The Discworld Emporium

This is a fun little companion guide to the Discworld series, designed in a way to assist newcomers with a visit to the city of Ankh-Morpork. I love books like this where there's a lot of creativity in the layout and design of the book that adds extra flavor to the text. This comes with an absolutely massive map - very detailed on one side, less so on the other. There are guides to different guilds, places to eat, places to stay, laws to avoid breaking, and a general directory of services available. The amount of thought that went into this book is really amazing. It helped add some depth to my recent re-read of The Colour of Magic. Definitely something to check out if you're a big fan of the series, or you like fantasy guide books, etc.… (more)

This is a "Terry Pratchett Presents" book, which indicates that it's one of the Discworld offshoots (from the book "Raising Steam") and written by others in the Discworld Emporium collective. It's no bad thing for all that, and presents a nice little addendum that is actually more absorbing than such a slim book could usually warrant.

Written by one Mrs Bradshaw, this is a traveliing guide a la Bradshaws, Lonely Planet etc, which gives a description of the various stops along the line and a brief summary of the guest houses, primary local events etc. I have seen some complaints about how boring it is to get the same repatitive style of 2 line entries for each stop across the line, but this is a throwback to the types of travel guides I was brought up with, long before the internet allowed to you to compile your own travel guide!

This has maps and pictures galore! It's easy to skim pages, but you run the risk of missing the odd fabulous joke lurking in the middle of the page - the Effing Great Tit, an inhabitant of Effing Forest, being one such example.

You will either love this book or think "why did I spend my time"?… (more)

Excuse me but why are you reading this? I presume you fall into one of two groups if you've found your way to this "review".

The first would be someone who has no idea about Discworld. If that applies to you then go away or I shall taunt you a second time (apologies for mixing).



This is not the book you are looking for (yeah, I did it again... shut it).

The second would be someone who does know about Discworld. If that applies to you then congratulations!

As others have written, this is not a book meant to be read cover-to-cover like a work of fiction.



Yes, I know it's a work of fiction. Shut it.

If one has any interest in visiting Ankh-Morpork then this would be a useful guide. It's also chock full of information about the city and if you are a Discworld enthusiast then this will add fun commentary to a place you've read about numerous times.

And the map... bloody heck. This map is a work of art and it's ginormous front-and-back.

To be serious once (and only once), I recommend this book to anyone who is a Discworld fan. I was able to find a new book at an excellent price.… (more)