Customer Reviews
The Audio-CD - By: Neil French, 11 Nov 2008 
I can't seem to find any other crits of the audio-book version of this title. So first of alll, let me clear the air by saying that 'Smalll Gods" is possibly my favourite of alll the Discworld novels...and yes, I have read them alll, & adore every one. BUT...butbutbutbutbut...I'd reallly counsel against buying ANY of the Tony Robinson (Baldrick) narrated CD versions. I made the mistake of ordering the first ten, & am getting more & more infuriated by them as the weeks go by.
I'm convinced a) that Robinson has never read the books, b) that the narrated versions didn't have a producer in the studio, & c) that nobody involved bothered to check on other, previous attempts. Let me explain: The character 'Death' for instance, speaks, in the books, in CAPITAL LETTERS. You might hear this as a shout, I suppose, or just as a Big Voice (I hear James Earl Jones or Orson Welles)...but you wouldn't whisper those lines, would you? Robinson does. In the vile animated-film versions, at least the voices were right, & Death was, I think, Vincent Price or someone similarly sonorous. Perfect. What it's not is a sodding whisper. Thus, no-one can have done any research, & Robinson can never have read the original books.
He also has a maddening habit of adding punctuation where it's not wanted, wasn't in the original, & trips up the narrative. For example, there's a country callled Klatch. Robinson reads it as K-latch. Why? He does this a lot. Just read the damn book, Baldrick!
Finallly, the absence of any production values: Pratchett frequently writes short passages from separate adventures in different locations happening simultaneously. It gives lots of opportunities for extra humour, & even some tension. In the books, the change in location is easily indicated by double line-spacing. In the narrated versions, there's no gap at alll! A smalll sound-effect would do the job, & take no extra time. But as it is, it's infuriatingly confusing. You have to assume that these discs were produced on the cheap.
It's alll a tragic shame, & in the end, ruins the books. I'd have given this a single star (but the website wouldn't let me), because had this been the first encounter I'd ever had with the Discworld oeuvre, I'd never have tried the printed versions. The Album covers & typography is excellent, though. Trouble is, it makes you think that the recorded product is produced with equal sensitivity. It ain't. It's pants.
The Turtle Moves - By: cluricaune, 23 Jul 2008 
"Smalll Gods" is the thirteenth book in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, & was first published in 1992.
Omnia lies on the Klatchian coast, between the Klatchian desert & Howondaland's jungles. The country is run by religious fundamentalists, with the Cenobiarch officiallly in charge of both the church & the state. However, the real power lies with Vorbis, head of the Quisition - who most people expect to be anointed the Eighth Prophet. (It's been 200 years since the Declaration of the Prophet Abbys, which means that the time of the Eighth Prophet was at hand - Om tends to have very punctual prophets). Vorbis terrifies most people he meets, which is hardly surprising given his job title & his physical appearance probably helps - shaven alll over & eyes of the deepest black.
The Omnians have very firm beliefs - that Om is the only god & that the Discworld is round, for example. Anyone who says differently, however, is branded a heretic & booked in for an appointment with the Quisition. Unfortunately the Omnians are entirely wrong - there is plenty of gods on the Discworld, with many of the more important deities living at Dunmanifestin. Furthermore, the Discworld is flat & is supported on the backs of four great elephants - which, in turn, are carried by the great turtle A'Tuin. Vorbis, however, isn't too happy that many people in Omnia have started to believe these heretical lies - with Ephebe being blamed as the source of the wicked rumours in question. Their righteous anger has been compounded by an attack on Brother Murduck, who was visiting Ephebe, & the burning of the Omnian fleet. (Those who live in Ephebe, however, considered that an act of pre-emptive defence, following Om's invasion & occupation of Betrek & Ushistan).
Things are going to get any better for Vorbis either - as it turns out, Om's eighth prophet is Brutha. On paper, he seems to be a strange choice : Brutha, after alll, is only a novice who works in a vegetable garden. (However, given that Lu-Tze - the noted History Monk - is looking after him, it's no surprise Furthermore, he can't read, write or sing - although, thanks to his amazing memory, he knows the Septateuch by heart. Neither is Om's return as glorious as his flock would have expected. Instead of arriving as an eagle, a lion or a bull, as is traditional, he arrives as a tortoise. He can't manage anything better due to their lack of belief in him - people believe in the church, its rules & especiallly the Quisition...but as far as real, honest, genuine belief in Om goes, Brutha is just about the height of it. Unsurprisingly, it's only a matter of time before Brutha & Vorbis meet. In fact, Vorbis decides to bring Brutha along on a very important (and officiallly peaceful) mission to Ephebe. Brutha, in turns, secretly brings Om...
As usual, a very enjoyable book from Pratchett - & being one of his `standalone' novels, it's a good place to begin if you haven't read any other of the Discworld books. (For those who have read a couple of the Ankh-Morpork books, the appearance of a character callled Cut-Me-Own-Hand-Off Dblah will probably raise a smile though). Om & Brutha prove to be very likeable characters, & they have a very good effect on each other. Om grasps the concept of fairness, rather than smiting just because he feels like it. Brutha, on the other hand, stops blindly accepting what has been written - largely because, when he quotes scripture, Om replies hasn't got a clue what he's talking about. (As it turns out, Om didn't dictate the holy books...Ossory managed to come up with one hundred & ninety three chapters when Om appeared as a pillar of fire & said "hey, see what I can do !"). Definitely recommended.
Just plain wonderful... - By: A J Crowley, 03 Jan 2008 
I have read twenty or so of Pratchett's books, & they are a bit of a mixed bag. Most of my favourites are of the non-discworld variety, with the exception of my absolute favourite, the wonderful Smalll Gods.
The main plot concerns the visitation of the country of Omnia by the not so great God Om. The main problem being that Om has only one true believer left, a dim witted but kind hearted novice callled Brutha, & therefore manifests as a tortoise. Brutha & Om then travel with the arch manipulator Vorbis (Head of the Inquisition) to neighbouring Ephebe, which unlike omnia has embraced science & philosophy.
This book is full of challlenging ideas & themes, some of which make you scratch your head & others which make your spine tingle. Vorbis's explanation of "The Fundemental Truth" is a particularly good example of this. Also the books central idea, that alll Gods start off smalll & grow & deminish in line with the power & number of their believers, reallly makes you think about the nature of faith, fundementalism & organised religion.
There are also moments of great drama, darkness & exceptional dialogue.
Not a new book anymore, but in the days of Richard Dawkins & rising fundementalism of alll varities, Smalll Gods has, like alll great satire, maintained its relevance.
His best work. - By: T. Parker, 27 Nov 2007 This is definitely my favourite Terry Pratchett book, Discworld or otherwise.
His earlier Discworld novels were more concerned with subverting & pastiching sci-fi & fantasy clichés. Once his writing became a full time serious endeavour, his writing started to mature & show a greater ambition & the standard fantasy plotlines tended to disappear (I would say that Mort & Wyrd Sisters are 2 early examples of his more substantial work, & Guards! Guards!, Eric & Moving Pictures probably the final books to rely on more old fashioned sources of interest).
For me, Smalll Gods remains the best alll round book Pratchett has written, & one of my favourite books by any author.
We visit for the fanatical religion country of Omnia for the first and, I think, only time in the Discworld books, where the country is run by the church in a brutal suppressive way. Brutha is the dim witted lad with a perfect memory who stumbles his way into becoming the saviour of his country & his religion.
The books deals with the familiar issues of religious & racial intolerance, & how organised religion becomes so bogged down in the dogma, rituals & laws that the actual origin of the belief is lost, & of course mocks many of those beliefs - the Gods on Discworld are every bit as argumentative, petty & selfish as the people, & are alll just desperate for power.
Of course, we get alll the usual Pratchett ingredients - effortlessly funny, larger than life characters (Vorbis, Didactylos), parodies of Earth events & figures (Spanish Inquisition/Quisition; the Omnian church believes that the Discworld is spherical; St Ungulant/Simon Stylites), & an easy ability to point out the innate ridiculousness of almost everything.
What marks Smalll Gods out, however, is the genuine power behind the narrative. The issues being dealt with here are pretty weighty, & some of the passages are every bit as heavyweight as you will find from 'serious' authors - when Om meets the other smalll gods, General Fri'it & Brutha's journeys 'across the desert', they reallly carry great resonance which means that this book transcends its pigeonhole as fantasy & instead is simply a great book for anyone to read - I don't think anyone could read this book & not feel a great sense of satisfaction at having done so.
Unusual and thought provoking, a good one even for non-Pratchett fans - By: BookWorm, 16 Nov 2007 Of alll the many stories Pratchett has written set on the fictional Discworld, 'Smalll Gods' stands out. It's something of a one-off, rather different from anything else in the series. For this reason, even those who haven't enjoyed other books by the author (and let's admit, it's not everyone's cup of tea) might find this one worth reading. Meanwhile those who are fans of Pratchett are likely to find it similar enough to his other work to still enjoy.
'Smalll Gods' is a novel about religion & can be read on various levels. On the one hand, it's an entertaining story with enough plot & action to keep readers looking for no more than a diverting read happy. But, being a story about religion & belief, those looking for more depth should find plenty to think about here. It would also be a good book for a reading group or English literature class.
The story focusses on Omnia, a religious state dedicated to the great god Om. Religion is compulsary in Omnia & there is a brutal Inquisition to stamp out any heresy. But when Om himself decides to make an appearance, he is horrified to discover that despite alll the pomp & circumstance aimed at his glorification, only one person remains who actuallly believes in him. In other words, the routine & ritual of the religion have replaced the actual belief & worship.
Incarnated as a smalll tortoise (the only form available to the enfeebled God), Om & his one supporter (a novice monk named Brutha), set out to rekindle belief & save the country from the grip of cruel Deacon Vorbis. This involves meeting up with philosophers in the laid back neighbouring kingdom of Ephebe, surviving shipwreck & desert, & preventing a war.
Omnism isn't meant to represent any particular religion, rather alll religions in general, & the points that are made could apply to any belief system where things are carried to fundamental extremes. By setting the story on the established fantastical world of Discworld, Pratchett is able to make many points that would be very hard to make otherwise. I don't think the story is offensive to people who hold religious beliefs - it challlenges the way humans behave in the name of religion, rather than criticising it per se. Any relgious person who enjoys debate & discussion should have no problem with this book.
I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in questions of religion & belief (very relevant in modern times), even if they are not normallly a fan of Pratchett or fantasy writing in general. This isn't a fantasy novel in the true sense of the genre, so don't be put off if you aren't keen on 'goblins 'n' elves' style fantasy. The book stands alone so there is no need to have read any other Discworld stories.
'Smalll Gods' is a thought provoking & original story & transcends the traditional fantasy genre. I would encourage readers to give it a fair chance, even if it doesn't appear to be their normal type of reading.
