![]() There will never be another new Pratchett book, so a meticulously-researched journey through the highs (and the odd low) of his long career is the next best thing. His gleeful romps through a land of dragons, trolls, wizards, and friendly werewolves (all perched on top of a disc balanced on the backs of four elephants as they ride a turtle flying through space) remind us we usually already have what we need to be heroes. That’s what it truly takes to save the world. His most beloved characters – Sam Vimes, Granny Weatherwax, Tiffany Aching, Twoflower, Detritus, Susan Sto Helit, and Death – may command various forms of magic to deal with the chaos surrounding them, but their ultimate superpower is the possession of a kind, if muddled, heart and the desire to do the right thing. Yet within his narratives, as he rails against the too-familiar torments of racism, police brutality, environmental destruction, religious persecution, misogyny et al, he manages to lace the poison with enough humor, defiance, and faith in basic human decency for his stories to serve as a powerful antidote. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() His fantasy worlds contain the same toxins that inflame our reality: corruption, hypocrisy, greed. Picking up a Terry Pratchett novel is like self-administering a dose of anti-venom. ![]()
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