Schöne Scheine

very funny, and has a lot of Vetinari in it, which i always enjoy, but i don't know... maybe it's because i took a break for a couple of days in the middle, but it seemed a little off somehow? like, i was following all the different threads, you know, assuming that they'd eventually all come together, but somehow when they did, i was kind of surprised? i had the feeling in the beginning that the golems were only there because Spike needed to be in the story (more Spike please) and that's her entire gig, but then of course about halfway through it becomes pretty obvious what they are and where they're going to end up, and i don't know. i mean, i get the joke, and i'm not sure how else Moist was supposed to get out of it, but it felt a little deus ex machina? despite the earlier set up??? i guess i'm just not sure (slight spoilers i guess, but it's pretty obvious by about halfway through if you've ever read another T Pratchett book) why we needed to replace the gold at all??? i also thought that Moist getting into banking was a bit forced. i'm not sure anyone could have recreated the magic of how Moist got into Post Office-ing, so i was curious how Pratchett was going to work this one, and i'm having trouble coming up with a rational reason why it didn't work for me, but it just didn't. Maybe Going Postal was a little too good in that sense, and it spoiled me for the rest of Moist's books? anyhow, Mr Bent's whole story line was hilarious - "Watch out! He's got a daisy!" "Yes, I know," is possibly the funniest exchange in any Discworld novel - and there's a couple of Watch cameos too... anyway, all in all, it's not a /bad/ novel, i think it's just that having read 35 other Discworld novels, i know how good they can be, and this one's just kind of... normal. meh, 4 out of 5 stars, glad i read it, but wouldn't read it again.

... Unser Glaube daran!

Die Fortsetzung von "Ab die Post" beschäftigt sich mit dem Bankwesen und seinen Auswüchsen. Natürlich auf die übliche, amüsante Weise von Terry Pratchett. Nicht umwerfend komisch und nicht mit dem Reiz der durch einen neuen Protagonisten entstand aber trotzdem gut.

#pratchett #scheibenwelt

Unfortunately my audiobook was a US Edition. Really odd changes in the text for no reason that didn't sync up with the ebook.

An enjoyable second romp with Moist von Lipwig. I'm still not completely convinced about the golum parts but it's still good value.

Great follow up to Going Postal, but not as enjoyable as the first one. In this one, the reformed thief/con man/scammer Moist Von Lipwig is put in charge of the Ankh-Morpork Bank.
It is an outrageous and sarcastic commentary on the financial systems and the very meaning of money in our own world. I have grown to love the character of Von Lipwig and the whole world of Discworld.
This instalment is one of the more "mature" ones in terms of content and themes. But it pulls off a stinging critique of our obsession with money and the power it conveys.

Making Money (2007) is the lastest installment of The Discworld Series, and is really a continuation of Going Postal (2004), in which we meet Moist von Lipwig, a man sentenced to hang as a cheat, con, and thief, until Ankh-Morpork's dictator, Lord Vetinari, realizes that his talents could be put to very good use.

Actually, he was hanged. But--that's another tangent of the story for the former Albert Spangler, who survives to have a new lease on life as Moist von Lipwig, a man whose talents include the charm, gift of gab, quick thinking, and outright sneakiness that somehow allow him to mezmorize people--okay, con people--into doing whatever he needs them to do. And Lord Vetinari has a job for him. In Going Postal, the job is to somehow rescue a failing postal system and make it run efficiently, which Lipwig pulls off with ingenuity, luck, and style. (Style is important.) This time around, though, Lord Vetinari has another job. "Tell me, Lipwig, how would you like to make some real money?" That is, how would Lipwig like to take over the Bank of Ankh-Morpork and The Royal Mint? At first Lipwig refuses, but of course, we know that he will be forced into the position in the most comically way possible.

Actually, Lipwig's job as Postmaster General has gotten a bit too easy and boring for this former man of danger. In fact, this tale opens with Lipwig trying to break into his own office. He still has a criminal mind, and in his restlessness, he's taken up Edificeering and Extreme Sneezing as leisure pursuits. Well, especially when his fiance, Adora Belle Dearheart, is away for extended lengths of time. Her presence, it seems, provides enough danger for him.

As usual, the variety of characters is not missing--Igors, golems, trolls, vampires, werewolves, and insane rich people populate Discworld, and these books are always fun to read. Actually, the chairman of the bank is Mr. Fusspot, a delightful terrier. Lord Vetinari has the chairman eating out of his hand, by the end of the book.

And Lipwig? Oh, he'll run the mint and the bank for awhile, but--Lord Vetinari knows that one day, Lipwig will again become a danger to himself and the city and--just how old is the taxmaster? .......

I enjoyed Making Money very much (it's not usually this fun), and my only reservation about this novel was that I found myself missing the Watch, or the cops of Ankh-Morpork. I particularly enjoy Commander Vimes, and was a bit disappointed that he was barely in this novel. The Watch is a most diverse group of characters who add splash to any occasion and I think they should always be invited to the story.

..which is still my favorite Discworld novel (so far, of the ones I've read) despite the fact that it's not about the Watch

**Involves scaling the highest, steepest, trickiest and most difficult buildings in the city.

I have no idea, but Lord Vetinari says it's potentially lethal, and I believe him.

It took me much longer to read this book than I anticipated it would. Mostly this is due to circumstances outside of my reading life, but a tad bit of it has to do with my decided lack of interest in money. Seems odd, but I really don't want to be rich, and I don't have an obsession with money. So, it took me a while to get into the book. And it took me a while to appreciate some of the characters that pop up in the book. But once I started thinking of this as less of a story about money and more as a story about the Discworld, that old charm took over and I raced through the rest.

If you enjoy the character of Moist von Lipwig or you just like a story that takes a good jab at banking, you'll enjoy this one.

Needs moar Vimes.

(Added later...) A perfectly fine book, but extremely understated for a Discworld book. Almost a straight fantasy novel, just set in Discworld. Very odd. Underwhelming, but probably a matter of taste.

Making Money (A Discworld Novel)
Terry Pratchett
Transworld Publishers (Double Day)

ISBN 9780385611015

The latest book in the ever lengthening Discworld series again concentrates on Moist von Lipwig as the central character. The environment is familiar and Ankh-Morpork is still ruled by Vetinari. Most of the characters though are new. The wonderfully comic Cosmo, who is completely mad, and his relatives, and a small dog all vie with Moist for ownership of the Ankh-Morpork bank. The bank has been under performing for years and requires the same type of transformation as the Post-Office (see the previous book in the series – Going Postal). Then there's the Golden Golem, the Golem Trust, and the possibility of war with the other cities on the Disc. Unseen University, Ponder Stibbons, and the Necromancy department Department of Post-Mortem Communications, are there to help out and avoid catastrophe, or contribute to it. A full cast list can be found in lspace.

We also come across another type of computer this one is water based and the whole area where is is operated is wet. It models the economy (read the book to find out how). When Moist is introduced to it, he says to it's programmer “Hello, I'm Moist”, to which the reply is “I should have put the umbrella closer to the door”. That's my type of quote!

It is clear from this novel that Pratchett does not have a high level of respect for banks. What is there that's of real worth – could it be Gold? As unlikely here as it is on the Discworld, but nonetheless something that people are drawn to. The gold standard is abandoned, as it has been in the sphere world. The story develops with its usual flourish, and a good deal of comedy, but here the characters themselves are more obviously comic in their own right. This is an easy and enjoyable read. Unlike most of the other novels in this series, its pace does not pick up dramatically at the end, which is no bad thing.

My last review of a Pratchett book was Wintersmith.