SPOILERS Witches Abroad Discussion Group

[DaveC]

Just finished re-reading (well "re-listening" anyway). This is definitely one of those books that gets better on a re-reading. I remember thinking it particularly strange, even for the witches series, the first time I read it (after reading all the others), but now it definitely seem to fit right into the series. Much like "Feet of Clay" does for the Guards series, this one takes the more comical and plot-driven elements of a previous novel and expands upon them to establish the future directions for the witches, particularly Granny Weatherwax.

If there is anything in the book that doesn't work, I'd say it's the Greebo. It's the equivalent of the laborious Nobby-Colon exchanges in the Watch books--B plot material that's supposed to be funny and break up the main narrative a bit but end up dragging the page down.

It also seems to be a 'transitional' book away from the more one-time plot-and-laugh driven narratives of past book. Here, PTerry is far more concerned with character development than he was in most previous books. And he pays more attention to setting; the Genua he creates here is the most 'realistic' setting so far in a DW book, and the themes that he weaves into the story are perhaps the most complex he has developed to this point. The growth in his literary powers we see here will comes into full bloom with his next book, Small Gods.

I still wish we could get another Genua-set story. :idea:

 

[raisindot]

I still wish we could get another Genua-set story. :idea:

Yeah. Except for AM, Lancre and The Chalk, PTerry tends to give cities/nations a one-book treatment. I suppose one has to assume that Ella is running Genua wisely, since the city is rarely mentioned in any future books other than as a 'final destination' for a clacks message or mail coach.

 

[poohcarrot]

Didn't Henry Slug "come" from Genua in Maskerade?

 

[Tonyblack]

Didn't Henry Slug "come" from Genua in Maskerade?

He was supposed to be from Brindisi, if I remember correctly.

 

[poohcarrot]

Oh! Where's Brindisi?

 

[DaveC]

Wiki says

Brindisi

From Discworld & Pratchett Wiki

Brindisi is the Discworld equivalent of Italy on Roundworld. Evaree-ona speaka lika dis iffa dey comea from dere! And if your name is Henry Slugg and you want to sing opera you're liable to get laughed at, but if you are named Senor Enrico Basilica - from Brindisi, remember - then you can be a Disc-wide star! The Flying Pastrami Brothers are another example. Their real names were Sidney and Frank Cartwright. Who wants to see acrobats called that? No-one. So they called themselves Marco and Falco Pastrami, and got a job on Monty Bladder's Three-Ring Circus.

The country is near-tropical, rimward and turnwise of Genua and includes a peninsula into the Gulf of Brindisi. Brindisi is three thousand miles across the continent from Ankh-Morpork, but its language is obviously derived from Latatian, so it was likely an outpost of the Morporkian Empire.

Brindisian immigrants contribute much to the Artistic and Food Service Industries in Ankh-Morpork. The Brindisian language is not widely spoken there, but it is common in restaurants and at the opera.

Annotation
There might be two reasons for Pratchett's choice of Brindisi as the name for the Italian counterpart of Discworld.

First, there really is a Roundworld city called Brindisi. It is located in the Eastern part of the Italian "heel" peninsula, a fact that matches Pratchett's description. In addition, Brindisi itself stands on a small peninsula whose shape resembles a deer head (i.e.: 'Brentesion' in Greek).
Second, "brindisi" is the Italian term for "toast", commonly preceded by the sentence "let's have a...". Choosing "Brindisi" as a name for an Italian-like country, Pratchett wisely emphasizes Italian taste for wine - a drink that comes with the typical Brindisian food Enrico Basilica hates.

 

[poohcarrot]

Ta!

 

[raisindot]

Wiki says
In addition, Brindisi itself stands on a small peninsula whose shape resembles a deer head (i.e.: 'Brentesion' in Greek).

How would the Greeks, standing on the ground, know that is resembled a deer head unless they.........LOOKED DOWN UPON IT FROM THE AIR. Proving that ancient aliens--probably the same ones who helped the Egyptians build the pyramids--took ancient Greek cartographers with them in their ships!

 

[DaveC]

Wiki says
In addition, Brindisi itself stands on a small peninsula whose shape resembles a deer head (i.e.: 'Brentesion' in Greek).

How would the Greeks, standing on the ground, know that is resembled a deer head unless they.........LOOKED DOWN UPON IT FROM THE AIR. Proving that ancient aliens--probably the same ones who helped the Egyptians build the pyramids--took ancient Greek cartographers with them in their ships!

 

[hattie]

One of the best parts in the book was trying to understand Nanny speaking "foreign" loved it!!!! "mine hare" god I broke down laughing... silver plate...hilarious!!
There's some I didn't understand though...I'll have to go and check.
Did all of you understand everything Nanny said??

 

[Tonyblack]

One of the best parts in the book was trying to understand Nanny speaking "foreign" loved it!!!! "mine hare" god I broke down laughing... silver plate...hilarious!!
There's some I didn't understand though...I'll have to go and check.
Did all of you understand everything Nanny said??

I loved that part as well. I suspect that some of them might be a bit difficult though. Let us know which ones you have a problem with.

I think my favourite was the Hotel Nova Cancies.

 

[deldaisy]

Tony... no I don't get the hotel one you just quoted. (?)

 

[Tonyblack]

Tony... no I don't get the hotel one you just quoted. (?)

Hotel No Vacancies.

 

[deldaisy]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! DUH!

Thanks Tony.

 

[Beautiful Dirt]

This was my first truly laugh out loud witch book, I felt like I had to drag myself through Equal Rites and Wyrd Sisters took a few sittings. Witches Abroad I read overnight one Christmas whilst off work.

This book is funny from start to finish, my personal favourite part being the bull-chasing event when they all decide to have a tipple.

I think around this time in the DW series Terry was starting to master weaving comedy with deeper meaning. The entire book slams home Granny's forceful lesson to Magrat of what magic is, how little it resolves and how much to use it i.e. as little as possible.

My favourite quote from Granny is actually from this book.

"Haven't you got any romance in your soul?" said Magrat plaintively.
"No," said Granny. "I ain't. And stars don't care what you wish, and magic don't make things better, and no one doesn't get burned who sticks their hand in a fire. If you want to amount to anything as a witch, Magrat Garlick, you got to learn three things. What's real, what's not real, and what's the difference."

 

[hattie]

I loved that part as well. I suspect that some of them might be a bit difficult though. Let us know which ones you have a problem with. Very Happy

Well I'm never sure if everything she says actually means something
There's one sentence though:
"Garkon? Mucho vino aveck zei, grassy ass."
Garkon = Garcon (can't find the cedille on my computer)
Mucho vino= a lot of wine
grassy ass = gracias

but what is the aveck zei supposed to be?!? :

 

[Tonyblack]

Aveck = avec (French for 'with')

Not sure about 'zei' though.

You've got the rest right.

I also liked her saying 'chateau' meant 'cat's water' chat-eau.

 

[Prolekult]

This was my first truly laugh out loud witch book, I felt like I had to drag myself through Equal Rites and Wyrd Sisters took a few sittings.

Totally agree with this, I'm rereading the series and enjoyed Wyrd Sisters a lot more this time round (I love Macbeth) but Equal Rites was a drag.

I do like Mort and Guards Guards, but the first one in the series I really love is Reaper Man, and WA is pretty good too, but does anyone else find that the action scenes can sometimes be a bit confusingly written, especially in the earlier books?

 

[Pearwood]

but does anyone else find that the action scenes can sometimes be a bit confusingly written, especially in the earlier books?

Yes, I've often felt this way (and I wouldn't say its something peculiar to the earlier ones). I remember not having a clue what was going on in the climax to The Fifth Elephant. I think Terry doesn't like spelling things out to his readers, which is fine most of the time, but I think action scenes really require step-by-step description.

 

[Tonyblack]

I've said it before and I'll say it again - Terry's books need to be read at least twice. You'll miss things the first time you read them for sure.