Thursday, December 6, 2007

MAKING MONEY by Terry Pratchett


Making Money is the second Discworld book featuring Moist von Lipwig, the conman-turned-postmaster general from Going Postal. Here he's put in charge of the mint, and so we get a great many adventures in banking.

I am a huge fan of the Discworld novels; I have read them all, and variously enjoyed each of them, although I have not much gotten into the rapidly growing periphery, which includes books on the science, geography and art of Discworld.

This is a typical Discworld book: the plot moves along leisurely while innumerable supporting characters wander in and out of the story as we approach an ending that is partly random and partly predictable. But that's never been a problem with Discworld novels; the plot is secondary to the characters, and all the fun is getting there.

This isn't the greatest Discworld book (I think most of the Vimes-centered ones tend to be the best), perhaps because Moist has the Midas touch where the plot is concerned – everything he does works out conveniently for his success (although perhaps in unexpected ways). Nevertheless the book is entertaining, because Pratchett's writing is good enough to overcome a deficit of plot.

The series is getting close to forty novels, but the charm is still there. Pratchett's writing is clever and amusing, as always, and one can't help but learn a few new words. And the man can still hit you with the most delightful sentences every now and again. Which is good, because Pratchett keeps cranking them out. Carry on, sir.

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