Escape Artists
Escape Pod => Science Fiction Discussion => Topic started by: wherethewild on June 10, 2007, 06:34:19 PM
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Okay broadly-read-public, I need to find books for a friend who adores Terry Pratchett but has just about run out of new ones to read. Douglas Adams is already used up and Jasper Fforde was slightly too tough in English (she´s german and would like to read English rather than translated versions).
Any suggestions?
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I've heard good things about Robert Rankin, though i've never actually read any of them myself.
His books might be worth a go.
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Rankin is similar to Pratchett in some ways, and different in others. His books tend to be more rooted in British culture - though not to the degree where a non-Brit can't understand it (though I did need to consult with British friends every so often). He also tends to be a lot more explicitly sexual, though in a funny way. What his books really lack is the basic humanism that Pratchett infuses in all his books. Pratchett's books (as a group, some are more successful than others) tend to be both funny and have a message. Rankin is only interested in making you laugh.
Rankin has a lot of books that form sequences, but they really can be read in any order. I'd say it's worth trying.
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rankin is reeealy good
start out with "Nostradamus ate my hamster" its one of his best and stands alone (ish) from his other sequences
if youre frend is a big pratchet fan she migt be intrested to know that he loves robert ranking
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Okay broadly-read-public, I need to find books for a friend who adores Terry Pratchett but has just about run out of new ones to read. Douglas Adams is already used up and Jasper Fforde was slightly too tough in English (she´s german and would like to read English rather than translated versions).
Robert Asprin's Myth series is fun. I don't consider it quite up to Pratchett's standards, but it has a devoted following.
Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys is also rather funny. More so than most of his other books.
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The Myth series is pretty good, though I agree with Steve that it's not quite up to Pratchett's normal standards. I'm currently starting book 8 (there are about 18 as far as I know). In America, at least, you can now get the first 12 books in two collections of 6 each - those are a very good deal, and here in New York they can be found on the shelves of every major bookstore.
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Thanks! I´ll pass them along (and check out a few myself).
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Sean McMullen's Moonworlds Books (Voyage of the Shadowmoon, Glass Dragons, Voidfarer) aren't exactly comic fantasy, but they're funny in many places and very engaging, more so than much of the "serious" fantasy I've read. The second book has some especially-amusing moments.
If you can get your hands on a cheap copy, Eve Forward's "Villains By Necessity" has some amusing bits as well.
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Piers Anthony's Xanth series isn't nearly as meaningful as the disc world, and he's a dirty old man, but it's pretty light humor and an easy read. There are, however, a lot of puns that may or may not be a put-off to a non-native English speaker.
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Piers Anthony's Xanth series isn't nearly as meaningful as the disc world, and he's a dirty old man, but it's pretty light humor and an easy read. There are, however, a lot of puns that may or may not be a put-off to a non-native English speaker.
Yeah, I've read some Piers Anthony books -- Incarnations of Immortality, the novelization of the Total Recall film, and Firefly (no relation to the show). I wasn't blown away by any of them, though they were all fairly enjoyable reads.