Skip to main content
Unseen Acadenicals, by Terry Pratchett
Discworld Series, book 37
My rating: 6/10

A goblin working in the basement of the Unseen University, discovers his talent at "Foot-the-Ball", aka soccer, kicking off a journey into more than just sports. Joined by his friends--a cook, a model, and a soccer player--he must discover his talent and identity. Can he find who he is before it's too late? And maybe more importantly, can he be who he is without hurting everyone he loves?

The development of soccer in Anhk Morpork was hilarious, but I do have to point out that as an American, it was very confusing! All through the book I was struggling with the fact that Pratchett was calling soccer "football". Aside from that, the humour was sharp and the characters were interesting. His writing was as good as ever, as well. 

 This is where it goes downhill.
There's no good way for me to put this: the plot was sub par. It was meandering, confusing, and by the end, you realize that you've just swallowed another Soul Music-Moving Pictures trope. The ending was actually another major qualm of mine with this book. Sudden (non-wizardly) magic is introduced and never explained, all the relationships you didn't really care about come together, and just when you think its over, you get another ten pages.

 I didn't hate this book, but there are many fish in the sea with brighter scales, and I'd advise you to through this fish back.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Monstrous Regiment, by Terry Pratchett Discworld Series, book 31 My rating: 8/10 When Polly Perks' brother goes missing, presumably captured in the war between Zlobenia and Borogravia, Polly must cut her hair and leave her work as a barmaid to find him. Pretending to be a man, she joins the army and is added to a small regiment called "the Ins-and-Outs", in which she soon discovers there are more secrets than hers alone. The main reason this story has such a high rating is the strong female leads. Although he has some strong female characters, like Tiffany Aching, Susan Death, and the witches, he is not famed for all the women he writes. The writing in this book is also done very well, incorporating his trademark humour into the writing without letting it overly influence the plot.  That said, there are things that still need work.  I did not give this book a 10/10. He still includes some stereotypes about women, and though I would include an example, it would ...
Post a Comment
Read more
Snuff,  by Terry Pratchett Discworld Series, book 39 My rating: 3/10 Finally, after pressure from his wife, child, the tyrant of the city, and half the City Watch, Sam Vimes takes a vacation to the Ramkin Hall, now belonging to him. The City Watch Commander and a policeman to the bone, he loathes the peace and quiet of the small country community- but that may not be an issue. He soon discovers the game of crocket, the local pub, and- murder? The premise of this book was fairly original, but still not my favorite. I normally love the Watch books, and as this is the 39th book and the last Watch book, I was looking forwards to it.   I have several main qualms with this book. A lot of the humour in this book comes from Sam Vimes Jr’s favorite book, “The World of Poop”, and his increasing interest in scatology. This is not my kind of joke; I really don’t enjoy it at all, and in a way it felt like degrading the serious character of Sam Vimes, who has fought everything fro...
Post a Comment
Read more
Flash Fiction Forward,  by James Thomas and Robert Shapard My rating: 6/10 This collection of vivid, minimalistic stories tells many creative ideas and theories. From a date with a neanderthal to a phone scamming operation to a mesmerist, these flash fiction pieces will have you hooked. While it's true that flash fiction can sometimes be hard to engage with, and it's certainly not for everyone, I did enjoy this book. If you're not looking to read the whole book straight through, some of the best stories are Sashimi Cashmere, Traditional Indian Style Garage, Fruit Series, Travelling Alone, Quill, and Three Soldiers. My all time favorite from  Flash Fiction Forward  is a tie between The Orange and The Death of the Short Story. They were both very creative and well written, as well as poignant and balanced. However, not all the stories were as good as those ones, and I have to say that most of them seemed to end the same way: with depression about life, or death. ...
Post a Comment
Read more