," by the way, which is his latest book for older kids. Anyone else read this? I had somewhat mixed feelings, but ended up liking it. It's much more serious in tone than the other books of his I've read, though of course the funny ones still pack a serious punch, when it comes to Deep Thinking.

Back to my last twenty Night Watch pages now!

Post by **Aravar** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:53 pm

I think that Nightwatch is probably his best.

Post by **Teremia** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:58 pm

Oh, don't say that!

I'd rather be reading his "fifth-best" book now, so as to spread out the fun.

In any case, I've finished it. And it was very very VERY good.

Post by **River** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 6:00 pm

So I've read Guards! Guards! and Going Postal. I think I want more.

Guards! Guards! I bought at an airport when I realized I didn't have a book for my Thanksgiving flight. Going Postal was part of my post-defense book shopping spree (also picked up a Neal Stephenson and a Greg Bear). I think I need another Pratchett, but I can't afford more books until I start my real job.

Maybe I should explore the rest of the university library. All I've seen are the science stacks but I'm sure there's fiction in there somewhere...