I Shall Wear Midnight

This book is the third of what I see as a trilogy about Tiffany Aching growing into the responsibilities of being a witch, and this book engages with the downsides of it: when you're willing to do the things no one else is willing to do, but society needs done to keep going, then you might find yourself under a bit of suspicious from the rest of the community.

I really liked this. I enjoyed the second through fourth Tiffany books a lot, but this one was my favorite of all of them. It's the darkest, opening with a posse coming for a man, and Tiffany being the one who protects him even though he kind of deserves what he gets; when there are neglected children, only Tiffany stands up to protect them. As the old lord dies, Tiffany comes show more under suspicion, and suddenly finds herself at odds with her old boyfriend, the old lord's son.Pratchett is at his best when he uses the Discworld to shine a light on the issues of our world, the dimensions of power and prejudice, and this book is as strong an example of it as I've seen. While the City Watch novels let him explore state power, this explores the issues of social prejudice on a personal level; the Watch novels looked at those who directed the power, but Tiffany—for all her magical powers—is the person that power is directed against.

And yet, Tiffany keeps on going, because there are jobs to do, and is she doesn't do them, who will?

Marvelous stuff, if not perfect; the big bad, in particular, seems taken care of a bit too easily. But this book is the kind of magic ones goes to the Discworld for. Probably my favorite of the thirteen I've read, other than Jingo. show less

I am always amazed at how much folk wisdom Terry Pratchett can cram into a book, in this case even just the first couple of chapters. If you have not had the good fortune to read his Tiffany Aching series, do yourself a favor and rush out right now and get The Wee Free Men . Don't pause just because it is marketed as a Young Adult book, for you are only depriving yourself of a great literary treat. I Shall Wear Midnight is, in some ways, not quite as satisfying as its predecessors, because Tiffany is growing well into her role as the witch for the Chalk region and so there aren't quite as many discoveries for her to make (and us along with her). Nevertheless, she is a lovely character to know and a knowing character to love. I will show more definitely be re-reading this book someday.

2024-02-24 - That day would be today. And it is still as wonderful as the first time. show less

“I Shall Wear Midnight” does all the things that Terry Pratchet does well: it provides insights into human weakness, leavens them with hope and courage and spices them with a generous dash of humour.
What makes this an exceptional book, even for Terry Pratchet is the development of the young witch of the Chalk, Tiffany Aching. I confess to having fallen a little in love with Tiffany Aching in the previous books. She is brave, selfless and determined to do the task in front of her even when the task is immeasurably bigger than she is.
This is the book where Tiffany grows up. There is almost a sense that Pratchet is saying goodbye to her and launching her into her adult life. In this book, Tiffany comes to understand that doing the show more right thing is a choice that may set her so far apart that she may have no route to a normal happy life. She also starts to see the danger that what starts as setting yourself apart can become setting yourself above.
Although other witches appear in this book and the Wee Free Men are still at her side at all times, especially when she’s ordered them not to be, the evil threat in this book is one that Tiffany must face alone. It is, essentially a test of her own ability to choose to not to give in and become something monstrous.
The threat comes from an entity created and sustained by hate. It spreads hate like a contagion, changing normal individuals into a vengeful mob. Pratchet highlights our ability to hate and fear categories of people in the abstract even when we do not apply the hate to individuals in that category that we know. It counter-poses female “headology” – getting on with all the mundane or unpleasant things that make life work, with male “theology” that provides a model of who to hate and who to punish.
In the end it tells us that fear and anger blind us, allowing hate to bind us. Our protection is not just “First Sight and Second Thoughts” but the ability to reach out to others and build trust and affection that hate cannot break.
The title of the book “I shall wear midnight” highlights another strong theme in the book: doing things in their right season. Tiffany Aching pushed herself to be a witch of the Chalk when she was still a child. Her childhood was the price she paid for that. Yet Tiffany declines to wear black, Tiffany wants to join in the dance of life, Tiffany is willing to die to protect what needs to be protected but she’d rather live and love and grow. During this book Tiffany understands that not only that she can be a witch and still be a woman but that being a woman will make her a better witch. She will grow old and die. But not yet. She will wear midnight when she is old but today she is young and she is taking her time in the sun.
It is the ability to weave these messages into a book that is funny and exciting and easy to read that sets Terry Pratchet apart as a unique voice. show less

Let me preface this by saying that this is my first Tiffany Aching story and since it's the end of her story, it's a rather peculiar place to be in.
This book is not what I expected it to be, not by a long shot. I said no spoilers so let's just sum this up by saying that Tiffany is a witch and as such her job is to take of people nobody takes care of. It's a really sad book because Pratchett confronts death and suffering in a way I've personally never encountered before in his books. Sure, Death as a character makes regular appearances in Discworld and even has his own books (Mort, Reaper Man, etc) but I Shall Wear Midnight really looks at death in the face, and it ain't pretty. There's a passage involving blue-eyed cats that I won't show more talk about but which I found deeply striking. I know a lot of people will link this to Pratchett's recent medical condition (he's suffering from Alzheimer) but I don't believe things are quite so neat so I won't venture there. It would be downplaying the great imagination this fabulous author has.

This book is not humourless but it's not a funny book either. It wraps up Tiffany's story in a way that reminded me of traditional coming-of-age stories, which is both a good and a not-so-good thing. It even had moments of brilliance that reminded me, strangely enough, of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (the character of the Duchess in I Shall Wear Midnight reminded me of the Queen of Hearts in Alice). I didn't fall in love with Tiffany the way I did with Death, who remains my favourite Discworld character. She has so much to do and such responsibility it was very hard to see her go through all this on her own.

So, despite all this, why did I choose to give I Shall Wear Midnight four stars? I think it's a very mature book by the issues tackled (domestic violence is brought in as soon as in the first chapter, for example, pain is everywhere and talked about beautifully) and it remains a Terry Pratchett book. Terry Pratchett is the warmest author I know and his characters and words are all deeply endearing. The plot itself may have been very flawed but I Shall Wear Midnight is still a really good book, and an important one at that. I personally found it extremely moving in a way I wasn't expecting it to be. I'm very glad I own a copy - it's not a cheerful book, but it's a very realistic one and I applaud Terry for that, it must have taken great courage to write I Shall Wear Midnight and it showed me a whole new aspect of Pratchett, which completes my already-superlative opinion of him. show less

Tiffany Aching is now 15 and a witch in her own right, with her own steading on her home turf of the Chalk. And she has to deal with everything that comes with being a witch -- everything from delivering babies and cutting toenails to dealing with domestic abuse and diverting a mob from killing a man. When an ancient evil threatens her and her people, she must face it -- with the help of the Nac Mac Feegle, of course, even if only indirectly.

The darkest of the Tiffany Aching books so far, this is grown-up Tiffany, even if she's only 15, facing her fears, doing what's right, and also learning when to ask for help. 5 stars.

I first met Discworld's withes with the "headology" expert Granny Weatherwax. I am glad to see Pratchett continues to flesh out these commentators on human nature with Tiffany Aching, who is now fifteen years old and getting on with the hard work of being a witch. Being a witch, she is also a caregiver, toenail-cutter, and more who helps new mothers learn to parent and fights back against domestic violence and child abuse. Pratchett goes there but still manages to keep it light and witty. The rowdy presence of Chalk's Clan of Nac Mac Feegles (an army of tiny, blue, rowdy, drunken and vaguely Scottish 'pictsies') helps.

Whenever I think about the very likely odds that I could have gone my entire life without reading anything by Terry Pratchett but Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, I feel again grateful to my friend who pressed a copy of The Wee Free Men into my hands and made it absolutely impossible for me to not read it.

One of Pratchett's many gifts is being able to balance very dark topics with the nigh-slapstick humor of the Feels, somehow without cheating either. But even though that's been a constant feature of the Tiffany Aching books, this volume still feels like a notable turn into darker territory. The anti-witch prejudice being raised by a mysterious evil is so terrible. And yet it is met in the book by show more Tiffany and her well of empathy that seems to grow impossibly deeper all the time. It has so much to say about all the blind and lazy prejudice and hatred in the world, and somehow forgiving people and persevering through it.

Not to say that compassion always comes easy for Tiffany. She struggles with her calling and the thanklessness of much of her work and feeling alone. Which just makes her feel more real.

I continue to love these books show less