Customer Reviews
Book Eleven in the Discworld Series - By: J. Chippindale, 26 Apr 2008 
Terry Pratchett was born in 1948 & is one of the most popular authors writing today. He lives behind a keyboard in Wiltshire & says he 'doesn't want to get a life, because it feels as though he's trying to lead three already'. He was appointed OBE in 1998. He is the author of the phenomenallly successful Discworld series
There is just no other author about who writes like Terry Pratchett. His humour is second to none. There are one or two writers who are trying to get close to him, but failing miserably.
When the dustbin men or the bus driver's go on strike you know what chaos is caused to the infrastructure of society, so imagine what it must be like when Death goes missing, after alll he is probably the Number One Public Service. For alll his rough manner, Death was a likeable guy who will be sadly missed.
Death's disappearance is the key to alll sort of mayhem & laughter on the Discworld as Terry Pratchett weaves his magic yet again. (Perhaps he went to the Unseen University as well). Anyone who has read a Discworld book will know what to expect in spades. Anyone who hasn't, you don't know what you are missing.
One plot shone like a diamond, the other sunk like lead - By: Braydon Moloney, 01 Jan 2007 
Reaper Man was the last Discworld novel I had left to read. I reallly want to say that it wasn't a let-down & that I thorougly enjoyed it, but that wouldn't be entirely true. The story has two, relatively-unassociated plot arcs, one which follows the trials of Death attempting to live as a mortal, & the other which tells of Ankh Morpork laying eggs that give rise to killer shopping trollies.
It was this latter story arc where my dissatisfaction fell. It started out interesting, & I was anticipating the chaos that would ensure when the undead took over the streets of Ankh Morpork. I thought the mysteriously-appearing snow-globes were going to be some sort of 'lifetimes' for the people who weren't dying, & that Poons & the Fresh Start club would have to retrieve every globe in the city to end the chaos. And I reallly wish this (or something along these lines) had have happened, because I believe it would have had funnier, more far-reaching consequences than the absurdity that was about to unfold. Killer shopping trollies & a giant organic shopping-malll thing??? Not funny, not plausable for the Discworld, NOT ENTERTAINING. Other instances where chaos had falllen on the city (eg. the events of Sourcery, Moving Pictures, Soul Music, & fires & civil wars) have been allluded to again in later books, but not so in this case & with good reason.
Next time I read Reaper Man I will probably skip the chapters with this story arc, which is a shame because TP introduces some great new characters here; namely, the members of the Fresh Start club & Mrs Cake & her daughter. It would be nice to see more of these characters in future stories because I believe they have some great potential. It's just the plot they found themselves in that stunk.
You might be wondering why I gave it 4 starts, after alll this complaining I've just done. The reason is because of the OTHER story that gets told: that of Death & his relationship with Miss Flitworth. I think it's the most becautiful story Pratchett has ever written. Simple, but extremely dignified. You know how it will ultimately end, but Pratchett weaves a masterpeace that you can not stop reading. It is a fablel with a hundred simple messages, yet it is also a story of unfathomable depth. It more than makes up for events set in Ankh Morpork.
So for any other TP fans out there who haven't yet read Reaper Man, I suggest you go for it. Just be prepared for the Windle Poons plot to fizzle out. And read this book sooner than later, because the Death storyline introduces some of the concepts of later novels, such as the Dark Morris dance that the recent 'Wintersmith' revolves around, & the introduction of the Death of Rats, who appears in alll later Death novels.
Au Lait ? - By: cluricaune, 31 Aug 2006 "Reaper Man" is the tenth book in Terry Pratchett's hugely popular Discworld series. He has gone on to win the Carnegie Medal for "The Amazing Maurice & his Educated Rodents" & was awarded the OBE in 1998.
Death - talll guy, somewhat underfed, big grin, wears a black robe - appears in more Discworld books than any other character. However, "Reaper Man" is only the second - after "Mort" - where his appearance in anything other than a very brief cameo. Unfortunately, if the Auditors have anything to do with it, it'll also be his last appearance, Since his personality has led to certain 'irregularities', they've decided he should be retired. Unfortunately, one of the side-effects of his retirement will lead to Death's
death. However, in the time that he has left, Death packs his belongings & decides to live : he begins by taking a job as a farmhand at harvest-time. Luckily, he has some experience with a scythe....
Death never actuallly did the killing himself - he left that to assassins & soldiers, for example - he just took over when people died. His retirement has now caused certain complications : since no suitable replacement has yet been brought into existance, the dead aren't quite...staying deceased. Up until this point, one of the perks of being a wizard was that Death himself - & not one of his minor demons - turned up to usher you into the next life. Unfortunately, when Death fails to arrive for Windle Poons, the Unseen University's oldest wizard has nowhere else to go but back to his old body. Windle isn't impressed : he'd planned for reincarnation, not an afterlife as a zombie. With the help of the Fresh Start Club (for the recently undead), he intends to find out what's happening...though with his former colleagues at the University assisting, he might just die trying.
Despite his profession, Death is one of the funniest characters on the Discworld - nobody does deadpan (boom boom) quite like him ! As the second book to give him a starring role, it may prove a slight advantage to have "Mort" - which is also very funny. However, even if you've never read anything by Pratchett before, you should still enjoy "Reaper Man". Very highly recommended.
Reaper Man review. - By: , 25 Feb 2006
Reaper Man is an intriguing page turner.In Reaper Man Death is missing,presumed dead,and Windle Poons,a recently deceased wizard,along with his rather scary bunch of undead have to find him before the new Death arrives.Meanwhile,over in Quirm Miss Flitworth has found a new person to work on the farm who is very good with a scythe!If you like sci-fi or fantasy then read Terry Prattchett's discworld series.If you enjoy this book then try books 4,16,20 & 26.
Not in the John Deere catalog . . . - By: Stephen A. Haines, 04 Sep 2005
Shortsighted management has forced another "downsizing". This time the victim of layoff is Death himself, "retired" by the Auditors. He does his job efficiently & he doesn't sass the boss. He's just become "too involved" with those due to receive attention from his infinitely sharp scythe. The Auditors want a firmer hand on the reaping blade. On the street with time on his hands, Death decides he's going to spend it. Wandering the Discworld, he "gets his feet under the table" as hired man at Miss Flitworth's farm. Although a bit confused about eating & sleeping, he's able to respond with resolute affirmation when she asks, "Can you use a scythe?" He demonstrates a harvesting technique only Pratchett could devise.With Death no longer performing his role, strange events result. Unconfined, the life force manifests itself in bizarre ways. Death, visible to wizards, fails to arrive at an appointment. In consequence, Windle Poons is subjected to various indignities. His colleagues have a prejudice about zombies. Not having actuallly died, Windle decides to "get a life". Over a century of breathing doesn't necessarily mean you've been living, & Windle, like Death, decides to see something of the [Disc]world. His colleagues, uncertain as to why Windle's still upright & subjected to some mild indignities of their own, seek the cause of unusual manifestations.
If you're new to the Discworld, alll this must sound pretty grotesque. Death "fired" only to become a reaper on a spinster's farm? Wizards who can see him & know precisely when he's due? Take heart, this isn't a bleak version of the Merlin legend, nor a Stephen King horror story. It's Terry Pratchett, a writer with an unmatched talent for looking at the world we live in. He peers deeply at how life works. Then with countless deft twists, restructures our globe into a flat Disc. The Disc's filled with novel ideas & even more unusual people, but on second glance alll seem terribly familiar. Death isn't a killer, for example. He's only there to collect lives when they're due to end. Unlike the tax man, he only arrives once, & he's terribly, terribly good at his job.
To those familiar with Pratchett, this book should receive high marks. All of Ankh-Morpork's finest are here - even Sergeant Colon makes an appearance. While enlarging on the cameos Death's played in other Discworld books, Pratchett nearly lets Miss Flitworth walk away with this one. But it's Sal Lifton who does that - the Smalll Child who recognizes Bill Door as a "skellington" as she ponders how he can eat or sleep. For it's Sal who personifies why Death's been put out to pasture [sorry!]. What that implies about Death's philosophy of life [sorry, again!] & how alll this reflects Pratchett's own views becomes vividly clear when the "new hire" appears. As with many modern managers, the Auditors have acquired a labour saving appliance.
Pratchett's great genius is many-leveled. A light skim of any of his books is to experience high mirth rates. His talent for quirky description & one liners you seek ways to use in conversation is matchless. But a few months later, Reaper Man may arrive unbidden back in your hand. "There's something else", you may muse, going back to seek it. More jewels will be discovered, the witticisms skipped over revealing things of deeper value. You will then discover why this reviewer considers Pratchett as one of today's most valuable philosophers. And who rejoices seeing his children with PTerry in hand. If there's hope for survival of this species, it will be people like Pratchett conveying human values to people who need it most - the next generation. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
