Monstrous Regiment

by Terry Pratchett

Paperback, 493 pages

English language

Published Nov. 5, 2004 by Corgi Adult.

ISBN:: 978-0-552-14941-9

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(80 reviews)

It began as a sudden strange fancy . . .

Polly Perks had to become a boy in a hurry. Cutting off her hair and wearing trousers was easy. Learning to fart and belch in public and walk like an ape took more time . . .

And now she's enlisted in the army, and searching for her lost brother.

But there's a war on. There's always a war on. And Polly and her fellow recruits are suddenly in the thick of it, without any training, and the enemy is hunting them.

All they have on their side is the most artful sergeant in the army and a vampire with a lust for coffee. Well . . . They have the Secret. And as they take the war to the heart of the enemy, they have to use all the resources of . . . the Monstrous Regiment.

5 editions

qboq reviewed Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

Dark satire on many levels

4 stars

Was going for 3,5 stars, but am currently leaning towards 4+.

The story is a satire on sexism, religious fundamentalism, nationalism and war. To me personally, it felt as one of Pratchett's darker stories: a backwards country so depleted of men and boys and girls that are being religiously repressed and for varying reasons take their chances in the army. Add to it the futility of being in a constant war about Who Knows What. But we are winning, I assure you.

The book has an all-new cast of characters (apart from a few cameos) with interesting backstories. I particularly liked Jackrum, who fulfilled the role as wizened old soldier and father figure to the lads. In a way, he felt a bit as a counterpart to Vimes. Polly / Oliver was well written and developed as well.

The only thing that I did not particularly like, was the silly …

Was going for 3,5 stars, but am currently leaning towards 4+.

The only thing that I did not particularly like, was the silly Big Reveal. It was a bit too on the nose and a bit too unbelievable. If you read the book, you'll know what I mean.

loppear reviewed Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

solid pratchett

4 stars

War and military patriarchy turned upside down and poked full of satirical holes to fill with wit and wordplay, of course, enjoyable as always.

Ika Makimaki reviewed Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

Review of 'Monstrous Regiment' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Frankly one of the best discworld books so far!
It is funny and lighthearted but also deep and thought-full as only Terry Pratchett can be.
Definitely aged well and feels perfectly timely with all the gender related discussions happening nowadays.
Must read and great entry point for Discworld newbies too.

acaleyn reviewed Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

Review of 'Monstrous Regiment' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

reread on 6/10/13

Jay Stevens reviewed Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

Review of 'Monstrous Regiment' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

One of Pratchett's weaker books, in my opinion. Starring a completely new cast of characters, with a few minor cameos from a few older ones, the book starts where a girl joins the military a la Mulan.

Eventually, she finds out that she is not the only one in her squad who is secretly a female.

Then, one by one, it turns out that everyone in her squad is female. This is stretching my suspension of disbelief near its breaking point, but I'm willing to go along with it for now.

But at the end of the book, almost every single major character is female. The only major character I can think of that isn't a lady is a Lieutenant whose name is Blouse. Even the characters who had been made out to be obviously male at the beginning of the book turn out to be chicks.

Now, I understand one or two. Maybe even, by coincidence, an entire squad. But near the end, it no longer has any impact when someone's a girl, yet each revelation is as drawn-out as if it were the first, and each one is made out to be as if it were a surprise. By the final third of the book, my suspension of disbelief was completely shattered.

You would think that someone would have noticed, since apparently this had been going on for years. Girls don't exactly have deep voices. They stuff their pants with socks to give the illusion that something is down below the belt, but it would seem that no girl in the entire country is gifted in the upper torso department.

However, despite its flaws, it is a Pratchett book. And like most Pratchett books, it is a decent, funny book. The analogy that one can never have a bad pizza comes to mind.
But, sadly, this is probably one of his lesser works. If you just want Pratchett, try Mort, Reaper Man, or Hogfather (I may be a bit biased in what stories I recommend). This book should only be read if you're running out of Pratchett books to read.