Other children get given xylophones. Susan just had to ask her grandfather to take his vest off. Yes. There's a Death in the family. It's hard to grow up normally when Grandfather rides a white horse and wields a scythe - especially when you have to take over the family business, and everyone mistakes you for the Tooth Fairy. And especially when you have to face the new and addictive music that has entered Discworld. It's lawless. It changes people. It's called Music With Rocks In. It's got a beat and you can dance to it, but...It's alive. And it won't fade away.
Reviews
When Death takes a holiday-literally-from his job of cutting lifethreads on the planet known as Discworld, it falls to his granddaughter Susan to fill, however reluctantly, his position. Simultaneously, a fortune-seeking bard discovers a magical instrument and proceeds to revolutionize music on a worldside scale, unmindful that his own life is scheduled for an abrupt ending. Pratchett's continuing comic fantasy saga reaches new heights-or depths-in his latest incarnation. Filled with genuine humor that runs the gamut from slapstick to subtle, this most recent effort by the author (along with Neil Gaiman) of Good Omens (Berkley, 1992) is a good choice for fantasy colections.
Nepotism is given an unusual spin in Pratchett's 14th Discworld novel, as Death's granddaughter picks up the scythe when the Grim Reaper takes a vacation. Trolls, dwarves, magicians and rock music‘music played with rocks‘figure in this amusing but overlong romp, which begins with the formation of a band by aspiring musician Imp y Celen (aka Buddy). Arriving in the city of Ankh-Morpork, Buddy finds a magical guitar which enables the group‘a rock-playing troll, an ax-wielding dwarf and an Orangutan pianist‘to drive crowds wild. But the instrument causes conflict between the motley crew and Susan, Death's granddaughter, who is just adjusting to her new post. Many of the ensuing comic situations involve Death trying to get drunk, though Pratchett's liberal application of jokes scores as many misses as hits. Extraneous plot information slows the pace as the narrative rattles to a colossal, albeit uninspired, conclusion. Science Fiction Book Club main selection. (Feb.)
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Reviews
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Music with rocks in it? Death taking a holiday from snipping life-threads? Trolls, dwarves, magicians and an orangutan that plays the organ?
Yep, and this is all squashed into the awesome Soul Music, by Terry Pratchett. This colossal novel takes you on a wild romp around Pratchett Planet – Discworld.
The definition of a “normal upbringing’ is buried six feet under in Pratchett’s 14th Discworld novel. Susan, who recently finds out that Grandfather (who wields a grave scythe and rides a white horse, named Binky) has handed down the family business. You’ve got it - a Death in the family is born.
Susan was starting to enjoy this ominous role, until a new-fangled and addictive form of music collides with the Discworld, bestowing demolition on those that listen. It’s alive, and is conjured up by a rock-playing trolls, an ax-wielding dwarf, and an aspiring artiste named Buddy. It’s lawless, and is known as music with rocks in it.
Black humor and puns galore invade this toe-tapping, finger snapping tale, which will leave you grinning ghoulishly from ear-to-ear.
One of the most famous of the Discworld novels (or at least famous to me, as I saw the cartoon series of it as a youngling.. I perfer the novel), this a a great story and the first one, I believe, to have featured Death's grand-daughter Susan, who does show up in Discworld novels later on down the track also. Another feat for Pratchett, this book is great, and guaranteed to make you smile.
I truly enjoyed this first view of Susan Sto Helit, orphaned child or our favourite characters from Mort. I loved watching her deal with an inheritance that includes helping people depart their earthly coil. However, the band weren't very interesting, the wizards seemed completely unrealated to the plot, and, in case no one else has noticed, after this book we never here of Imp y Celon/Buddy again. Sorry, but I didn't much like this.
What a laugh! With a troll "on a mission from Glod" and a leather coat studded with "Born to Rune", this is another wonderfully fun romp across Discworld! With Death off 'trying to forget', the hole left by his departure is filled with Susan, an 'ordinary' girl who is sort of related! My favourite characters though, are the band, the singer keeps being mistaken for Elvish, and the roadie is called Ashpalt.
As I am a musician, I loved this book immensely. The quirky twists that Pratchett places upon this book are great. "Soul Music" introduces Susan, Death's granddaughter, who has to take on the family business. Growing up, I would have loved the talents that Susan had - being able to be invisible when needed, calling up skeletal horses on demand.... It just has to be read to be believed.
Despite the cover image and this being a "Death" novel if you came in expecting another story like "Reaper man" you are going to be very disappointed. This is more of a story about Susan Sto Helit and "music with rocks in it" which is fine and all but this is not what you expect for a book with Death riding a motorcycle on the cover.
In a similar fashion to the Hollywood-themed "Moving Pictures" (the tenth Discworld novel), those who enjoy "Soul Music" the most will be anyone with sound knowledge of popular music. Half the fun with this book involves spotting the musical references - from the obvious to the obscure - that Pratchett has threaded through his story. Speaking of which, "Soul Music" is another Discworld classic. Death steals the show, with attempts to get drunk and join the Klatchian Foreign Legion, leaving granddaugter Susan to weild the scythe. Meanwhile, a musical craze is spreading across the Disc and even the Wizards of Unseen University are cutting loose. Read it while listening to Led Zeppelin or the Who - "Soul Music" will rock your socks off.
While not Practhett's best work Soul Music is still very much worth a read, we start to see Death's transformation beggining in this book and in Mort as Death was a bad guy in the first few Discworld novels. in this he is cast in a far more sympathetic light as he takes on more human traits. We also see the arrival of Susan Sto Helit, Death's granddaughter who should be held up as a role model for young women (and men for that matter) everywhere.
This time it's all about rock and roll and even the wizards can't resist the music. This is a must read for all Discworld fans as well as anybody who has even a remote interest or appreciation to music. Highly recommended for all Discworld fans or for anybody who is looking to get a good laugh.
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