Moist von Lipwig to the Rescue

                                       

Moist von Lipwig, swindler and con man, is scheduled to hang. But Lord Vetinari has other plans--Lipwig is put in charge of Ankh-Morpork's moribund postal system.  

What ensues is Pratchett at his wildest best. Lipwig is an engaging rascal whose astute knowledge of human (and non-human) nature allows him to win through the most trying situations. Bureaucracy hasn't a chance.

In the second book of what is, alas, only a trilogy, Lipwig is tasked with reviving a failing bank and shoring up an all but non-existent monetary system. He's in charge of the bank--and of its main shareholder who happens to be a lapdog named Mr. Fusspot.

There is a golem called Gladys who is taking hints from ladies'magazines,  several undead, a necromancer, greedy minor shareholders, and Pratchett's usual entertaining citizens of Ankh-Morpork. And there is a lot of truth in all this silliness, astute comments on how money works.

“If you were shipwrecked on a desert island, what would you prefer, a bag of potatoes or a bag of gold?” “Yes, but a desert island isn’t Ankh-Morpork!” “And that proves gold is only valuable because we agree it is, right? It’s just a dream. But a potato is always worth a potato, anywhere. Add a knob of butter and a pinch of salt and you’ve got a meal, anywhere. Bury gold in the ground and you’ll be worrying about thieves forever. Bury a potato and in due season you could be looking at a dividend of a thousand percent.”

Great fun!

                                  

                                          

Small Gods by Terry Pratchett

                              

One of those book pushers on Facebook (Mario? Barbara?) suggested some time back that I might like Small Gods. Oh, I do, I do!

Pratchett's wry humor is at work here, as is his wisdom. I found myself bookmarking many passages, and, rather than undertake a review, I'm going to do some quoting.

 

"Humans! They lived in a world where the grass continued to be green and the sun rose every day and flowers regularly turned into fruit, and what impressed them? Weeping statues. And wine made out of water. A mere quantum-mechanistic tunnel effect, that'd happen anyway if you were prepared to wait zillions of years. As if the turning of sunlight into wine, by means of vines and grapes and time and enzymes wasn't a thousand times more impressive and happened all the time."

"It is a popular fact that nine-tenths of the brain is not used and, like most popular facts, it is wrong. Not even the most stupid Creator would go to the trouble of making the human head carry around several pounds of unnecessary gray goo if its only real purpose was, for example, to serve as a delicacy for certain remote tribesmen in unexplored valleys. It is used. And one of its functions is to make the miraculous seem ordinary and turn the unusual into the usual."

"Because if this was not the case, then human beings, faced with the daily wondrousness of everything, would go around wearing big stupid grins, similar to those worn by certain remote tribesmen who occasionally get raided by the authorities and have the contents of their plastic greenhouses very seriously inspected.  They'd say 'Wow!' a lot. And no one would do much work. "

It's a story about gods and philosophers and religions and turtles and eagles and a fellow with a perfect memory. I loved it. Highly recommended.

Reading

Carol Shields was a wonderful writer -- illuminating all the corners of quiet, unregarded lives. I wrote about The Stone Diaries some time ago and have just now finished The Box Garden.  It is the story of a woman whose husband left her long ago and who has built a quietly happy life for herself and her son. Her mother's impending wedding sets a number of events in motion and I found myself reading eagerly to see what would happen.

Would she find happiness with Eugene, the orthodontist? Would she ever come to terms with her relationship with supremely unlovable mother. (The mother is an unforgettable character.) And what about the mysterious Brother Adam, with whom she has carried on a correspondence for years? Suffice it to say that all the questions are dealt with in a satisfactory way.

I can't quite put my finger on what it is I like so much about Shields' work -- heaven knows that the thumbnail sketch I've just given wouldn't tempt me to read.  

Perhaps it's the crystalline quality of the prose -- the prose that makes the most ordinary things shine with an inner light of their own. 

                                       ***

And then there's Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. This is a re-reading -- or re-listening -- and it only gets better each time. The audio book is excellent- a bravura performance.

Essentially, it's the story of the Apocalypse, complete with the Anti-Christ,  the Four Horsemen, showers of frogs, the rising of Atlantis, and assorted other signs of portents. The Battle of Good and Evil was never so well imagined -- nor so well resolved.

Pratchett and Gaiman's antic humor has free rein here -- the Hell Hound that is sent as a companion to the Antichrist becomes a scruffy little mongrel who finds he really enjoys chasing rabbits more than lost souls. An angel and a demon who have been on Earth for thousands of years, attempting to influence mankind to the Good or the Evil, often have lunch together and compare notes on their respective employers.

It's a big, sprawling, wild ride of a book -- and I'll probably listen to it again before long, just to savor again all the many good bits.  

Recent Reading

Some books I've enjoyed  -- books  I would recommend to friends. I'm not going to even attempt to hint at plots or link to reviews --  you all know how to ask Mr. Google.

I have yet to read an Anne Tyler book that didn't instantly immerse me in a world full of very real people with very real lives -- low key, even ordinary -- if any human being can be called ordinary. I think this is Tyler's genius, that by depicting these lives with such exquisite and empathetic observation, she touches on something universal.  A Spool of Blue Thread, like most of Tyler's novels is about a family . . . and anyone who's been a member of a family will probably recognize characters and situations. Beautifully written -- Tyler at her best.

Ellen Foster was Kaye Gibbons's debut novel. This powerful first-person evocation of a young girl looking for a family after the death of her mother kept me reading till 3 in the morning. Ellen is a tough little survivor and her story is by turns heart-breaking and heart-warming.  Ellen's no-nonsense, don't-feel-sorry-for-me voice is pitch-perfect. I loved this character. 

Alice Hoffman's brand of magical realism is always enjoyable -- a little dark at times but not the kind of dark that leaves me depressed. Her writing is beautiful  --  reminding me a bit of Ray Bradbury. (She does weather and gardens especially well.)

Fortune's Daughter and The Story Sisters both kept me reading late into the night . . .

And now for something completely different. Not so much estrogen. Terry Pratchett's recent death set me thinking that I might give his books another try. Somehow the one or two I've read in the past didn't make the impression on me that they probably should have. I may have started in the middle of a series or something. So as a prelude to reading some Pratchett, I re-read Good Omens -- co-authored by Neil Gaiman (whose novels I adore.) 

I'd liked the book the first time I read it -- this time I really liked it: the goofiness, the theology, the characters, the Apocalyptic vision, and the resolution of it all.

 And I particularly like Dog -- the Hell Hound destined to be the Anti Christ's companion who, to his bewilderment, finds himself suddenly smaller and less demonic -- cute, in fact. And really interested in doing dog stuff.

Great fun!