Hogfather (Discworld)

This is the sequel to Soul Music. It includes all of our old friends Susan , Ridcully, Some others from the university, Raven, The Death of Rats, Albert, And who could forget Susan's good old grandpa Death. It starts out on Hogswatch eve at The Assassin's Guild where one of the auditors (also featured in Reaperman) come to speak with the head of the guild. After the two are done talking the victim is apparent, a near immortal being named- The Hogfather. The Hogfather comes out on every Hogswatch night to give preasents to children. To deal with this mind boggling task the head comes up with one of the more bloodthirsty assassins named Teatime. Throughout the book we discover what Susan has been doing since we left her. She has taken a job at an orphanage and she adjusts well to taking care of the kids. But she soon finds out that keeping care of about ten children is nothing when she's faced with monsters limited only by the children's imagination. Meanwhile Death of Rats comes with the news that Susan's grandfather has taken up the the Hogfather's reins. I thought that the story was fun and reviled parts of human nature that are usually kept in the dark with some of the most thoughtful authors. The only major flaw of the book is that towards the end it starts to become a bit ridiculous even in Disk World standards. My personal favorite part of this book was all the places it takes you such as The Toothfairy's castle, The Hogfathers Palace, and Deaths Country. This is a very fun book and I would recommend it as one of the better Disk World series but would advise readers to look into reading Mort and Soulmusic first.

when all through the planet Not a creature was stirring, except Susan Sto-Helit Terry Pratchett's Discworld series has been marked by a series of hilarious (and thoughtful) parodies of life on our own planet. Pratchett takes a look at our own practices and customs and then filters them through the prism of a parallel universe known as Discworld. He has done this to great effect with the newspaper business (The Truth), Hollywood (Moving Pictures), rock and roll (Soul Music), and religion (Small Gods). The hilarious differences between the `real' and Discworld versions always provide the reader with hours of amusement and insight. Pratchett's treatment of the Santa Claus legend in Hogfather is no different. Hogfather, Discworld's Santa is missing. He has been kidnapped by Teatime one of the most vicious villains created by Pratchett. Generally, the `bad guys' in Discworld have a number of amusing or redeeming qualities that help the reader see them as quirky, if bad. Teatime has no redeeming qualities. To that extent he seemed more similar to the villains of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere (Croup and Vandemaar) than to the lovable rogues from the Guild of Assassins. Well, DEATH comes to the rescue and decides to take on Hogfather's role as gift giver on Hogswatch Night, Discworld's Christmas. DEATH is accompanied on this task by the ever faithful and ever grumbling Albert. The passages in which Pratchett has DEATH making his rounds led by his team of boars shouting "on Tusker, on Snooter, on Gouger and Router" were hilarious. Susan Sto-Helit, DEATH's granddaughter, was not at all pleased by this development. Prodded by the Death of Rats and his translator sidekick, the Raven, Susan is soon reluctantly involved in her Grand-dad's attempts to fill in the gaps caused by Hogfather's disappearance. It becomes apparent that the disappearance is all part of a grand plot by the scheming Auditors who, like all masters of evil have grand plans to end the universe as we know it. As always, Pratchett keeps the story galloping along at a rip-roaring pace. Susan meets troubles in a manner reminiscent of the Perils of Pauline. Eventually we are faced with the climactic confrontation between DEATH and Teatime. Pratchett always seems to find a clever way to bring his books to satisfactory conclusion. One of the best parts of the book, for me, was Pratchett's portrayal of DEATH's apparent fondness for mortals despite the fact that his sole (soul?) purpose in life (death?) was to facilitate the earthly end of all our lives. Pratchett's ability to imbue DEATH with such human characteristics without taking away from the other aspects of his immortal character is deeply moving to me. All in all this was a very satisfying chapter in the Discworld series. Given the night before Hogswatch feel of the book it is fitting to conclude this review as it began: DEATH sprang to his sleigh, to his Boars gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of

"Hogfather" is the first Terry Pratchett book that I read, based on a strong and enthusiastic recommendation. I am sorry I did not discover Pratchett earlier. His writing is filled with laugh-out-loud moments and peppered with sharp insights into the ways humans function. He has created a marvelously warped, but awfully familiar universe with his Discworld. "Hogfather" is largely a satire about Christmas and the way that we celebrate it; but it is more importantly about the beliefs that shape who we are and the strength those beliefs have over us. The basis for "Hogfather" is that the Hogfather has been "killed" and Death must take over the reins in order to ensure that the sun will rise the next morning, as well as to try to bring back the Hogfather. As he crisscrosses the world on Hogswatch Eve, he is startled by the lack of belief that he encounters in his interactions with humans. Surely something is wrong in the universe if humans don't belief in the Hogfather and it is Death's task, along with others, to try to set things right. The novel includes a wide cast of characters who are believable and add to the rich tapestry of Pratchett's yarn. We are allowed to see the story from various vantage points as we discover what is the cause behind this lack of belief. We laugh out loud at the escapades of the Oh-God of Hangovers and the other various 'gods' who have strangely gained entrance into Discworld. Yet the best storyline involves Susan Sto- Helit; as Death's grand-daughter, she would like nothing more than to live a normal life as a governess, but inevitably finds herself wrapped up in the plot to save the Hogfather and restore order to Discworld. Pratchett is a highly entertaining author. He balances the wit and humor of his story with sharp (and sometimes biting) observations about life. I look forward to more trips into Discworld.

Hogfather, the twentieth Discworld adventure written by Terry Pratchett, is a wonderful tale about the power of belief and what it can bring to humanity. I found myself laughing out loud constantly while reading this book, which is always a good sign, and definitely a step up from Sourcery. It was very pleasurable to be enjoying Pratchett again. It was also very nice to have a good Death book again, after the small bump that was Soul MusicCan anybody not like the idea of a skeletal Death, all decked out in a red and white costume with false beard and false belly, trying to go down chimneys and bring presents to all the good little boys and girls of the world? The idea itself is enough to get me laughing, but Pratchett's implementation of it has to be seen to be believed. Pratchett pulls out all the stops in this one, with laughs as simple as Death trying to figure out how to open a door to let Albert into the house, and as complicated as philosophical discussions about human belief and how it orders the universe (in a way that the Auditors don't like, of course). Death continues to marvel at the ability of humanity to "be untruthful" by "telling the universe it is other than it is." This powerful belief creates beings like the Hogfather, the Tooth Fairy, the Boogeyman (the original!), that sort of thing. That's what makes Death such a wonderful character: his ability to learn, to adapt, and to see both the strengths and weaknesses of humanity, as well as his fascination with how humans do things. Susan, his granddaughter, just wants to be normal again. It's been two years since Soul Music, and she doesn't want to go back to that life. But while Death can take the Hogfather's place, he can't physically intervene in the events that are occuring, so Susan must. She goes on a journey that takes her to where the Hogfather usually lives, and to the realm of the Tooth Fairy, where Teatime is using the magic of the teeth to erase the belief in the Hogfather. Susan is much more interesting in this book then in Soul Music, mainly because it doesn't take her as long to start getting in on the action. Previously, the entire first part of the book was spent with "recruiting" her to what needed to be done. In Hogfather, it happens much more quickly, which makes the beginning of the book a lot more interesting. The beginning also contains a little bit of foreshadowing. She is governess of two children, whose previous governess constantly reminded them that certain monsters would get them if they did something, and now Susan has to fight them off they are created by the children's belief. I found this very effective, and a good prelude to the philosophical aspect of the story.The wizards are their usual selves, bumbling along making you wonder how they ever get through life, as well as wondering how they'd ever survive if they weren't in the insular confines of the University. Pratchett does flesh them out a bit, giving them even more personal

At year's end on the Discworld, the Hogfather flies his sleigh packed with toys through the night. Visiting every home with children, he leaves gifts for the kiddies in stockings hung on the mantle or under the Hogswatch tree. There usually is a snack on the table for him: a glass of "sherre" and some pork fries, with turnips for the hogs. The sleigh, you see, is drawn by four immense boars, not reindeer led by one with an inflamed nose. This year, however, the Hogfather has disappeared and a substitute has taken his role. "The Discworld is a world, and a mirror of worlds". The world it reflects is ours. Many literary commentators disparage fantasy as "escapist", suitable only for the young or others dodging reality. Pratchett, on the other hand, smacks you in the gob with reality. Yet he manages do achieve this with a level of wit and learning no other fantasy writer can hope to emulate. There is some magic on Discworld, but Pratchett's talent lies in characterisation, not make-believe. Most of his figures are human, but humans create characters in their own minds. On Discworld, these are manifested as "anthropomorphic personifications". We are familiar with some: there is a God of Wine, for example. Yet, for some reason, we don't have a God of Hangovers - an oversight in the logic of our mythology. Where we have "Santa Claus", on Discworld the Hogfather is the "jolly elf" bringing happiness to children. Still, there is one personification we are loathe to consider - Death. On Discworld, Death doesn't kill, but merely takes the life essence when Fate so decrees. Death may spend a moment with the snuffing of a tube-worm at the ocean's depths, but his real interest is humans. He doesn't understand them, although he strives to do so. Circumstances led him to become a grandfather once - sort of a grandfather. That little girl, Susan Sto Helit, also strives: to be a Normal Person in the Real World. Grandfather's concern for humans, however, forces Susan to ease out of the Real World in a reluctant quest to learn why the Hogfather isn't doing his rounds. And why her grandfather has assumed his role. On the Discworld, most businesses are combined into Guilds. There's the Guild of Astrologers, Thieves' Guild and the ladies of The Guild of Seamstresses ["hem! hem!"]. There is also an association of elite gentlemen, The Assassins' Guild, which "inhumes" victims for clients for a fee. Lord Downey, Head of the Assassins has been approached by a "client" offering a large fee to inhume the Hogfather. He passes the task to Mister Teatime [pronounced Teh-ah tim-eh - "Nobody gets it right, Sir", he mourns.] who has already considered the problem "on my own time, Sir!", he insists. For Mister Teatime has indeed seen the benefits of "bringing the Hogfather to an end". It involves kidnapping the Tooth Fairy and how to control the minds of children. Death, who has a vested interest in children because they will become adults he can