The Wee Free Men

The late Sir Pratchett was a hero of mine. The Discworld universe is one of the most well-put-together, zany, yet relatable places. The amount of depth that he was able to achieve with a setting that others might consider a joke is astounding.

In order for a universe to connect with me, it has to have characters that I love dearly. Granny Aching and her granddaughter Tiffany are among the few literary characters that have ever brought me to tears on multiple occasions. I used to read this book to my students, and there is one scene in particular towards… show more.

I rarely laughed as much at an audiobook as I did at this one. At one point, I thought I was going to have to pull over to the side of the road because I was laughing so hard that it was getting dangerous!

The thing about Terry Pratchett is that he started out being very funny and then managed to become something even better–very funny and wise. I was listening to one of the later books in this series while driving with my wife, and I stopped the recording to say, “I think I want to fling myself out… show more.

Tiffany Aching comes from a long line of sheepherders and seems to be an ordinary 12-year-old – until the day she sees something odd in the water, goes home and fetches her mother’s frying pan, puts her baby brother next to the brook and clobbers the monster that tries to snatch him. Tiffany, it seems, is a witch, and not your average witch either. With the help of the Wee Free Men, “Pictsies” who refuse to bow to the rule of the Queen of Faerie, she must journey into that dangerous realm to rescue the son of the local baron… show more.

The Wee Free Men is a book of the Discworld novels created by Terry Pratchett. The Discworld is a flat disc carried on the backs of four massive elephants who stand on the back of the great turtle Atuin. The Discworld has humans, wizards, witches, and all manner of other creatures, including the tooth fairy and the luggage with a thousand tiny feet. It is a marvelous and imaginative, humorous series of books. I was most attracted to The Wee Free Men novel, which follows the life of a young witch that discovers a group of two to three-inch tall… show more.

Nine-year-old Tiffany Aching has a bothersome younger brother, and as the older sister to a younger brother myself, I sympathized with her troubles. Like Tiffany, I sometimes wished my brother would go away, but luckily my brother wasn’t kidnapped by the Queen of the Fairies, like Tiffany’s was.

I love her determination to get the boy back, even though her only weapons are a frying pan and her witchy skills… which are still shaky. I love that she finds allies to help her out, even though they’re just a clan of six-inch-tall blue men. Tiffany reminds me that we need… show more.

Tiffany Aching is such a fun protagonist. She comes armed with lethal common sense, a frying pan, and a horde of small blue men who think they’re already dead. The Wee Free Men links in smoothly with the other Discworld books, initiating Tiffany into the witching world with Pratchett’s incisive humour and heart. 

What Best of British Fantasy list would be complete without Terry Pratchett included? The biggest difficulty is knowing which book of his to choose. Now I must be totally honest; the first couple of times I tried Pratchett, I couldn’t get into the books at all. Why? I don’t know because this author is a god of writing. Quirky, interesting, and wickedly funny, the worlds and characters created by this author are exceptional. After much consideration I chose this book as the main protagonist, Tiffany, is bloody brilliant. She is the example of a female protag all girls should read.… show more.

This is the first book by Terry Pratchett I ever read, and it changed my life, simply because it got me into reading his other books. Terry Patchett is able to breathe life into his characters in such a way that you’d swear you know people just like them. Who hasn’t known a Nobby Nobs, or Tiffany Aching? Not to mention his world is built in such an intriguing way, you can’t help but read on!

This book, really all of the Discworld novels, acts as a mirror to see our own world through the lens of the fantastical and… show more.

I love all of Pratchett’s books. I love this one in particular. The storyline is insanely intriguing and more than tickles the imagination. I’m not sure what “more than tickling” is but I do know what it feels like!  The title characters – the wee free men – are, as far as I can tell, unrivalled in literature. Tiny, blue, drunken, thieving fairies (in the most diabolical sense of the word) who speak mainly in Scots swear words. 

Terry Pratchett is the author who has most influenced my own writing. He has taught me to stretch my imagination to the… show more.

This is an excellent book full of laugh-out-loud moments and unforgettable characters. The author has built an incredible world. The main character learns as much as she teaches, about inner strength. Like Fable Nation, this book will show you that you can overcome fears and insecurities by believing in yourself. The little blue folk that help our heroine discover her true potential are mischievous, hellions that not many authors have the courage to create. They are, without a doubt, some of the funniest characters I have ever read.