Third read! 6/27/24:

There's something very dangerous about stories. And then there's the danger of stories within stories. And below that, are TROPES within stories within stories.

*gasp*

SCARY. And don't forget the pumpkins.



Original Review:

Re-read 5/24/18:

Second read! And MORE WITCHES. Well, voodoo, too!

What happens when stories just INSIST that witches come over and to the other side? What, with all the wolves misunderstanding that they're not men and dwarves trying to steal Nanny Og's shoes and ALL THOSE MAGIC MIRRORS!

And in the end, it's just family rivalry. :)

Weatherwax really stole the show.

Yeah. Even more than that damn cat Greebo! :)

The novel is a great mish-mash of fairy tails with proper Discworld attitude. :) Better than most of the Witches novels, IMHO, but I'm just biding time till Aching comes along. :)

Durch den 12. Band der Discworld-Reihe war ich dank seines Wortwitzes und meiner drei liebsten Hexen Oma Wetterwachs, Nanny Ogg und Magrat Knoblauch ruckzuck durch.
Die gute Fee Desiderata Hohlig stirbt und macht ausgerechnet Magrat zu ihrer Nachfolgerin, indem sie ihr ihren Zauberstab hinterlässt und ihr den Auftrag erteilt, nach Gennua zu reisen, um dort die Hochzeit zwischen dem Stubenmädchen Elsa und dem dortigen Prinzen zu verhindern. Natürlich machen sich Oma und Nanny samt ihrem Kater Greebo mit auf den Weg.
Sie begegnen auf ihrer Reise Zwergen, spielen das Kartenspiel "Leg Herrn Zwiebel rein" gegen Betrüger und machen in Gennua angekommen die Bekanntschaft von Erzulie Gogol, einer Voodoo-Frau, und ihrem Zombie Samstag.
Aber auch eine Verwandte von Oma Wetterwachs hat ihren Auftritt, denn sie herrscht über Gennua und will sich diese Herrschaft nicht kampflos nehmen lassen...
Wiederum ein ganz tolles Buch der Reihe, das mit Wortwitz, skurrilen Figuren und Geschehnissen aufwartet. Es war sehr kurzweilig und unterhaltsam, denn die drei Hexen sind immer für eine Überraschung gut. Da freut man sich bereits jetzt auf das nächste Wiedersehen!

„Всички вещици са много чувствителни към историите. Те могат да почувстват една история, също както плувецът може да почувства неочакваното присъствие на пъстърва в малкия басейн.
Да знаеш механизма на историите означава почти спечелена битка.“


Пътешествието в чужбина с вещиците на Пратчет е незабравимо книжно преживяване! Писателят умело е използвал в книгата мотиви от класически приказки, разказвайки за страшно шантавите и забавни премеждия на главните героини в Генуа. Маграт е получила опасна мисия, която трябва да изпълни там като фея-кръстница, а пък Баба Вихронрав и Леля Ог ѝ помагат. „Вещици в чужбина“ е не само отлична сатира на традиционните приказни истории, но и мъдро четиво за силата на историите...





„Повечето вещици не вярват в богове. Разбира се, те знаят, че боговете съществуват. Дори от време на време се случва да си имат работа с тях. Но не вярват в тях. Би било все едно да вярват в пощальона.“


„— Хич ме няма с чужбините — рече Баба Вихронрав.
— Ходила си в Анкх-Морпорк — меко каза Леля. — Това е чужбина.
— Не, не е. Просто е доста далеч. То не е същото като чужбина. Чужбина е, където ти бръщолевят на дивашки жаргон и ядат отвратителна храна, и се кланят, моля ти се, на предмети — обясни Баба Вихронрав като добронамерен дипломат. — Чужбина може да се окаже и твърде наблизо, ако не внимаваш.“


„Баба Вихронрав не харесваше картите. Тя инстинктивно усещаше, че те са подигравка с пейзажа.“


„Баба Вихронрав не я биваше за губещ. От нейна гледна точка загубата бе нещо, което се случва на другите.
— От егото ѝ е — обясни Леля Ог. — Всеки си има по едно. Его. А нейното е страшно голямо. Разбира се, голямото его си е част от занаята на вещиците.
— Сигурно ще използва магия — натърти Маграт.
— Като използваш магия в игра на късмет, предизвикваш Съдбата — съгласи се Леля Ог. — Шмекеруването си е в реда на нещата. То си е на практика честно. Имам предвид, че всеки може да шмекерува. Но да използваш магия — това вече е предизвикване на Съдбата.“


„Замъците, би казала Леля Ог, са като лебедите. Изглеждат така, сякаш безметежно плуват през водите на Времето, но всъщност под царствената им осанка кипи бурна дейност.“


„Най-важното не бе дали си носиш шапката, а дали имаш такава. Всеки бранш, всеки занаят си имаше шапка. По същата причина и кралете имаха шапки. Ако свалиш короната на краля, ще остане просто някакъв с двойна брадичка и афинитет към ръкомахането. Шапките имат власт. Шапките са важни. Но това важи и за хората.“


„Разликата между мислещите и немислещите творения е, че първите могат да се променят. Трудно, разбира се, но не и невъзможно. Просто трябва да се отклони мисловният поток.“


„Обикновено бъдещето се разклонява при всеки обрат на събитията и е възможно да добиеш само най-смътна представа за онова, което предстои, дори да си толкова чувствителен към времето, колкото са вещиците. Но в случая историите се бяха увили около дървото на събитийността, изкривявайки формата му до неузнаваемост.“


„Магията е прекалено важна, за да се използва във властта.“

‘We’re her godmothers,’ said Granny.
‘That’s right,’ said Nanny Ogg.
‘We’ve got a wand, too,’ said Magrat.
‘But you hate godmothers, Mistress Weatherwax,’ said Mrs Gogol.
‘We’re the other kind,’ said Granny. ‘We’re the kind that gives people what they know they really need, not what we think they ought to want.’

The witches - Granny, Nanny, and Magrat - are being sent on a mission: the ward of Desidarata needs help to free herself from the malevolent influence of a mysterious force - it's to do with mirrors and frogs and glas slippers, and zombies.

None of the witches have ever been abroad, and as they make their way across the Discworld, mayham lies in their wake, but what is worse....some people have no respect for witches!

‘They treated us as if we was ordinary people,’ said Granny, in a shocked voice.

Witches Abroad was a lot of fun but there was something missing for me in this one. It was funny and cute, and at times dark, really dark - they killed a wolf out of mercy - but there was still something that I enjoyed better in Wyrd Sisters. Maybe it was the lack of a fairy tale setting that appealed more to me.

Це найсмішніша для мене книга Пратчетта (хоча це всього 3 з 40

За сюжетну лінію з Грібо - всі десять зірочок.♥️

The first of the Discworld novels I have read (publication order, mostly, but I skipped Reaper Man and will be going back to that one next) that I have finished and immediately thought: "Everything about that was absolutely perfect".

The easy chemistry between Nanny and Granny is not only hilarious but unerringly truthful in a way that most fictional friendships aren't. How often do Nanny and Granny think something negative about one another but wisely keep their mouths shut about it in the moment? This is because they know one another inside out, they know that it would lead to nothing good, they accept one another's shortcomings and in real friendships this is a thing that we do all the time. I love them.

That's not to say that Magrat doesn't have her place in the trio, and in Witches Abroad she certainly did her best to be more assertive, but ultimately her ongoing identity crisis continues to be her defining feature. And that's kind of the point, so it's OK.

The absolute highlight of the novel for me was the "Northern English biddies on holiday" aspect of it. I couldn't help it. I'm from Lancashire myself (which Lancre is based on) and Granny in particular is a spot on take on the Northern tourist of the 80s who thinks garlic bread is an exotic delicacy and anything more daring can safely be filed under "foreign muck". Nanny is so much like my own dear departed Grandmother that at times I was laughing and misty eyed at the same time.

The twisted take on fairytales and how we're shaped by stories was brilliantly executed, and at times even pretty disturbing for Discworld (the part with the wolf actually made my skin a bit prickly). The underlying social commentary is very Pratchett: Forcing people into what you have deemed to be the "correct" narrative is wrong. Leave others be to live their lives. It was relevant then, it's relevant now and no doubt it will continue to be so.

Brilliant stuff. This is certainly going to be a comfort read for me in the future.

“I wouldn’t trust any drink that’s green.”

“We’ve got a lot of experience of not having any experience,” said Nanny Ogg happily.

Definitely a favourite among the Witches sub series of Discworld.

First off, i am quite certain that introducing Discworld into my reading by first tackling Mort series has greatly increased my enjoyment reading the rest of the DW books. Death has a unique way of interjecting himself into the plot always and i just smile and giggle and laugh out everytime he is in the pages of the book. He's such a charmer, the old bones. :)

This book follows Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat Garlick flying through foreign lands to interfere with a Happy Ever After tale. The twist is rather uniquely presented that fairy tale die-hard fans would chuckle at the sheer preposterous idea behind. Who would not enjoy voodoo dolls, zombies, snakes, pumpkins and drunk coachmen to name a few? The clash of personalities of the witches is such a fun thing to read too.

Rated this book 4.5 for the enjoyment and this coming-home feel of comfort reading sir TP's great series. I could never be more of an avid fan of DW even if i have read this during my teen years.

Excellent read!

n  n    "You can't make happiness.." Granny Weatherwax stared at the distant city. "All you can do," she said, "is make an ending."n  n

A story about stories. There are witches (you might know them from other Discworld novels), fairy godmothers and many classic fairy tales. I mean a lot!

n  n    People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it's the other way aroung. Stories exist independently of their players. If you know that, the knowledge is power.n  n

Classic Discworld novel that makes you wonder what is good and bad. The philosophy behind all of sir Terry Pratchet's work is really amazing. And as I mention before, I just love the 3 witches. Even when they are "fighting"

n  n    “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.n  n

I enjoyed it, but it wasn't as deep as other works I've read from him. But definetly was worth it!

n  n    “Will she live happily ever after?” he said.
NOT FOREVER. BUT PERHAPS FOR LONG ENOUGH..n  n

Love, love, love the witches, and this book has all three of them throughout. No side stories, just witches. I mean, there are many side stories, since the plot is about a trip into the land of fairy tales and fairy godmothers who want happy endings just a little too much. Granny Weatherwax, my favorite all time Discworld character, gets to sort out wolves who want to eat grandmas, raging bulls, vampires, pumpkins, snakes, and errant fairy godmothers. Most of the hilarity comes from being in foreign parts, which Nanny Ogg enjoys - and speaks foreign - while Granny can’t hold with. Magrat is along for the ride, and so is Grebo, whose brief turn as a human is the highlight of the book. Lots of fun, but the ending is a bit confusing, which is not unusual for a Discworld book.

4.5

n  'This is a story about stories. Or what it really means to be a fairy godmother. But it’s also, particularly, about reflections and mirrors.'n

When Desirata Hollow dies, she leaves her wand to Magrat Garlick. With it, Magrat inherits an obligation to help Princess Emberella not to marry a prince. What Magrat doesn't know is that the princess has two godmothers, one good and one bad. Another important thing in Desirata's will is whatever happens, Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg must not help her. We all know what 'mustn't' does when it comes to those two.
The three witches and one cat set out to help the poor princess. Their destination is Genua.


The first part of the book describes their journey. Along the way they notice a lot of weird things - creatures from different fairy tales roaming the country. Granny wouldn't be Granny if she didn't fix everything. Only Terry Pratchett could find a way to convince you to be on the opposite side to the one wanting a happy ending. Some of the scenes in this book broke my heart, but most are hilarious. Here you'll find different take on a lot of familiar stories. There is even voodoo. With Granny Weatherwax around every story gets a special treatment and her own brand of ending.

I loved everything from the fairy tales (each with a new spin) and their constant bickering to the choice of the villain. Even Greebo the cat is awesome. But what I loved the most is Granny, her reactions to the things they encountered. My favourite, the saddest is the moment when Granny meets the wolf.

If you can't stand a lot of bickering, three different witches being their own weird, funny and occasionally obnoxious selves, completely messed up fairy tales, then I suggest you skip this one.

The Death makes an appearance too.