The second novel in the Discworld series is more of a 'The Colour of Magic II' since it not only finishes what it started but is also similar in tone and style (and thus quite different than the rest of the series). ( )

Since The Colour of Magic ends with a rather literal cliffhanger, I felt compelled to reread this one and bring Rincewind and Twoflower to the end of their adventures. In some ways this second Discworld book is slightly better than the first; you can already see the gears turning as Pratchett starts to get a feel for the sheer scope of the satirical possibilities offered by the Discworld.

One thing I have always enjoyed about these books is Pratchett's ability to create, right in the middle of relentless streams of hilarity, great characters that you actually care about. I think it's in this book that this really happens for the first time - at some point you start rooting for Rincewind and Twoflower (and of course, the Luggage) instead of just laughing at them. Surprisingly, instead of ruining the joke it makes the funny parts cut deeper.

Recommended to those who liked The Colour of Magic, or to veteran Discworld readers who want to revisit the beginning. ( )

QAnother story starring Rincewind, twoflower and the homocidle Luggage and another story where pratchett does what he does best, make you laugh. Rincewind is one of my favourite pratchett characters alongside death and granny weatherwax and this story is rincewind, the cowardly hero, at his best. ( )

This was one of those works that I found difficult to put down once I read the first couple pages. The Light Fantastic is the second offering in Pratchett’s Disc World Series and if anything, it is even better than the first. I first read this one as a stand alone, before I read any of the other books in this series, and found it held up well. I would suggest the first book in the series be read first, but it is certainly not necessary.
I am not going into the plot of this one at any depth as there are quite a number of very good reviews here that have done an outstand job of that already. Briefly though, this follows the adventures of a very inept wizard, Rincewind, the first evolved tourist on Disc World, Twoflower, and Luggage. Rincewind is a failed wizard, a coward and an actually rather likeable scoundrel. Twoflowers is the prototype tourist which can be found anywhere in our own world at any tourist destination and Luggage is Twoflower’s, well…luggage; a loyal trunk that follows its owner everywhere, through think an thin. This book is an account of their adventures while saving Disc World, a world held up by a giant turtle with giant elephants standing on her back, from complete destruction by crashing into a wondering star.

The story line, as with all of Pratchett’s work, is only the tip of the iceberg as far as reading pleasure goes. There were very few pages to this work that did not bring on a slight giggle, belly laugh or, at the very least, a smile. This author has humans pegged perfectly and through his humor, is able to make quite profound observations of the general overall human condition. The author has the ability to tell a rousing story while poking a bit of fun at just about everything. In this novel we meet Cohen the Barbarian, a wonderful take off on the original Conan, and a number of other very recognizable characters inhabiting our culture. I suppose the primary thrust of this work is to make light of the Conan type genre of literature, from The Hobbit to Conan to any number of other works of this order.

Read these books closely. The word play is a major part of the enchantment of this author’s work and can easily be missed if you go too fast. It, the word play, is an absolute delight! Wit and satire are this authors greatest strengths and when you mix those with his imagination and story telling abilities, you have a wonderful entertaining and educational read.

I very much enjoyed Pratchett’s humor, story telling ability and quirky outlook on life. I suppose these novels are not for everyone, but I certainly enjoyed this one. Like another reviewer here, Luggage was my favorite character, followed closely by Cohen.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks ( )

In The Light Fantastic, the failed wizard Rincewind and his tagalong tourist Twoflower get caught up in another adventure. As a youngster, Rincewind had stolen a glance at the powerful spellbook known as the Octavo (because it contains eight Spells), and one of the spells had hopped right into his mind and resisted all efforts to extricate it. This had the effect of making it impossible for any other spells to stick in Rincewind's head, and this had the effect of making him quite possibly the Discworld's worst wizard ever. But now the Spell is needed. The magic is draining from Discworld as Great A'Tuin moves nearer and nearer a dangerous red star that looks like it is going to crash into the disc. In the meanwhile, an unscrupulous and aspiring young(ish) wizard named Trymon is intent on getting his hands on the Octavo's power. Good thing it only has seven Spells in it!

Along Rincewind's madcap path we meet such characters as Cohen the Barbarian, who was a legend in his own lifetime and now, old and decrepit, has been a lifetime in his own legend; Lackjaw the Dwarf, who makes the Disc's first set of dentures out of diamonds; Bethan, who was being offered as a virgin sacrifice to placate the star, and who was most indignant when she was rescued; and Herrena, who is a female warrior who does not wear armor that sexily exposes half her body. And where would Twoflower and Rincewind be without the Luggage? In this story, the Luggage is officially made over to Rincewind when Twoflower decides he wants to go back home. It's apt.

This one wasn't as funny as some of the other Discworld books have been. But it was still an enjoyable read. ( )