Who Here Is A Pratchett Fan

In Terry Pratchett’s The Light Fantastic, why do the Star People “stare at the left ears of those we are about to cleanse”? Why is it the ear? Am I missing some joke or allusion here?

The short answer is that it’s an indication that they aren’t normal and are likely mentally unbalanced or insane.To be slightly longer, I’d say it’s also a joke as the image is funny.People when they’re trying to communicate usually make eye contact to reassure the other person that they are seen and to increase the sensation of connecting. You’ll see it given as advice to make the other person feel heard, liked etc. It’s also a sign of confidence, provided you know when to break off so you aren’t fixedly staring at the person you are talking to.By not making eye contact, the Star People are showing that they aren’t really seeing the other people as people but as objects in their universe. They have dehumanised them already.Also, by saying that they keep staring at the left ear of “those we are about to cleanse”, Pratchett is giving us a clear visual that makes it apparent that the Star People are completely nuts and likely to go Librarian poo at any moment, so beware.I don’t think Pratchett picked the left ear for this reason, but apparently the Egyptians believed that the right ear received the breath of life and the left ear the breath of death (What Is Ancient Egyptian Medicine?).Left-things are funnier than right-things, probably because “right” is a word we associate with correct while left is associated with incorrect, abandoned, or “sinister” (Latin for left) things.Throughout Discworld, not looking people in the eye and picking a shoulder or ear to stare over is usually a sign of deliberately missed connection and imbalance in the conversation, and that the person staring in that way is nuts.Unless it’s Vimes or Nobby doing it, in which case they’re just dodging the questions they don’t want to answer, like what exactly happened last night or where the tea money’s gone.

What is a good book (or series) for a Terry Pratchett fan?

Edited my answer because I realised the asker may have inquired about books by other authors or in collaboration with other authors… but still, if you have one of the books below that you have not read yet, it might just be a yummy treat for you :)So here’s my original answer :Discworld series. I recommend with all my heart (slight spoilers ahead- I think)Night Watch - my top favourite- about a charismatic, deviously intelligent, heroic “police” chief and his diverse and inclusive police force colleagues… from women to strange creatures, not saying anything more :) Also the suspense and anticipation and the fun and the humour are just… incredible! What a treat !Hogfather- a philosophical satire of Yule/ Christmas traditions and a lesson about humanity’s best features disguised as an enchanting female-hero vs evil bastard Hogswatch story (Hogswatch is the equivalent of our Christmas in the books) . Also, this one got turned into a fabulous TV movie with a cameo by Terry Pratchett himself (I loved that moment and was thrilled that the writer’s book came to life so well !)The Colour of Magic- the first in the series, about a wizard and his new friend , a tourist from far away. Adventures, brotherhood, coming of age, social satire, so many puns that you’ll read on public transport and catch yourself laughing and snickering…The Light Fantastic- a continuation of the adventures in The Colour of Magic, picking up from a suspenseful point and further expanding the magical world we’ve discovered in the first book and the perspective of the very flawed and very lovable characters we’ve metEqual Rites- just as charming and hilarious , this time the story is about a young witch in training, the brave little girl type- and on a larger scale about … equal rights :)

Why don't Terry Pratchett's books sell that well in the US?

Pratchett isn't marketed well here.Pratchett isn't even an acquired taste; Pratchett is laugh out loud funny and engrossingly philosophical.  His Terry Pratchett Quotes pages and books are as entertaining as his fictional works.  Anyone who has not read Pratchett should;  problem is, they'd have to start with Colour of Magic and Light Fantastic so they aren't lost, and those two, very early Discworld books, are just short of a graphic novel.  Clever, yes, but not as rich as his later works.But in the U.S., people don't know about him as much because no one markets him here.  College students, maybe, a couple book signings here and there, but, while his works can stand alone, they d not do so as skillfully as when they lean one upon the others.I  read the 'Old Testament' all the way through when I was about 13 and  was horrified. A few months afterwards I read 'The Origin Of Species',  hallucinating very mildly because I was in bed with flu at the time.  Despite that, or because of that, it all made perfect sense.Terry Pratchett

What's the best Terry Pratchett book that isn't in the Discworld series?

NationGood Omens is a masterpiece of collaboration. But Pratchett became a much better writer as the years went on, and there was a long time between 1990 and 2008.So why is Nation the standout?There are three Pratchett books that have made me cry.One is “Nation” (the other two are “Snuff”, specifically the scene towards the end in the Opera House, and “The Shepherd’s Crown”, but those tears were about the interplay between the events in the life of a key character, and what we knew by then was a key event in the “life” of the author.)Nation also made me laugh… lots…So Nation stands above the Bromeliad, Good Omens, Dodger, the Carpet People, the Johnny Trilogy, and the shorts for emotional resonance.It’s also the one that goes from the lead character starting in an overly macho society (“men help other men”), and ending up a real hero (without wishing to give spoilers, but for the benefit of those who’ve already read it, pigs are involved.)There’s a scene where one of the main characters talks about God, and it’s as powerful as the “salmon and otter and their babies” speech from Vetinari.And there’s great linguistic humour. We were lucky to get away with biggigity.So, if you read one Pratchett, read Nation.

Terry Pratchett fans: which of the DiscWorld characters do you think had the best character development?

I always admired Mightily Oat’s growth as a character, because, while we see it quite clearly in his debut appearance, Pratchett subtly suggests the impact his growth has on the world in the background of later books.Mightily first appears in Carpe Jugulum, as essentially a cross-between an unenthused evangelist and a wet tea-towel attached to a boil. He's not driven by his belief, as an Omnian believes they should be, instead just going through the motions of having a purpose in his life that he clearly doesn't really believe in.Throughout the book, however, he learns to finally find something to believe in - it probably helps that this assists in taking care of some vampires in quite the dramatic and spectacular fashion, as the thing he grows to believe in is a double-headed battle axe - something he himself gives religious significance. He then wanders off into the dawn, having seemingly completed his character development for the book.But it's a trick - he hasn't stopped there at all. He's just gotten started.Tiffany Aching doesn't meet him but hears from another Omnian pastor that he embodies the very best elements of Brutha, a character that underwent a similar transformation from sop to saviour in Small Gods.He's referred to in other books as a singular figure, known by the symbol of the axe around his neck. His presence is particularly felt in Unseen Academicals where we see that he has grown into a man that would see the potential even in what appears to be an goblin (which is well-placed, as he turns out to be extraordinarily intelligent and more than he appears), although strictly speaking he does not 'appear' in the book itself, but his impact on the story is felt more strongly through his absence, as you know he's going on and doing yet more.He does reappear in Science of Discworld IV: Judgment Day, in which he seals the debate concerning the ownership (and future) of Roundworld through sensible and impassioned logic. He cannot be compared to his earlier self, apart from the boil.Even Vetinari respects him by this point, which I almost think is a form of permitted cheating on the Discworld.