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What are readers saying about The Colour of Magic?
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-02-23 03:17:00.
(Language: English)
  
Terry Pratchett’s first Discworld novel is a wildly imaginative romp. The tale boils down to the following: a wizard who can’t do magic and a foreign tourist flee from one calamity to another across the disc-shaped world that rotates slowly on the backs of four huge elephants each of which is poised on an enormous intergalactic turtle. On the way, they escape city-consuming fires, meet dragons, and reach the edge of the known world. All of this is laid out at a frenetic pace, spiced up with biting wit and sly references to culture in our own dimension.
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A Reader posted a review at 2011-05-25 01:23:48.
(Language: English)
A good start
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-06-01 08:36:57.
(Language: English)
Pratchett's Discworld pushes the boundaries of imagination and wit so much so that you get the same feeling Rincewind probably got at the Circumference or maybe it was that feeling with the Hydrophobe wizards or...maybe it was what he felt with the Dragons or.. . See what I did there! I am not hooked enough to read the whole series but this ride was worth my time. I will definitely ride into Discworld again but for now... lot many authors' works left to taste.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-05-06 06:11:23.
(Language: English)
Certainly a good book and I see the similarities to Adams' Hitchiker's series, but I didn't feel that this one quite lives up to the comparison. The story was interesting enough, although confusing at times. But it just didn't have that same brilliant satirical humor that was present on nearly every page of the first Hitchiker's book. There were some laughs in there to be sure, but not enough to put this book alongside any of Adams' books.All in all, it was a decent read but nothing special and certainly not worth the hype I've heard from various sources.
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-09-03 05:24:59.
(Language: English)
Terry Pratchetts first novel in the Discworld series shows the sign of things to come. He paints an amazing world where anything can happen and where death stalks the streets of the desheveled town of Ankh-Morpork. The main characters are Rincewind the Wizard who only knows one spell.. there greatest spell of all that will not allow any other spell to have residence in his mind. Twoflower the Tourist.. a brilliantly written character who nieve travels throught the violent, two-timing and generally distrustful inhabitants of Ankh-Morpork lead to some brilliantly funny situation. And finally THE LUGGAGE. Made out of Sapient pearwood this homicidle piece of luggage follows the heroes around on there travels with the aid of several pairs of pink legs. All in all and amazing book that fuels your imagination and then takes it on a joy ride. Brilliant
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-10-19 10:56:03.
(Language: English)
This first one was hard to get into at the beginning, but after a while I couldn't stop reading!
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-05-20 11:11:06.
(Language: English)
terry had all these ideas in his head.. he blurted them all out in this 1st disk world book. far from his best, but he had to start somewhere. it's very crowded. most of the characters are now where near as lovingly developed as the latter novels. read it after you have read some of the others. i would not start here. pratchet has written much better books. but this story is fun.
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A Reader posted a review at 2011-04-26 05:27:15.
(Language: English)
My first Discworld book, so only saw fit to start from the start, was skeptical as many had told me it wasn't great. But I loved it and I plan to work my way through the rest of the series!
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Meghan posted a review at 2010-03-05 08:32:49.
(Language: English)
This is the first time I've read a book like this. It was full of imaginary creatures on the planet like wizards and trolls. I really loved how imaginative the author was. The book itself was easy to read and really moved fast. The book was in four different sections/storys and each one was as excellent as the other! I really enjoyed this book even though it was probably aimed at boys.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-11-25 04:15:11.
(Language: English)
I've been told of many years now that I have to read Terry Pratchett, and that he is one of the best fantasy writters of our time. So I gave him a go. The imatination in this book is amazing. How Practchett could come up with all thpse characters, settings and plots just in one book, I will never know. I do love to read this book, but if there is anything bad I can say about it, is that there are not enough chapters. I think there are two out of the whole book, and I'm the kind of person that likes to read a chapter or so just before i go to sleep or on the tram. Other than that, I think that this book is a must read, and mark it an amazing 10/10 :o
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-09-17 12:40:38.
(Language: English)
This is Terry Prarchett’s first Discworld novel: a series of comedic fantasy novels which are set in the flat world that is balanced on the backs of 4 elephants that in turn are standing on the back of the Great A’Tuin – a giant turtle that swims lazily through the void. He frequently borrows and/or parodies ideas from JRR Tolkein, Robert Howard, Lovecraft, Shakespeare as well as general myths, folklore and fairy tales and many more which are used to draw funny parallels in the story plots with current cultural, social, scientific, religious, technological, historical and so on issues. The Colour of Magic is the first book in this series but you don’t need to read it before reading any of the others – even though the books have characters (Corporal Carrott Ironfounderson and the witches etc) and places (like the Unseen Universcity) that show up again and again usually in the city of Ankd-Morpork (unlike the situation where all roads lead to Rome, this is the city where all roads lead away from because it is such a mess), they are standalone novels; you don’t miss the plot by not reading them in order. I find that as this was his first novel, its style is still not fully developed as in the other later books but it is fabulous none the less. For one thing, this is one of the few novels divided into chapters. This novel revolves around the character of Rincewind (possibly the world’s lousiest wizard) and parodies on the motifs of fantasy clichés, role playing games, tourism and insurance. Rincewind is a really unique and brilliant character – he is incompetent and cynical and repeatedly runs into tricky (hilarious) situations, especially as he is in the company of the naïve tourist Twoflower to whom he is (involuntarily) a guide. Of course we also encounter the character of Death, who ONLY EVER SPEAKS IN CAPITAL LETTERS and generally brings a philosophical aspect into the story. Personally I think this novel is really great because I love Terry Pratchett’s style; he writes in a light and yet descriptive tone that is really witty and clever. He has an amazing imagination! One thing that that definitely characterises his work is his use of footnotes that add notes full of trivia and side stories of “historical†information. One motif that Pratchett repeatedly mocks in his Discworld novels is that of government and social systems and this first comes to light in this novel. My personal favourites include the idea of addressing crime: every city has crime, so why not legalise crime and thereby allowing the Thiefs Guilde and the Assassin’s Guild to control theft and murder by allowing them a quota? Also, is democracy simply the replacement of one tyrant by voting for another tyrant? Does organized religion destroy the belief of the supernatural? And (especially in this novel) does insurance increase property damage? Ankh-Morpork is a brilliantly created city with equally as amazing and intricately created character that live in various neighbourhoods in various states of disgrace and awkwardness. Through Ankh-Morpork we have a filthy, disgustingly polluted river “flowing†– fishermen have to stomp on the hooks of their fishing rods to make them sink down in order to catch something that once resembled a fish of some sort. Pratchett is a master of detail. If you haven’t read any of the Discworld Novels, its time you started! Even if you don’t get hooked into reading all of them, reading one is definitely worth the time and you wont be disappointed or regret it!
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-05-23 05:36:33.
(Language: English)
when i first started this book, i wasn't really into it. i really kind of hate that whole faux-medieval, wannabe-tolkein dark ages thing most fantasy writers seem so enamored of. but, i'd heard a lot of praise for terry pratchett, and GOOD OMENS is probably my favorite book, so i slogged through, hoping it would get better. which, i'm happy to say, it did. i still really wish pratchett's disc world was not quite so ren fest-esque, but his characters and humor are worth putting up with it. i wasn't as completely entralled, couldn't-put-it-down into it as i am with some books, but i also wasn't terribly inclined to cheat on it by reading some true crime on the side or something (although, i do have to admit, there might have been a few comic books on the side... but i don't think those necessarily qualify as cheating). so, in short: disc world might be a little cliched, but i'm fairly certain it's calculated to be that way for later funny. the characters themselves also appear to be cliched on the surface, but as it turns out, they are nothing of the kind (they're probably closer to characters from THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE than to LOTR, even if they are wizards and heros and all that). so, pretty good, even if most fantasy novels kind of grate on your nerves (seriously, after the first chapter, you'll pretty much get over it).
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-08-30 11:20:14.
(Language: English)
"The Color of Magic" is the first of the Discworld series of books (as of 2006 there were 36 Discworld novels published) all of which helped make Terry Pratchett one of my favorite authors. In a real sense this is actually a series of short stories which introduce the setting of Discworld, and the characters of the under achieving wizard Rincewind, Discworld's first tourist, Twoflower (whose luggage is actually a reoccurring character as well and for whom Rincewind involuntarily finds himself as a guide to the many sights of the flat planet which sits on four elephant which themselves are standing on Great A'Tuin the space swimming cosmic turtle. The action of the story takes place on a world which is flat like a pancake, circled by a small sun and moon. The premise is that God (or the gods) of rational science after putting together the whole universe said "what the hey; I think I will have some fun! and brought into being a world which can only exist with magic. Thus magic runs everything. One of the ongoing jokes is that Rincewind is certain that there are other ways to achieve the ends that magic creates on his world. For example he thinks that the little black box which Twoflower uses to secure pictures may have glass that reacts to light in some chemical method (which he has only a hazy idea of how it would work), but he is disappointed to find out that instead there is an imp with an easel and paints who quickly illustrates anything which he sees through a small opeing in the front of the box. If all of this sounds vaguely familiar from some anthropology class it is meant to. Pratchett parodies epic fantasy, archetypes and mythic studies all at the same time he tells a very funny series of stories. My only complaint is that his ending is no ending at all but a overt "to be continue" which is continued in his next book "The Light Fantastic." I read this originally in the library back in Long Island but just read it again in the summer of 2006 when it was reissued in a collection of novels under the larger title "Rincewind the Wizard." For more information having to do with this extravagant and wonderful world of the imagination go to the Discworld Wiki located at http://wiki.lspace.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=The+color+of+magic&go=Go
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-01-20 11:25:07.
(Language: English)
The first in the Discworld series. We meet our first main protagonists (Rincewind, the failed wizard and Twoflower, a bumbling tourist) and follow them as Twoflower gets the two of them into more trouble than they can manage with imaginary dragons and the edge of the world. Pratchett uses this novel to set the scene wonderfully and from the very beginning illustrates the Discworld (which is set upon the back of 4 elephants standing on the back of a giant turtle swimming through space) wonderfully. I especially like the luggage and if anyone knows a good Sapient Pearwood dealer, I'll have one thanks. And it's good to see that reflected-sound-of-underground-spirits confuses more people than just me - I never fully understood that money business either. Read it if you want to know what the heck I'm on about.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-03-13 01:02:12.
(Language: English)
This was my first Discworld book. I had one false start when I thought "What the dickens is this" but it really did catch me - it also caught my father who at 87 is a huge fan and says that if a white horse and a man who speaks in capitals doesn't come for him then he isn't going!!" I love everything that Terry has written, I especially love Monstrous Regiment which made me laugh out loud on many occassions. Thank you Terry Pratchett for all of it and good luck.
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A Reader posted a review at 2011-09-10 09:14:32.
(Language: English)
The best of the Terry Pratchett Books I think. Terry did for fantasy, what Douglas Adams did for Sci-fi. Very funny.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-10-10 02:50:18.
(Language: English)
Like Douglas Adams did with science-fiction, Terry Pratchett takes the typical conventions of fantasy and turns them on their head for comic effect with his popular DiscWorld series. By having a slightly skewed view of fantasy conventions, Pratchett points out the strengths and the fallacies of the genre. And he always does it with a story that has more than its share of laugh out loud moments. Pratchett is also a master of construction language to come together in interesting ways. It's not just that what he says is funny, but it's how he puts the words together that is one of his great strengths. While not quite as pronounced or as memorable as Douglas Adam's ability to construction near perfect sentences that made you both laugh and think at the same time, Pratchett still does a great job. A lot of the DiscWorld stories are satires on modern life. By having things set in the universe of the fantastic where rules of magic exist, Pratchett is able to say things he might not normally get away with in conventional fiction. Oh and he also writes some pretty entertaining stories along the way. That said, Pratchett is an author who improves with age. And while the Color of Magic is his first DiscWorld novel, it's not exactly a great starting point to the series. Yes, the typical Pratchett elements are all here, but you can see Pratchett still honing his craft. The story is told in four blocks with the linking characters of Rincewind and Twofold as they tour across DiscWorld, having various adventures and running into trouble. It's a nice overview and quick tour of DiscWorld but it pales in comparison to later novels in the series.
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A Reader posted a review at 2011-08-02 05:31:44.
(Language: English)
Brilliant.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-01-06 06:21:21.
(Language: English)
I'm reading this book and had seen the TV-made of the book (which is disappointing). It's hilarious but I find Death difficult to like as when I was introduced to him, it was from the later discworld novels and he's more humane and less "evil" than when he's in Color of Magic. However I just love Rincewind and the luggage! This will be one of my favourites including others like The Thief of Time, NightWatch, Guards Guards and Making Postal to name a few. It would be better to read the later discworld novels first before attempting to read this though as it gets confusing for readers new to discworld books.
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Clare posted a review at 2009-11-15 05:57:38.
(Language: English)
I've only actually read the colour of magic so far but anyhow. It was so utterly confusing at first and it wasn't until I reached page 100 that I actually understood what was going on. I really enjoyed it after that, especially the bit titled The Sending of Eight. The dragons were pretty cool too but then I got to Close TO THE EDGE and that's when it got confusing again and I was trying to finish it extremely quickly. I might read the next discworld novel just to ssee if it's better, but I won't read it with relish.
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-10-04 03:36:47.
(Language: English)
Finally a worthy author for any Douglas Adams fan. I've been putting off reading the disc world series for years, and I'm sorry that i did it. If I had known how great all the books are I would have started reading them all long ago. The color of magic introduces you to the world of the disc, and its hapless protaganist Rincewind. As well as a ton of other character who will become the subjects of the other books. Pratchett writing is funny and clever. Very much like watch a good British Sitcom. Lots of plays on words and clever uses and observations of grammar.
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A Reader posted a review at 2011-02-05 06:42:45.
(Language: English)
"inn-sewer-ants"
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-10-07 11:53:25.
(Language: English)
The book isn't easily followable, but then again I don't think the author inteded for it to be so. Things go on in this book that will have you thinking, "What? Where did that come from." The person who gave me this book said that someone said that it was like The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and Monty Python, but I'd have to say that it's more of a Less-Serious Lord of the Rings kind of story, though it did have some rather random Monty Python moment like "Wizards can't say 'Eight' " "Oh why'd you have to mention the number between seven and nine, four plus four..." and he goes on. And nothing in this book is supposed to make sense either, so don't even think of trying to analyze it on a Douglas Adams level.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-08-11 05:19:12.
(Language: English)
This is where it all began for terry Pratchett and his discworld. The discworld is a series I love to dip in and out of. The books themselves can range from brilliance to inpenetrable bonkers and everywhere in between. At his best, Pratchett can have me bent double and crying with laughter. At worst I read from cover to cover and feel like I've just read the script for one of the wierder Simpsons episodes. Personal faves in the series include: Mort, Guards Guards and Maskerade to name a few. Oh and it's worth noting what someone said to me a while back, the latter ones aren't as good but are still fun if you're strike it lucky.
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Aaron posted a review at 2010-09-20 09:36:44.
(Language: English)
I had decided that I hated Discworld until I reached page 100 in "The Colour of Magic", where suddenly things became interesting. What was before page 100? Muck. What was after page 100? Three episodic adventures pertaining to Rincewind the alleged wizard and tourist Twoflower whose imagination is able to summon dragons (at least whilst visiting Wyrmberg). Only having read now the very first Discworld novel, I really don't see what all the hubward hubbub is 'bout. Granted, there were many curious novelties, witticisms, fantastical and cultural references, and weak attempts at humor. I do not find In-Sewer-Ants funny, neither do I find Echo-gnomics funny. I would however had found something really nasty said about taxes to be hilarious, such as Rincewind saying "Taxes? Of course! Ownership of anything is a damned fallacy!" Let's just stick with fantasy. No horrible intrusions from real life, please. I will say that I found Pratchett's metaphysical machinations interestingly elaborate, and I do wonder where he garnered such descriptions of the magical... I was somewhat offended at Pratchett's handling of Barbarians. I felt Hrun was a direct jab at Robert E. Howard. In the end, one fantasy is as asinine as the other, no matter how seriously it doesn't take itself. You may think that I'm too serious, and can't handle a joke. How would you feel if some jackass parodied Gandalf? And really, we have enough comical Conan emulators already. I believe that all of the hype set me up for being let down. I'm not a huge fantasy person, and it may be a while before I return to Discworld, though one day I shall return, to find if "The Light Fantastic" is worth damning. I will admit to feeling some weak draw here, but it seemed to fizzle out at the plunge over the Edge, where the novel simply ends. If I want to read something which does not conclude, simply ceases with printed words until the next installment, I'll go for Edgar Rice Burroughs.
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