Pyramids (Discworld Novels)
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'Like Dickens, much of Pratchett's appeal lies in his humanism, both in a sentimental regard for his characters' good fortune, and in that his writing is generous-spirited and inclusive' - Guardian. 'As funny as Wodehouse and as witty as Waugh' - Independent. 'Imagine a collision between Jonathan Swift at his most scatologically-minded and J.R.R. Tolkien on speed' - Daily Telegraph. 'The best kind of parody - funny and smart and still a good story' - Mail on Sunday.
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The seventh Discworld novel.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This, the seventh Discworld novel, is one of the stand-alone books in the series. The story takes us to the very ancient desert kingdom of Djelibeybi (Child of the Djel), where tradition rules with an iron fist, and where every pharaoh gets his own pyramid when he dies (because it’s traditional).
Teppic, the hero of the story and the son of the current pharao, has been sent to the Assassins’ Guild in Ankh-Morpork to widen his views a little, and this is where we meet him at the beginning of the story, when he’s about to pass his final exams. Failure is lethal among the assassins of Ankh-Morpork, and it makes no difference that Teppic is the son of a ruler.
Afterwards, word soon reaches Teppic that his father has died, which makes Teppic the new pharaoh (and also a god). So he has to return to his old homeland to take up his new duites. There he soon discovers that the true ruler, by weight of tradition, is the old High Priest Dios. It matters little what Teppic says or decrees, since Dios “interprets” the words of the pharaoh to concur with the dictates of tradition. Then the beautiful and extremely sexy handmaiden Ptraci is about to be sentenced to death...
Many adventures ensue, involving pyramid power, the preeminent mathematician on the Disc, the neighbouring kingdoms of Tsort and Ephebe, some philosophers in Ephebe, the resurrection of all the mummies in all the pyramids, the appearance of all the various gods of Djelibeybi, and much else, until Teppic finally saves the day and brings the kingdom, kicking and screaming, into the Century of the Fruitbat (which means, among other things, plumbing). And there is a nice twist at the very end.
Pyramids is fun, interesting, and of the usual high standards of Pratchett. Recommended.
Teppic, the hero of the story and the son of the current pharao, has been sent to the Assassins’ Guild in Ankh-Morpork to widen his views a little, and this is where we meet him at the beginning of the story, when he’s about to pass his final exams. Failure is lethal among the assassins of Ankh-Morpork, and it makes no difference that Teppic is the son of a ruler.
Afterwards, word soon reaches Teppic that his father has died, which makes Teppic the new pharaoh (and also a god). So he has to return to his old homeland to take up his new duites. There he soon discovers that the true ruler, by weight of tradition, is the old High Priest Dios. It matters little what Teppic says or decrees, since Dios “interprets” the words of the pharaoh to concur with the dictates of tradition. Then the beautiful and extremely sexy handmaiden Ptraci is about to be sentenced to death...
Many adventures ensue, involving pyramid power, the preeminent mathematician on the Disc, the neighbouring kingdoms of Tsort and Ephebe, some philosophers in Ephebe, the resurrection of all the mummies in all the pyramids, the appearance of all the various gods of Djelibeybi, and much else, until Teppic finally saves the day and brings the kingdom, kicking and screaming, into the Century of the Fruitbat (which means, among other things, plumbing). And there is a nice twist at the very end.
Pyramids is fun, interesting, and of the usual high standards of Pratchett. Recommended.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Pyramids (The Book of Going Forth) is Terry Pratchett's 7th Discworld novel, and continues the trend of changing the series from a satire of the fantasy genre into a distorted mirror of our own world. The main inspiration here is quite obviously ancient Egypt, with the returning heir to the throne of Djelibeybi (ouch!) getting involved in a plot which involves the return of ancient gods, a riddling sphinx, mathematical camels, and hundred's of re-animated mummies (though just for a change these aren't the bad guys in this novel), though it also finds time to lampoon the Trojan war and ancient Greek philosophers along the way.
Pyramids is one of Pratchett's better constructed novels, with the story divided into four separate segments of Teppic's journey: first his training at the Assassin's Guild in Ankh-Morpork; then his inheritance of the throne of Djelibeybi; his escape with the beautiful handmaiden Ptraci when the ancient gods reclaim the land; and his final return and saving of his country. The main theme seems to be the danger of a stagnant society trapped in unthinking historical ritual, with the pyramids themselves interestingly acting as time negators by collecting and discharging time in order to preserve the mummies within. The novel also ends with an unexpected twist on Teppic and Ptraci's seemingly predictable romantic relationship, and a nice uroboric ending for the villain, who turns out to have been more a misguided do-gooder than evil.
If there is a slight downside to Pyramids (and the only reason I haven't given it the full 5 stars) it's that it's not particularly funny. While the cover blurb proclaims this as '...the most outrageously funny (Discworld novel) to date' I found the humour to be rather obvious and cheesy, particularly when it came to the bad puns. Nevertheless, Pyramids is still a fine novel - just not a hilarious one, and the fact that this is a completely standalone novel (in fact this is sequentially the first Discworld novel that has not yet been sequelised by the return of it's lead characters) makes this perfect for newcomers as well. Recommended.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is definitely one of the best discworld novels Pratchett has ever written. An absolutely hilarious take on ancient Egypt, this book is absolutely brilliant. Featuring Teppic, heir to the throne, and the greatest mathematician on the disc (a camel called You Bastard) this book had me crying with laughter from start to finish. Buy this book- I guarantee you will not be disappointed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
One of Terry's best
I have read many of the discworld series, and this is one of the best!Great characters, good story line, very funny.
Published 20 days ago by Mr. P. M. Gabb
Brilliant read
Genius as always, even if it comes in the shape of a camel.
This book is a must read, taking in the morality of assasins and the lunacy of trying to take it all with you when... Read more
This book is a must read, taking in the morality of assasins and the lunacy of trying to take it all with you when... Read more
Published 27 days ago by suejoslin@lineone.net
Pyramids
Pyramids is part of the Discworld Novel Series. As usual the whole story is completely 'off the wall' and starts with the training school for assassins. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mr. Kevin Read
Great Read
Great read as ever. The series cont, Mr Pratchitt is such compelling a read & I can read them over and over again.
Pleased to have it on my Kindle.
Pleased to have it on my Kindle.
Published 2 months ago by Pedro54
Pyramids
This was the very first Discworld novel I ever read, many moons ago. I was hooked from the start and have been a fan ever since. Read more
Published 3 months ago by garyg
Pyramids: A Discworld Novel (Paperback) by Terry Pratchet
The ideas and the stories are just so very exciting and so very marvellous how he just put pen to paper. Thank you for the speedy delivery
Published 4 months ago by CINDY
Pyramids, camels, handmaidens, assassins and high priests - a volatile...
A great Discworld novel! In this seventh novel, we are taken to the kingdom of Djelibeybi which is ruled by King Teppicymon XXVII; the kingdom and its customs are very similar to... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Keen Reader
Sorry, Dissapointing!
The Discworld series is outstanding. But they all cannot be a good as each other. "Pyramids" is rather disappointing. Read more
Published 9 months ago by B. Vallance
favourite author
Terry Pratchett is one of my favourite authors and I have all his Discworld books. I lent 'Pyramids' to a friend and hadn't got it back, so I had to replace it. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Susan Palmer-jones
Another good read.
Working my way through all of the Discworld books and they get better and better.
Published on 26 April 2010 by LDS
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