Going Postal: Summary and book reviews of Going Postal by Terry Pratchett, plus links to an excerpt from Going Postal and a biography of Terry Pratchett.
Going Postal A Discworld Novel
by Terry Pratchett
Hardcover: Sep 2004,
320 pages.
Paperback: Oct 2005,
400 pages.
Arch-swindler Moist Van Lipwig never believed his confidence crimes were hanging offenses -- until he found himself with a noose tightly around his neck, dropping through a trapdoor, and falling into ... a government job?
By all rights, Moist should have met his maker. Instead, it's Lord Vetinari, supreme ruler of Ankh-Morpork, who promptly offers him a job as Postmaster. Since his only other option is a nonliving one, Moist accepts the position -- and the hulking golem watchdog who comes along with it, just in case Moist was considering abandoning his responsibilities prematurely.
Getting the moribund Postal Service up and running again, however, may be a near-impossible task, what with literally mountains of decades-old undelivered mail clogging every nook and cranny of the broken-down post office building; and with only a few creaky old postmen and one rather unstable, pin-obsessed youth available to deliver it. Worse still, Moist could swear the mail is talking to him. Worst of all, it means taking on the gargantuan, money-hungry Grand Trunk clacks communication monopoly and its bloodthirsty piratical head, Mr. Reacher Gilt.
But it says on the building neither rain nor snow nor glo m of ni t ... Inspiring words (admittedly, some of the bronze letters have been stolen), and for once in his wretched life Moist is going to fight. And if the bold and impossible are what's called for, he'll do it -- in order to move the mail, continue breathing, get the girl, and specially deliver that invaluable commodity that every human being (not to mention troll, dwarf, and, yes, even golem) requires: hope.
It's been a long time since I laughed as much reading a book as I did reading Going Postal. Actually, to be totally accurate, I didn't read Going Postal, I listened to the excellent 12 hour audio book read by Stephen Briggs. Going Postal is Terry Pratchett's 29th book in the Discworld series but there's absolutely no need to have read anything else in the series to appreciate this wonderful satire of the postal service, corporate corruption, stamp collecting and so much else. (Reviewed by BookBrowse Review Team).
Booklist - Regina Schroeder
Instead of revisiting old characters, Pratchett again takes on the task of further rounding out his already beautifully imagined Discworld, doing it with his usual blending of good laughs and unexpected depths.
Publishers Weekly
Thanks to the timely subject matter and Pratchett's effervescent wit, this 29th Discworld novel may capture more of the American audience he deserves.
Kirkus Reviews
Pratchett satirizes the modern telecom business in a deeply satisfying comedy about a man sent to a fate worse than death the post office....Sharp-edged humor-and wonderfully executed.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by Cheryl Another winner There is no such thing as a bad book by Terry Pratchett. Every one is a laugh out loud adventure. Going Postal is no exception. I enjoy reading Mr. Pratchett's work tremendously and constantly keep an eye out for anything new. I have read... Read More
Rated of 5
by Dion
Well I did it, went out and bought the book and oh my, I could not put it down. Filled with the expected Pratchett wry wit, he has become even more scathingly satirical of modern life is this latest installment of the Discworld series. Introducing... Read More
Review (not rated)
by Dion
Unlike some people *looks above* I am not so ignorant as to rate a book without actually reading it. So here is what I will do. Tomorrow I will cheerfully purchase this book in total confidence as pratchett has not yet written anything that was not... Read More
Review (not rated)
by Liz
I only read the excerpt and rated it poor. Maybe if read more it would not seem so weird.
A blistering gangster noir meets howling absurdist comedy as the forces of good square off against the forces of evil, and only an unassuming clockwork repairman and an octogenarian former superspy can save the world from total destruction.
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(157 words).
Booklist - Regina Schroeder
of 5
by Cheryl
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