The Complete Discworld RereadI am a Granny Weatherwax guy. With no hesitation. You ask me which Pratchett story arc is the best and I will yell to the world how awesome the witches of Lancre are. But I got a dirty secret; it wasn’t always this way to me. Granny is the other woman, the one I left my first love for. Before I fell in love with Granny, I was a city watch man through and through. Reading Jingo again has reminded me exactly why.It is not the best book of the Discworld series, not by a long shot. Even against the other city watch books it probably sits in, well, bottom half for sure. Behind Guards! Guards!, Feet of Clay, and Night Watch definitely. Been too long since I read The Fifth Elephant, but I remember it being pretty good too. So, let’s give it the fifth spot and go from there. So the fourth or fifth best book in my second favorite subplot of a large series and I still flew through and gobbled up every damn word.A small, tactically worthless island appears out of nowhere between Ankh-Morpork and Klatch. Of course both sides claim it and suddenly peaceful relations turn sour. A diplomatic mission from Klatch goes sour and soon enough war appears to be the only result. But it should be over quickly right, just as soon as those foreign dogs get a taste of cold steel they will run to the hills, right?Not the most subtle of book, but Pratchett is known to hide a single piccolo in a brass band. If you are looking for the in jokes they are always there, but there are plenty of big jokes to play around with even if you don’t see them. This time we are dealing with national politics, war, racism and immigration, and of course, national jingoism.There is an early scene in this book that sums up everything I love about Pratchett, and it is only a few pages long. But our good friends Colon and Nobby are watching the cities jingoistic sailors prepare for way, specifically a sign painter who has missed a letter ‘e’ in the Pride of Ankh-Morpork. And while they wait for their minor schadenfreude Colon ‘educates’ Nobby on the politics of the situation; strait from the reliable sources of ‘what some bloke told me in a pub.’ Nobby sits and pokes holes in every amount of Colon’s non PC argument by agreeing with in in a very telling way. It is a conversation that could be held in any bar across the country and it is damn near perfect. All tied together at the end by the two sharing a minor victory as the man painting his ship finds the mistake they have been watching for.At this point the City Watch as grown so large that only a few members get any actual development in the book, most just stick to their old roles or give a bit of comic relief. Carrot is established at this point; certainly not a king but a man people can’t help but follow (all the way to a foreign country if need be). Sadly Angua may as well be invisible; this is a rare Pratchett outing that forgets to give the female characters anything to do at all. Nobbs learns a bit more about love, and Vimes learns once again that he is bought and sold. I had never before noticed that Vimes shows apparent growth in each book of his story arc, yet in each is in the exact same place by the end; he just gets a new title or concession thrown his way after the Patrician is done pulling all the right strings (well, wasn’t the Patrician this time, but strings were still pulled).Not sure why I don’t rate this one as high as some of the earlier ones. Perhaps it is because all the watch is present but few have much to do. The relative lack of Angua especially is missed. It is very over the top in making its point this time around; the Ankh-Morporkians are so stupidly sure of themselves against their ‘uncivilized’ neighbors it should be laughable (if history didn’t show people with that misplaced confidence time and again). And of course the whole Vimes is in a rut thing is starting to show.But I liked it better than I remembered. Humor? Still top notch. If you don’t find a zombie catching rats and calling it a foreign disease hilarious you have no soul (especially when you learn of the cure). And who can forget rival street gangs putting their thumbs in their ears and chanting together a silly little nonsense. Good stuff. And I have always wondered where you find lowerglyphics, what it means when seaweed is wet, and why someone would carry around a life sized inflatable donkey. I enjoyed Vimes’ new rival, 71 Hour Ahmed, who has a very unique way of keeping people off guard. I was also fairly impressed about the eventual conclusion to the early stories crime (the war itself came later). Everyone suspects everyone, even themselves, and both sides wanted to claim the criminal as their own is a different type of thing.Not the best, but a solid entry.4 Stars
I love this Discworld "City Watch" sub-series. Love the characters: Commander Sam Vimes, Lord Vetinari, Captain Carrot, the troll Detritus, and the whole multi-species gang of street patrollers. About the title, from lspace Annotated Pratchett: "By jingo!" is an archaic, jocular oath, of obscure origin, used in Britain in the 18th and 19th centuries. The word -- with derived forms such as 'jingoism' and 'jingoistic' -- became associated with aggressive, militaristic nationalism as a result of a popular song dating from the Turko-Russian war of 1877-78, which began: We don't want to have to fight, but by Jingo if we do We've got the ships, we've got the men, we've got the money too. The plot and satire is focused on empire-building and patriotism, with martial law in Ankh-Morpork and Morporkians warring on Klatchian sands. Parody comes complete with cultural stereotype (boiled eyeballs, anyone?), xenophobia, camels, deserts, and feuding desert tribes. Where's the oil?This cartoon by Tom Gauld sums it up!Funny dialogue, especially between Colon and Nobbs: Page 29: "The Klatchians invented nothing...They came up with zero.'" ( -- and that's even worse than nothing!)I loved the scene that unfolded when Lord Vetinari sent the stymied Sam Vimes a letter with only his title on it: Sir Samuel Vimes, Knight. Really enjoyed the hysterical dialogue between Nobby and Colon, while Vetinari an unwilling audience. And the storm at sea, with Vimes refusing to shorten sail or batten down. Poor Jenkins! But I never understood what (whose magic) caused that storm. This book is also about football (foot-the-ball) and submarines (Going-Under-the-Water-Safely Device). It's about gender, stubborn mules, and flying carpets. Old school, old rule, and the oldest of murders — fratricide. Quibbles: Sometimes the inner commentary bogs down the pace. Some puns have me rolling my eyes. Also, Pratchett makes too many jokes about fat people. Willikins the butler joins the militia in this book (his immature gullible behavior seemed quite out of character in the sequels, especially In Thud! and Snuff).Also see "Jingo" illustration, created by Marc Simonetti, here: http://kemar.blogs.3dvf.com/2010/11/0... Series: Here are the Discworld books about the City Watch and its commander Sam Vimes, in reading order:Guards! Guards! (1989) Theatre of Cruelty (free online, only 4 pages)Men at Arms (1993)Feet of Clay (1996)Jingo (1997) The Fifth Elephant (1999) Night Watch (2002) Thud (2005) Snuff (2011) (Series links at https://www.goodreads.com/series/1062...)Oh--and Unseen Academicals (2009) is not really City Watch, but a few characters overlap.Related "Modernization" Series: Also, there are some spin-off books that cross-over with the "City Watch" sub-series. These books introduce new-fangled notions to the twin cities of Ankh-Morpork. The books feature con-man turned hero, Moist Von Lipvig, and a few characters from the City Watch. Going Postal describes the invention and proliferation of postage stamps (loved it) and Making Money, depicts the creation of paper money to replace gold (also very good). Then there is Raising Steam, where Lord Vetinari makes Moist Von Lipvig introduce the steam train to the City, making it popular and profitable. (Pratchett's last book in the series, and a little weak.)Also, The Truth depicts the invention of a printing press and the subsequent introduction of widespread newspapers into society. Satire deals with the wholesale acceptance of lies when ink-validated. William de Worde (he-he) is the city's first investigative journalist, sleuthing out possible murder and a plot to overthrow Lord Vetinari. This book does not feature Moist Von Lipvig, but it has some City Watch characters. Finally, Moving Pictures introduces the film industry to the eager citizens of Ankh-Morpork. This book does not include Moist Von Lipvig. I didn't care as much for it, but it's brimming with satire and some scenes are great.
What do You think about Jingo (2006)?
The entire world needs to read this book right now. The relevance is uncanny. As always, Terry Pratchett (may God rest his soul in the best bunk of the starry sky) blew me away without even realizing my feet were being swept out from under me until it was too late, and I was in so deep I didn't even want to try getting out.Life lessons taught in this book could do everyone a world of good. You always learn more about yourself, sometimes than you ever wanted to know, from his books. And this is more than true in a book about just how utterly ludicrous the conflicts people can get into truly are. Because, whether or not we want to see it, from the littlest to the biggest fight, we have in this book what it all really boils down to. The strength and realness of the characters are the backbone of any of his works. The fact that we can recognize ourselves in them, or around them, is exactly what makes us see things so clearly. The revelations come fast and hard. Us and all we hold dear are laid bare before our own eyes, often with excruciating, pinpoint humor.I am a better person each time I read one of his books.
—Erin Fitzgerald
Ankh-Morpork gets involved in a war with Klatch and the Discworld equivalent of Atlantis, Leshp, is about to rise. It is up to the Watch, Vimes, Colon, Carrot and all the rest to find a way to prevent it. In Jingo the Discworld looks into the dark heart of war, land disputes, assassination, science and weapons development, and prejudice. Of course, Terry Pratchett does it in his special way, sneaking it in here and there and occasionally hitting you head on with it. Of course, there is a lot more going on than just two nations setting out to wage war. Commander Vimes feels like he's out of touch and losing control of the Watch to Captain Carrot, who has been actively recruiting new guardsmen. Since Carrot joined the Watch, the number of guards has grown from three men to over forty men, or actually, creatures. Thanks to Carrot, the Watch now includes dwarfs, gargoyles, a golem, a troll, a gnome, a werewolf and a zombie. Carrot is, of course, totally oblivious to Vimes' concerns, as his only objective is to uphold the law and protect the citizens of Ankh-Morpork. He has the kind of charisma that lets him organize a football game between two armies poised at the brink of war, and make criminals beg to confess.
—Mel Brown
Well, it's Terry Pratchett, it's about the Watch, and it's got some really great pearls of wisdom (like the one about a crowd's intelligence being the square root of the number of people in it; and the one about Sgt Colon who'd had a broad education at the School of My Dad Always Said and the College of It Stands to Reason and was now a post-graduate student at the University of What Some Bloke in the Pub Told Me). I really, really like Terry Pratchett, especially when I read him after reading anything dark or discouraging or depressing. (view spoiler)[ I love the idea of stopping wars by arresting the troublemakers who are trying to start them, and getting the people on both sides to shake hands and play soccer instead. Wish we had Vimes and Captain Carrot around to end our seemingly endless wars. There's some interesting stuff in here like the plot to kill the prince, reminiscent of the assassination that started World War I; and of course all the stuff that is so painfully parallel to the Iraq/Afghanistan/etc. wars, at least before the most recent horrors. But it's so cheerful in Pratchett, and there are wise people on both sides who can see the ridiculousness and make it stop. Where's 71-hour Ahmed when you need him? (hide spoiler)]
—Shan
