(Discworld novel 40) (Discworld series) - Raising Steam

Pratchett is the number one author of comic science fiction/fantasy novels. This is the fortieth book in the Discworld series and is as good as anything he has written. Here you enter into a world populated by people and trolls, goblins, golems, dwarves, vampires, imps and gnomes. A world which has a wizards academy. A world which is to be given its first railroad whose lead engine, the Iron Girder, is at the heart of the book.

Even so, comedy is the leading characteristic of the book. You will laugh as you discover what firkydoodling, bothy, netherglades, Ginnungagap, loggystick, Boffo's artificial vomit, footplate, micro mail and stumbleweed are. You will laugh when you hear the Golem horse demand "Give me livery or give me death.". You will laugh throughout the book.

You must read it. You will enjoy this effort by one of England's premier writers.

Finally, the book has 81 numbered footnotes that create half the laughs. Therefor, you must know how to get to them. The following guide tells you how to do so.

1. Go to section 5673 to find note 1.
2. Bookmark it by pressing alt and b on the keyboard.
3. When you want to read a footnote, press menu, view my notes & marks and read it.
4. When page one of your footnotes is done erase it by pressing alt and b again, then go to the next page of footnotes and do the whole thing again.

Good reading to you!

It's quite difficult to not praise Pratchett. He's inventive, creatively humorous, interesting and profound. For the most part this book meets with my expectations. Though sometimes difficult to follow. I recommend it if you're around the age of reason but surely not below.

A fun read and engaging. My first disc world book but definitely not the last. Much in the style of Paths of the Perambulator" by Alan Dean Foster this fantasy novel has a great and rich world with heavy details and character development that will appeal to readers of any age

This book is extremely important to me as an Israeli Jew. Yes, it's a bit more less subtle with the morals than Terry Pratchett's other books but it still has a fun story.

Story summary: The railway is invented and extremists do a coup on the Low King. Also, golem horses and fighting on moving trains.

The first time I read this book I immediately penned the grags as jihadists, this time I realized that they were really a metaphor for any religious extremist group. That's something I love about this book and Terry Pratchett in general: the metaphors are there, but they aren't specific. You cannot truly take one of his metaphors and pin it down on one incident/group. They are all expanding.

Lines I thought were important: "Tak does not require us to think of him but he does require us to think." "...inculcated their flocks into believing that change of any sort is a blasphemy..."

Hilarious things that do not spoil: Moist riding into the palace on a horse

It seems disloyal, after all the enjoyment I've had out of the Discworld books, to give a less-than-stellar review to Raising Steam, but the truth is that this is far from being Terry Pratchett's best contribution to the series. I'm always encouraged when the inimitable Moist von Lipwig makes an appearance, because that usually heralds an impossible situation with nefarious enemies to be overcome by means of massively unlikely achievements, but here he's more of a PR manager than a mastermind. The plot owes less to Stephen Ambrose's "Nothing Like It In The World" than it does to a history of the railway, with a gradual evolution of better service and technology, and no stumbling blocks that aren't swiftly overcome by existing solutions. There's a sub-plot involving a coup against the Low King of the Dwarfs, but even that seems to run its course smoothly, without ever really giving the impression that the realm is in danger. Even the expected tension between the brilliant engineer, his spirited engine, and his earthly girlfriend - a natural love triangle if there ever was one - doesn't come to fruition as one might expect.
Buy this book if you can't bear the idea of your Discworld collection not being complete, but don't buy it expecting a masterpiece of the genre.

Amazing how this author takes modern day issues and wraps them up in humour and fantasy but has it remain relevant to the current day events. Love his characters and his stories. Definitely one of the most intelligent authors around. Great job Terry

I have read just about all the previous Discworld books, with two or three exceptions in recent years because they were just boring (and I cant be bothered with the Long Earth ones), and I find this one to be a return to the grand old form. Many many sly shoutouts (landslide alerter E. Nesmith, living in a railway cottage and a future writer, made me snort), the odd beauty of goblin names, the wonderful descriptions of landscapes...it's all there.
Moist von Lipwig and his wife Adora Belle are among my favorite characters, as is Sir Harry King, and it is always nice to run into Lord Vetinari and the Low King of the Dwarfs, while Dick Simnel is one of the most excellent and fully-drawn new characters to come along in recent years.

However, approaching the big climax, I got a little confused. Was it golems holding the train.bridge up or was it really magic fog? And it was kind of mean-spirited of the Patrician not to reward Moist at the end for, basically, saving civilization. There didn't seem to be enough of any of our favorite faces. On balance, I thought that Sir Terry was back to his old self, as I haven't thought he was for too many books now.

Vintage Pratchett! I love the use of language and the wonderful satire. When you have all that combined with characters that you have come to know and care about over the years it doesn't get any better. Thank you Sir Terry for sharing your art with us again.

Raising Steam is almost "vintage Pratchett," with many classic characters appearing (if only briefly, or referenced by other characters), many delightful puns and Terry Pratchett's usual warmth and love for his characters--despite his clear awareness of their faults and peccadilloes. Pratchett's ability to make engineering accessible to a wide audience is impressive; his ability to show how ideas build on one another, and how today's Dangerous New Innovation is tomorrow's Expected and Necessary Part of Life is a service to humanity! Only Pratchett, with his decades of established Discworld history, can make it fun to learn how national and world politics and economic policies derive from the far-fetched concepts hammered into being by ordinary people in ordinary sheds. I wish the book had been a little longer, in order to have allowed for smoother pacing: the last half seems as rushed as the frantic cross-Disc trip on the Iron Girder. But Pratchett has clearly lost none of his ability to enthrall, teach and entertain. Thanks for another good one, Terry!

pretty good yarn and I did learn some things about that period in history that I did not know, but I found the book to be a bit plodding - not exactly in the category of "Can't put it down." But all in all a fairly good read.

As some have critiqued this as "not funny" or "not humorous enough," it probably helps to understand what you are reading. Much like his later novels (Thud, Snuff, and even as early as Jingo), this is more than just a good story (and IMO, it is also that). It's a parable, written in what can only be Sir Terry's form - who else has such a command of vocabulary in popular novels?

It might also be his testament - meant to convey more than just a laugh at the antics off the watch, or the witches, or Nobby and Colon... Knowing what it probably took Pratchett in terms of effort to get this to press? I can not applaud his effort enough - which is why I didn't wait and paid what I regard as the scandalous kindle price for a newly released book.

A great author many of us have followed for quite some time is leaving us with a story that he seems to think is important. Some of the more negative reviewers here should pay attention to more than their sophistic disappointment that they didn't laugh enough.

This was one of my favorite Pratchett novels, which is amazing, because it's really not about much. The spoiler-free plot summary (for those who've read the previous books -- I'm assuming a lot of series knowledge here) is as follows: an unknown engineer figures out how to safely harness the power of steam, and the railroad comes to Ankh-Morpork. Moist von Lipwig is put in charge of managing the city's interests, while Harry King funds the construction of the track. A bunch of conservative, racist dwarves rebel against the Low King, and threaten to halt progress, burning down clacks towers and attacking the train. Vetinari needs the train to reach Uberwald on a tight deadline in order to stop the dwarf rebellion (and perhaps achieve some "diplomatic relations" with his vampire lady). So, as everything in Discworld goes, the progress of the train meets every sort of obstacle one can imagine, often including the people who are incompetently trying to help (e.g. the watch, with the exception of Vimes).

This isn't a good book for folks who have not at least read the Watch storylines, as a lot of the political import, as well as the self-referencing humor, will be lost on new readers. Nonetheless, this reads very much like a linear version of Snuff meets Making Money. Lots of Moist v. L. running around, sticking his fingers in the proverbial leaky dam, and lots of Vetenari orchestrating things behind the scenes, with a little Detritus cracking heads and goblins attacking private parts for good measure.

For those who have read all of the watch series and the Industrial Revolution books, this is a wonderful follow-up to both of those series. The humor is there, but Pratchett still manages to raise some tension, along with the steam.

Highly recommended.

Any discworld novel is a delightful, insightful escape. This one has many of the usual suspects and some similar adventures. It also brings up some issues that we here in "round world" need to deal with. What a great way to start the summer!

The last few Discworld books were not very good. This latest installment is an improvement although its still below average for the series. Its another Moist van Lipwig book, which generally entails introducing an aspect of the modern world into Discworld. In this case its trains. The antagonists are set in their ways dwarves, i.e. fundamentalists. Of course, a conflict arises between the two. Much like a train, the story chugs along and doesn't deviate off track. Even more than the prior Moist novels, it is the new invention, the train, that is the star of the story. There isn't much in new character development. Moist is already fleshed out and doesn't really change while the secondary characters don't stand out. However, the book recaptures some of the charm and energy that was absent from the past few volumes. Fans of Discworld and particularly the other Moist books won't be disappointed. Just don't start the series here.

Read it through in one sitting. Different from some of his other Discworld books in that the action takes place over the course of years, rather than months, but he pulls it all together. Great over-arching narrative of building a railroad, with storylines for some of our favorite Ankh-Morpork characters, and cameo appearances by several more. Moist von Lipwig, the Patrician, and Rhys Rhysson the Low King of the Dwarfs are big players, with some new and interesting additions.
The structure is episodic, which may be difficult for some. Get used to the idea that one episode ends and the next one may start a few months later, and no problemo. Think Dickens and you've got it. In fact, t's reminiscent of Dickens, in a good way. Echoes of Dombey and Son in the way Pratchett talks about the railroads, but you get the idea that Pratchett loves the trains, where Dickens just tolerates them.
Some other reviewers have complained that the Mean Old Publishers are forcing a sick man to write so they can get big bucks. I don't get that vibe at all. This book is from a man who loves to write and wants to tell as many stories as possible while he still can. Go for it, Sir Terry!. It's your life, and if you want to write, write!.

I loved coming back to the Discworld, and reading about many of the characters. The 4 stars are mostly earned by nostalgia.

Veterinari is horribly written, The tone is so different from the brilliant understatements he usually makes.
The story is just not very interesting, and the main "bad guy" is severely underdeveloped. It just feels like someone else besides Sir Pratchett wrote this.

At least it's not as horrible as the previous Discworld book. Damn Alzheimer...

Usually I rate Disc World with 5 stars. This tale is missing the usual sharp witted observations for which he is so loved. None the less, it is still a noteworthy Pratchian addition to the universe, the second last book in the series. He is keenly missed.

In this latest Discworld book, pTerry brings back Moist von Lipwig and Harry King as chief protagonists in this tale of steam locomotives. Aided by The Patrician, The Low King, and an unexpectedly large assist from the recently ascendant goblins, von Lipwig battles extraordinary logistics problems and a recidivist dwarvish community who lay most of their problems at the feet of Ankh Moorpark and upon Moist’s head as an accessible and vulnerable symbol thereof.

Self-taught engineer Dick Simnel solves the most fatal of issues with steam engines, and ushers in a new future on the Disc, and in doing so brings a host of problems to the surface as well. Harry King (at first) and Moist von Lipwig (shortly thereafter, following the usassailable logic provided by Lord Vetinari) guide and protect Mister Simnel along the path (one might say, rails) that Vetinari wants and needs.

Initially distinct plots quickly coalesce into a fast, absorbing and rollicking read that held me right on through the book. As usual with the work of the estimable Mister Pratchett, Highly Recommended.

This is the best Discworld book since Making Money. Admittedly, that is faint praise as the last few books have been very, very bad in my opinion. But I actually read this in one or two session because I was enjoying it. Most of the old gang puts in at least a token appearance, and there are some new and likeable denizens of Ankh-Morpork.

But when I finished, I felt a little sad. Because our old friends were all here, I felt like this was meant as a swan song, popping in to see how everyone is faring before the lights dim one last time. I console myself with the fact that if this is the end, then at least it's going out on a high note (had the series ended on the dreadful Snuff, I would've been very disappointed). And if it's not the end, well then, maybe there's still some life in the old Iron Girder after all. Here's hoping it's the latter.

The book itself is somewhat reminiscent of a steam train ride. It starts a little more ponderously than some Discworld books, gradually getting up to speed one chug at a time, and some readers seem to have had little patience for the slow build. The early portions of the book are spent mostly in slow, leisurely scene-setting and small vignettes that set up the plot. As always, there's a healthy dose of clever word play, stealth humor and brief visits with returning characters and minor plot points that help tide you over until the main plot really gets up to speed and barreling down the track. I'm a huge fan of the Watch, and many of my favorites make an appearance. A great many favorite dwarf characters also return.

Without revealing too much, there are a great many callbacks to previous books, and the long term consequences of events in many of those books come to fruition here. Pulling in that much world/character history without losing possible new readers takes some time and patience.

Once the plot starts moving, it really MOVES and makes up for the earlier "track laying" that was necessary to get things rolling. The latter third or so of the book wouldn't be completely out of place in a summer action movie, with a bit of political intrigue and derring-do on moving trains. The book is something of a love letter to steam trains in much the same way that Going Postal celebrated the simple connection and beauty of a hand-written letter, and Moist von Lipwig, while more settled, still flies by the seat of his pants when he must.

I'd read some negative reviews from people thinking that Sir Terry has slipped, what with needing to dictate now instead of typing. I didn't see any evidence of that. The story itself was along the lines of Going Postal - mimicking the development and inevitable growth of a basic service.

Fun book - if you're not a Discworld regular you might be less than interested, but if you are - then read this.

This book contains all the ingredients of a Terry Pratchett book; humor, metaphors, excitement and a nice ending without any cheesiness.
I liked the fact that there were so many discworld characters coming together in one story. What I didn't like was that I wasn't completely pulled into the story, I was able to put the book away.
This book can be recommended to everyone who likes reading and laughing (with some sadness between the laughing), even if you don't care about fantasy.

the story develops very slowly and it doesn't have the same "tension" as the early works. it feels like the author is running our of ideas so there are long sections of describing things rather than action

Longtime Discworld fans will find exactly what they are looking for here. As always, the characters are fascinating, and nothing is a simple allies-or-enemies situation. Even where you have Vetinari using the constant threat of returning Moist Von Lipwig to the hangman's noose, he also gives him considerable freedom to do his assigned tasks is his own inimitable way. Even the antagonists in the story, while nowhere near symapthetic characters, at least have an internally consistent logic in what they do, rather than the cliche "take over the world because I'm evil" you see in so many bad novels.

You also get a little more depth in the lore of the various races, and of course cameos from the extensive cast of the "watch" group. (Just a side note that it really helps keeps things fresh by having the books rotate between the "watch, witches, wizards" groups).

In short, like Discworld? Buy it :-)

I love Terry Pratchett's books for their skillful craft and humor. This latest installment in the Discworld canon is clever and engaging, if somewhat less funny than Pratchett's usual over-the-top, madcap flair. All in all, a pleasurable read.

I really like this book, mostly because it describes how the Discworld is evolving, and how people change with age and experiences. I tend to lose interest in books/series that are describing a fixed, rigid reality, but Sir Terry has managed to create a reality that is keeping my interest throughout, because he keeps changing the main characters the same way that people on Roundworld change.

... and I suspect "assisted" by someone in writing the story. This started a couple of titles back and seems to be part of a trend, the "Long" series is also associated with Sir Terry without showing even the tiniest sign of his wit - or indeed the tiniest sign of talent.

Until now I have automatically bought his books the moment they are avaialable, I guess it's time to stop dong that.

Another Terry Pratchett classic with Moist von Lipwig recruited by the Patrician--again--to keep the lid from blowing off this new invention and wreaking havoc among the dwarves and others. Oh, the grags are already wreaking havoc. Moist, the inventor, Harry King, other old friends, along with some new characters who've popped up, must work hard to keep things on track...

One of my favorite new characters is Iron Girder, the locomotive--and the inventor's favorite. (She was first.) And the golem horse gets a name and enjoys frolicking in green pastures, faithfully following Moist's orders to do so. This is another fun story that also looks at the ways that the ripples caused by new inventions and new ways spread. Highly recommended.

This is yet another great Discworld story by Sir Terry. Although the discworld has evolved over the years to where magic doesn't play as significant a role, the stories have not failed to continue to introduce and build on memorable characters and situations.
It is a place where many of the races have "moved-up in the world" and find acceptance in some quarters but still meet prejudice in others.
Technology too has advanced over the years and the Discworld now has a railway system with its queen, the locomotive Iron Girder - if you try to harm her, she may turn you into pink steam!
With all the changes to the Disc the Pratchett humor remains intact as does the wonderful story he so deftly weaves.
You'll love this book.

The book has most of your fav disc world characters and a wonderful theme, but the storytelling is a far cry from the TP I remember. Anyway, I read that others were ghost writing for him due to his Alzheimer's ... and it shows.

But for what it's worth , an average TP book is so much more enjoyable to me than the best works of other authors.

Thank you for the books, Sir.