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Title/Author

Witches Abroad

Terry Pratchett

Average Review Rating Average Rating 8/10 (1 Review)
Book Details

Publisher : Victor Gollancz

Published : 1991

Copyright : Terry & Lyn Pratchett 1991

ISBN-10 : PB 0-552-134-651
ISBN-13 : PB 978-0-552-13465-1

Publisher's Write-Up

It seemed an easy job...

After all, how difficult could it be to make sure that a servant girl doesn't marry a prince?

But for the witches Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick, travelling to the distant city of Genua, things are never that simple...

For one thing, all they've got is Mrs Gogol's voodoo, a one-eyed cat and a second-hand magic wand that can only do pumpkins. And they're up against the malignant power of the Godmother herself, who has made Destiny an offer it can't refuse. And finally there's the sheer power of the Story.

Servant girls have to marry the Prince.

That's what life's all about. You can't fight a Happy Ending.

At least - up until now...

'I'm beginning to think that Terry Pratchett is the best humorist this country has seen since P. G. Wodehouse - less coarse than Tom Sharpe, less cynical than Douglas Adams, simply a pure joy.'

David Pringle, White Dwarf

'Terry Pratchett... just keeps getting better and better... Pratchett is at the peak of his powers; it's hard to think of any humorist writing in Britain today who can match him.

Dominic Wells, Time Out
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Reader Reviews

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Review by Chrissi (300401) Rating (8/10)

Review by Chrissi
Rating 8/10
The target of Terry Pratchett's choice for this story is the ubiquitous happy ending. A fairy godmother dies and the witches find themelves carrying out her last wishes (whilst trying to find the hidden magic wand). The magical wand is left, to the disgust of the other two, to Magrat, with instructions that she undertake a mission without the interference of Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg.

Unfortunately, the effect of telling Grany and Nanny that they are not to go is likely to have completely the opposite effect, so off the three traipse to Genua. Genua is a place where someone has been forcing happy endings on people, whether they wanted them or not. Their mission is to prevent a princess (called Embers, living in a kitchen, with ugly sisters,) from marrying a prince (lives in a pond, glistens).

Well, a bit muddled the story may be, it has another fairy godmother, a bit psychotic she is, but she believes that she is the good one, and that the story, once started, must be obeyed. Did you know that Nanny Ogg is a gifted linguist? Well, she is, she says so, but then she says that Greebo is a lovely sweet kitty-cat, and we all know how true that is.

When Nanny Ogg's displays her 'talents' these are among the best bits of the book, they are like all of the sketches about foreign travel you have ever seen, and they wil make you laugh, they did me. You just can't help it, you know what is coming from a mile away, but you laugh anyway.
Chrissi (30th April 2001)

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