Pratchett Summary

What we enjoyed about “Going Postal”:

• Funny, elaborate set-ups for jokes
• Watch cameos nice, Vimes attitude + conman
• Moist’s character cool, fun, liked reading about him, twists and turns, always has a plan B
• If you like “Going Postal”, “Making Money” and “Raising Steam” might be to your liking
• Ankh-Morpork a character in itself
• Pratchett looking at things “we know” in a peculiar way, seeing it differently
• Post Office distributing the old mail, entire book could’ve also been about it
• Moist becomes the echo chamber of the past, he is being haunted
• Moist is a man of action, very inventive, his tongue has a will of its own
• Set-up hilarious: forced to fix the post office; “illusion of choice”
• Vetinari absolutely amazing, he plays everyone; “he’s a tyrant but he makes sense”
• Way Vetinari speaks is great; “Don’t let me detain you”; super scary without doing anything; suggests stuff, treats you like a puppet but lets you pull your own strings; Machiavelli
• Political commentary, late stage capitalism, bureaucracy
• Cool that the post office burned
• Stanley nice
• Stamp collecting nice
• Moist def. has ADHD #headcannon
• Golems fascinating
• Moist coming back to himself after living a life of lies (as a conman), he knows what he’s good at
• World very alive, nice to find connections between Discworld books
• World is bigger than the book, something to explore
• GNU idea terrible
• Post Office supernatural
• Audiobooks really good (various versions available)
• Pratchett footnotes amazing
• Moist using his skills to come up with stamps, fighting his past “forgery” Moist self (in “Making Money” he employs a forger to come up with unforgeable money)
• Bloody Stupid Johnson great
• Pratchett names are something
• Moist’s outfit is “stupid but I like it”
• “It comes with the hat”
• Getting a job as a punishment (Vetinari)
• Writing style whimsical, nice to read / nice to listen to (Briggs)
• Different fonts used cool too
• Cat at the post office, Moist had to go back and save it
• Post office setting really nice, magical vs. mundane post office work
• Cool marketing plots, Moist can sell things
• Moist has to prove himself to the post office
• Book has aged well
• Modern bathroom debate: Gladys

What we discussed:

• Clacks a bit underdeveloped, we do not really see the working class people
• Terry Pratchett writing style not for everyone
• Pacing in the beginning a bit off, Moist running off right away
• Weird that this Pratchett has chapters with the summaries (others liked it)
• Asking Adora out in public not cool (also bad in the movies)
• Relationship with Moist & Adora not that well done also pacing-wise
• Set-up of the race big but then execution bit underdeveloped; not spectacular
• Ending meh
• Moist name (have to harden yourself when reading it), Shakespeare vibes though (Bottom the Weaver)
• Reading Pratchett can be exhausting (“I feel like I have to microdose Pratchett”)

Weird Ratings:

• 4.5/5 points sealed with a kiss
• Pump 4 1/2
• 4/5 slippery moustache men
• 4/5 jobs that come with a hat
• 5/5 golden suits
• 2/5 unread messages
• 4/5 “alternative” choices
• 4/5 postmen hating dogs
• 5/5 spoons behind the wall
• 5 is now equal to 4 1/2

GNU BSFG