A Blink of the Screen
Collected Shorter Fiction
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4.0 • 15 Ratings
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- $4.99
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
A collection of short fiction from Terry Pratchett, spanning the whole of his writing career from schooldays to Discworld and the present day.
In the four decades since his first book appeared in print, Terry Pratchett has become one of the world's best-selling and best-loved authors. Here for the first time are his short stories and other short-form fiction collected into one volume. A Blink of the Screen charts the course of Pratchett's long writing career: from his schooldays through to his first writing job on the Bucks Free Press, and the origins of his debut novel, The Carpet People; and on again to the dizzy mastery of the phenomenally successful Discworld series.
Here are characters both familiar and yet to be discovered; abandoned worlds and others still expanding; adventure, chickens, death, disco and, actually, some quite disturbing ideas about Christmas, all of it shot through with Terry's inimitable brand of humour. With an introduction by Booker Prize-winning author A.S. Byatt, illustrations by the late Josh Kirby and drawings by the author himself, this is a book to treasure.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Diehard Pratchett fans will celebrate this first-ever collection of short fiction from the world-famous author of the Discworld novels. These 32 pieces, which show Pratchett "playing with words to see what happens," include his student writing and stories that anticipate his later novels. The author's wry wit shines early on with the publicity-minded devil of "The Hades Business," written at age 13. "Kindly Breathe in Short, Thick Pants," "And Mind the Monoliths," and "There's No Fool like an Old Fool Found in an English Queue" celebrate "half-baked politicians" and bureaucrats. In "The Glastonbury Tale," "Twenty Pence, with Envelope and Seasonal Greetings," and "Once and Future," Pratchett twists classic tales from Chaucer, Dickens, and T.H. White. Discworld characters Cohen the Barbarian, Granny Weatherwax and her fellow witches, the wizards of Unseen University, and Lord Vetinari, ruler of Ankh-Morpork, make appearances in a special section of Discworld-related works. "Short stories cost me blood," Pratchett reminds readers, citing his much greater comfort with novels. Though the stories here aren't his absolute best writing, there is plenty to entertain curious fans. Longtime Pratchett illustrators Josh Kirby and Paul Kidby provide entertaining artwork.
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