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Penguin Audio (2022)
Original publication date
1991-11-07
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Be careful what you wish for... Once upon a time there was a fairy godmother named Desiderata who had a good heart, a wise head, and poor planning skills-which unforunately left the Princess Emberella in the care of her other (not quite so good and wise) godmother when DEATH came for Desiderata. So now it's up to Magrat Garlick, Granny Weatherwax, and Nanny Ogg to hop on broomsticks and make for far-distant Genua to ensure the servant girl doesn't marry the Prince. But the road to Genua is bumpy, and along the way the trio of witches encounters the occasional vampire, werewolf, and falling house (well this is a fairy tale, after all). The trouble really begins once these reluctant foster-godmothers arrive in Genua and must outwit their power-hungry counterpart who'll stop at nothing to achieve a proper "happy ending"-even if it means destroying a kingdom.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member reading_fox
One of the best! A godmother dies and leave Magrat her wand along with strict instructions on how a girl's future is to go, and also carefully instructs Margat not to let Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax "help". After the waving of this proverbial red flag, the three set off - the wrong way - to fly
I'm not quite sure what happened to Genua, the witches travel across various bits of countryside that obviously isn't central Europe at all, but Geneva the likely basis of the name, suddenly is transplanted to Louisiana, with Voodoo, Gumbo, and a swamp. And a chief character Gogol who doesn't appear to have anything to do with King Solomen's Mines despite the similarity of name, gender, age and profession. You may spot other characters that manage to appear despite having no part. Gollum for instance.
However these are only minor quibbles. The puns, visual and verbal come quick and fast. although granny still can't tell a joke. At least I don't get it. Beneath all the humour though lurks a darker message, about black and white and shades of grey, and how easy doing something good with the best of intentions can still be bad, and doing evil so much more fun than being nice. Should you get what you need or what you want, never mind what you might deserve?!
Much shorter than his later novels, the darker social commentary is more muted and the puns more obvious. Esme is still one of the most incisive charaters on the Disk.
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to Genua and stop the girl marrying the prince. It's not just Hans Christian Anderson's tales that have been mauled by an expert, someone is imposing happpy endings on people and Granny thinks she knows who. Sorting out the stories as they travel is easy, but when they arrive in the spick and span Genua life starts to get more interesting. It's not often that Esme gets as far as going "tsk tsk tsk", but when she does it's time to run for cover.I'm not quite sure what happened to Genua, the witches travel across various bits of countryside that obviously isn't central Europe at all, but Geneva the likely basis of the name, suddenly is transplanted to Louisiana, with Voodoo, Gumbo, and a swamp. And a chief character Gogol who doesn't appear to have anything to do with King Solomen's Mines despite the similarity of name, gender, age and profession. You may spot other characters that manage to appear despite having no part. Gollum for instance.
However these are only minor quibbles. The puns, visual and verbal come quick and fast. although granny still can't tell a joke. At least I don't get it. Beneath all the humour though lurks a darker message, about black and white and shades of grey, and how easy doing something good with the best of intentions can still be bad, and doing evil so much more fun than being nice. Should you get what you need or what you want, never mind what you might deserve?!
Much shorter than his later novels, the darker social commentary is more muted and the puns more obvious. Esme is still one of the most incisive charaters on the Disk.
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LibraryThing member salimbol
Basically: Granny Weatherwax encounters the rest of the world; the rest of the world is afraid; Granny Weatherwax is unimpressed :-). Plenty of snicker-worthy moments, especially from the irrepressible Nanny Ogg (if she's in a book, you can be sure it will be an especially earthy one). All rolled
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up with some intelligent commentary about A) the power of stories, and B) how our expectations of stories can limit us. Show Less
LibraryThing member keristars
As someone who loves stories and tropes and fairy tales and all of that wound into a crazy rubber band ball, Witches Abroad is probably the perfect Discworld novel for me. Okay, it's not my absolute favorite, because I find that the witches books tend to drag a little towards the end, right before
This, of course, manages to assimilate most of the big name fairy tales into the Discworld universe and in doing so sets up this idea that the Story is the reason things happen. Once you get started on a the path of a Story, it wants to finish itself to the end. So if you send a girl down to visit her grandmother, and she's wearing a red cloak, you better bet that the Story will do its best to have grandmother eaten by a wolf, and then we'll get those well-known words - "what big teeth you have, grandmother!" and the reply "The better to eat you with, my dear."
But Witches Abroad is also concerned with Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick and the way they deal with traveling, in their own ways. Nanny is the one to know foreign languages, only in her own way, which usually means some pretty funny puns and malapropisms. And Granny is always able to use Headology to take advantage of the con-men before they can take advantage of the naive tourists. Magrat is, well, Magrat.
I don't think of very many Discworld novels as rereadable (though I'm only a third of the way through the series on my first read-through), but this one very much is.
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the grand finale, but it's definitely pretty awesome.This, of course, manages to assimilate most of the big name fairy tales into the Discworld universe and in doing so sets up this idea that the Story is the reason things happen. Once you get started on a the path of a Story, it wants to finish itself to the end. So if you send a girl down to visit her grandmother, and she's wearing a red cloak, you better bet that the Story will do its best to have grandmother eaten by a wolf, and then we'll get those well-known words - "what big teeth you have, grandmother!" and the reply "The better to eat you with, my dear."
But Witches Abroad is also concerned with Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick and the way they deal with traveling, in their own ways. Nanny is the one to know foreign languages, only in her own way, which usually means some pretty funny puns and malapropisms. And Granny is always able to use Headology to take advantage of the con-men before they can take advantage of the naive tourists. Magrat is, well, Magrat.
I don't think of very many Discworld novels as rereadable (though I'm only a third of the way through the series on my first read-through), but this one very much is.
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LibraryThing member 391
In Witches Abroad, Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat travel to Genua to stop a story. I like the witches, and I really enjoyed this book, though when taken with the rest of the Discworld verse into account, I don't think they've come quite fully into their own - Lords and Ladies or Carpe
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Jugulum is when they're at their height, and in Witches Abroad their characterizations are still shifting a bit. Lilith was an intriguing character, and I wish we could have seen a bit more of her and Granny's epic showdown, but the way it ended did seem fitting and lovely and rather poignant. Magrat hasn't figured herself out yet (but she'll get a shining moment in Lords and Ladies), but on the other hand, Nanny Ogg is working full-force, with just enough 'Ogg-ness' to make her likeable and quite a bit backstage work going on to make her formidable in her own right. I was surprised by how much I came to like her, since I'm used to Granny being my favorite of the three. Show Less
LibraryThing member Aldrea_Alien
Like Moving Pictures was to Hollywood, Witches Abroad is to fairytales. Only a lot more funny, and everything is fair game.
It starts off as it ends, with fairy godmothers, specifically the death of one, leading to the snowballing that is the witches three (Nanny, Granny and Magrat) to travel from
The main focus there is around the non-marriage of Ella (otherwise known as Embers. Emberella if you will.) to a rather slimy guy who has interesting sleeping habits. But many hilarious events take place before the trio arrive there. Bulls, wolves, sleeping princesses, red hoods and falling houses included.
Small wonder I sped through it all in one day.
It starts off as it ends, with fairy godmothers, specifically the death of one, leading to the snowballing that is the witches three (Nanny, Granny and Magrat) to travel from
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there cosy homes in Lancre and see to some godmothering duties in the strange town of Genua. Parts of it remind me of that movie the Frog Princess, right down to the voodoo. And then there’s Baron Saturday to top it all off.The main focus there is around the non-marriage of Ella (otherwise known as Embers. Emberella if you will.) to a rather slimy guy who has interesting sleeping habits. But many hilarious events take place before the trio arrive there. Bulls, wolves, sleeping princesses, red hoods and falling houses included.
Small wonder I sped through it all in one day.
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LibraryThing member Eat_Read_Knit
Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat have to make sure Emberella doesn't marry the Prince. This means a journey to Genua (leading to speculation over the possibilities of the commercial broomstick: serving food and telling the passengers what how to crash if the magic fails would be
Excellent. Hysterical. Go and read it.
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straightforward, but would it be better to fly under the banner Three Witches Airborne, Pan Air or - in Magrat's case - Virgin?), battles with foreign food and languages (Cwuissses dee Grenolly and banananana dakry, anyone?) and funny business with fairy tales.Excellent. Hysterical. Go and read it.
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LibraryThing member SunnySD
In which Nanny Ogg, Magrat and Granny Weatherwax visit some dwarves, take a hand at fairy godmothering, are entertained by a voodoo queen, and encounter Death. Oh yes, and prevent a marriage. The story of Cinderella has never been turned quite so thoroughly on its head, but then, it's Pratchett,
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and it's DiscWorld. 'Nuf said. Show Less
LibraryThing member pwaites
Witches Abroad is the twelfth book in the Discworld series, and the second one following the witches from Wyrd Sisters, which you’d probably want to read first to get introduced to the characters.
Witches Abroad revolves around fairy tales. Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat journey to Genua
I love what this book does with fairy tales, how it mashes them up, many tales at once, all seen from the perspective of already established characters. The best moment has to be when a farmhouse falls on Nanny Ogg.
But possibly because of the focus on fairy tales, Witches Abroad has real problems with its pacing. The first half of the book is the three witches traveling to Genua and undergoing various encounters along the way. This is hilarious but slow moving. The plot doesn’t get compact and moving until into the second half when they actually reach Genua.
I love the witches trio. They bicker and fight and have an overall wonderful dynamic. Nanny Ogg is funny and convivial, Magrat is young and lacks confidence in herself, and Granny Weatherwax is confident to the point of arrogance and always knows who she is. Granny’s the hero of the book, undoubtedly, and here she has a worthy opponent.
“What was supposed to be so special about a full moon? It was only a big circle of light. And the dark of the moon was only darkness. But halfway between the two, when the moon was between the worlds of light and dark, when even the moon lived on the edge…maybe then a witch could believe in the moon.”
Something very unusual about Witches Abroad is just how much it is focused around female characters. The trio of witches are the center of the story, their opponent is a fairy godmother who bends stories to her will, and the witch’s main support consists of a voodoo witch who lives in the swamp outside Genua. I read an assertion somewhere that it fails the reverse Bechdel test – having two named male characters who talk to each other about something other than a woman. This isn’t actually true. Witches Abroad passes due to one conversation between a named male character and Death, who uses male pronouns. But the fact that it comes so close to failing shows just how remarkable it is, especially for a fantasy book written by a male author.
While Witches Abroad might not be as deep as some of Pratchett’s other works, it still has its moments. In a large part this is because of the contrast between fairy godmothers and witches – fairy godmothers give you what you want, and witches give you what you need. The overarching idea is that you can’t make people’s lives better by forcing them to act as you want.
“You can’t go around building a better world for people. Only people can build a better world for people. Otherwise it’s just a cage.”
I’d recommend Witches Abroad for people who liked Wyrd Sisters, who love fairy tales, or who want a book focused around excellent female characters.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
Witches Abroad revolves around fairy tales. Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Magrat journey to Genua
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(Discworld New Orleans) to stop a kitchen maid from marrying the prince.I love what this book does with fairy tales, how it mashes them up, many tales at once, all seen from the perspective of already established characters. The best moment has to be when a farmhouse falls on Nanny Ogg.
But possibly because of the focus on fairy tales, Witches Abroad has real problems with its pacing. The first half of the book is the three witches traveling to Genua and undergoing various encounters along the way. This is hilarious but slow moving. The plot doesn’t get compact and moving until into the second half when they actually reach Genua.
I love the witches trio. They bicker and fight and have an overall wonderful dynamic. Nanny Ogg is funny and convivial, Magrat is young and lacks confidence in herself, and Granny Weatherwax is confident to the point of arrogance and always knows who she is. Granny’s the hero of the book, undoubtedly, and here she has a worthy opponent.
“What was supposed to be so special about a full moon? It was only a big circle of light. And the dark of the moon was only darkness. But halfway between the two, when the moon was between the worlds of light and dark, when even the moon lived on the edge…maybe then a witch could believe in the moon.”
Something very unusual about Witches Abroad is just how much it is focused around female characters. The trio of witches are the center of the story, their opponent is a fairy godmother who bends stories to her will, and the witch’s main support consists of a voodoo witch who lives in the swamp outside Genua. I read an assertion somewhere that it fails the reverse Bechdel test – having two named male characters who talk to each other about something other than a woman. This isn’t actually true. Witches Abroad passes due to one conversation between a named male character and Death, who uses male pronouns. But the fact that it comes so close to failing shows just how remarkable it is, especially for a fantasy book written by a male author.
While Witches Abroad might not be as deep as some of Pratchett’s other works, it still has its moments. In a large part this is because of the contrast between fairy godmothers and witches – fairy godmothers give you what you want, and witches give you what you need. The overarching idea is that you can’t make people’s lives better by forcing them to act as you want.
“You can’t go around building a better world for people. Only people can build a better world for people. Otherwise it’s just a cage.”
I’d recommend Witches Abroad for people who liked Wyrd Sisters, who love fairy tales, or who want a book focused around excellent female characters.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
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LibraryThing member ritaer
Always worth rereading and a fortunate choice for a trip that involved a two hour delay at the Greyhound station. The theory of narrative inevitability should take its rightful place with other great literary theories while citizens should learn to beware of leaders who seem determined to fit them
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into stories. It rarely turns out well. Show Less
LibraryThing member Herenya
Although there were parts of Equal Rites and Wyrd Sisters that I really enjoyed, they are not my favourite Discworld of the novels and I was unenthusiastic about the witches travelling to foreign parts. Was that going to be funny or tedious? But this isn’t just about Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg
“You can't go around building a better world for people. Only people can build a better world for people. Otherwise it’s just a cage. Besides you don’t build a better world by choppin’ heads off and giving decent girls away to frogs.”
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and Magrat going abroad, it’s about them taking on fairy-godmothering and it’s excellent. Exactly the sort of commentary on fairytales that I like.“You can't go around building a better world for people. Only people can build a better world for people. Otherwise it’s just a cage. Besides you don’t build a better world by choppin’ heads off and giving decent girls away to frogs.”
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LibraryThing member tundranocaps
I like this for delving deeper than past witches' book into how Story logic must go.The beginning is slow. Be prepared.
LibraryThing member dickmanikowski
The novels within Terry Pratchett's Discworld series feature different sets of characters. Some, for instance, focus on Commander Vimes and the motley crew that comprises the Night Watch. Others feature the even motlier crew of wizards who comprise the faculty of Unseen University. The figure of
And then there are the witches. A friend says that, for her, these are the best novels in the series. I've been more lukewarm in my feelings toward those books.
Until I read WITCHES ABROAD. Perhaps I now need to go back and reread the Discworld witch-centered novels that I've previously dismissed.
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DEATH (the grim reaper whose speech is always transcribed in ALL CAPS) shows up in many of the novels; indeed, some focus on him and his unusual profession.And then there are the witches. A friend says that, for her, these are the best novels in the series. I've been more lukewarm in my feelings toward those books.
Until I read WITCHES ABROAD. Perhaps I now need to go back and reread the Discworld witch-centered novels that I've previously dismissed.
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LibraryThing member iamiam
While on the surface a fluffy bit of fairy-tale piss-taking, there's a deeper meaning to be found regarding goals, dreams, and what one can and cannot say about 'right' and 'wrong'.
LibraryThing member Lukerik
This is the 3rd witches novel. You can read it by itself but it continues with the ideas of story and fairy tale begun in Wyrd Sisters. So here you've got the Quest, the Evil Twin etc, and of course the Three Witches. And it's there that the beauty of this little book lies, in the superbly drawn
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characters of the witches. Three more exact and well pictured people have rarely been drawn elsewhere in literature. Show Less
LibraryThing member ironicqueery
Terry Pratchett needs to write more books with Witches. He is at his finest when writing dialog between Granny, Nanny, and Magrat, the famous witches in the Discworld novels. It's not many a book that can make me laugh outloud, but the witches' no nonsense talk gets me everytime.
The story focuses
A great book that ranks as one of the best in the Discworld series.
The story focuses
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on a satire/parody of fairy tales and does a good job of keeping things funny without mussing up a well-flowing plot. The reader also gets an insightful look at happy endings and what that entails in the philosophical sense. A great book that ranks as one of the best in the Discworld series.
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LibraryThing member jnicholson
Magrat inherits a fairy god-daughter and must save her from having to go to the ball and marry a prince.
The witches turn into a more engaging set of characters in this narrative, which also introduces more background about Granny Weatherwax's family background.
The witches turn into a more engaging set of characters in this narrative, which also introduces more background about Granny Weatherwax's family background.
LibraryThing member soniaandree
The usual witches are on a mission, and noone should prevent Granny Weatherwax from interfering in the narrative. Magrat inherits the job of fairygodmother; indeed, she sets poor standards in terms of magic. Travelling is not easy, but the action finally settles in an alternate bayou/Louisiana
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swamp place, with Mrs Gogol as the local voodoo witch. Despite their differences, Granny and Mrs Gogol will learn to work together to achieve a satisfying ending. The Story must go on! Show Less
LibraryThing member JapaG
Witches Abroad is the first book in the "Witches" sequence of discworld that I have read. The three main characters in the book are very interesting, and I will probably read more books that the witches in them.
The plot of the book was interesting. It discussed stories (mainly fairy tale stories),
But the plot was too complicated, especially at the end of the book. I could have read a couple less twists and turns, and would have been happy.
This wasn't perhaps the best book to introduce the witches to me, so I'll check the rest and I expect them to be better... :)
The plot of the book was interesting. It discussed stories (mainly fairy tale stories),
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and how they work on Discworld. There were many delightful references to different folk tales and fairy stories in the book.But the plot was too complicated, especially at the end of the book. I could have read a couple less twists and turns, and would have been happy.
This wasn't perhaps the best book to introduce the witches to me, so I'll check the rest and I expect them to be better... :)
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LibraryThing member bexaplex
Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick go to Genua to interfere with a kitchen maid marrying a prince. The witches have a very British empire distaste for traveling, despite being very adaptable.
Baron Samedi seemed a little flat - one whole side of his persona was just left out (virility
Baron Samedi seemed a little flat - one whole side of his persona was just left out (virility
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and debauchery). He's really the spirit of disruption in Mardi Gras (Fat Lunchtime, apparently) so he should have had more part to play in the denouement. Show Less
LibraryThing member love2laf
Although very good, this is not one of my favourite Discworld books, mainly because I don't enjoy the witches as much as I do other characters. Can't remember how many times I've read this book, and this time I got the alligator sandwich joke! It's not easy being slow on the uptake.
LibraryThing member jayne_charles
One of the better books about the Witches....this one packs in as many fairy tale cliches as possible, explains the secret of blacksmithery, and allows Greebo the cat to really build up his part.
LibraryThing member harrietbrown
Things I Learned: "Nanny Ogg, International Linguist"! Life is pretty much the same no matter where you in Discworld, even in foreign parts.
Comments: With breaks in the comedy for serious musings into the workings of the space-time continuum and the nature of stories, Terry Pratchett keeps the
Gytha Ogg, Esme Weatherwax and Magrat Garlick set off on yet another magical adventure that requires they set things right. This time it's a witch who thinks she knows best whom our witches must take down.
This story had lots of unexpected twists and turns, but it all comes right in the end.
Comments: With breaks in the comedy for serious musings into the workings of the space-time continuum and the nature of stories, Terry Pratchett keeps the
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action rolling along in this novel of the witches of Discworld. Gytha Ogg, Esme Weatherwax and Magrat Garlick set off on yet another magical adventure that requires they set things right. This time it's a witch who thinks she knows best whom our witches must take down.
This story had lots of unexpected twists and turns, but it all comes right in the end.
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LibraryThing member polarbear123
A strong adition to the Discworld series - the witches are always comedy and they don't disappoint this time around. Prachett turns the worl of fairy tales on it's head way before Shrek was even thought about and it works. Nanny Ogg and Weatherwax are qualit entertainment all the way through - a
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must read for fans of the series. Show Less
LibraryThing member DRFP
I very much enjoyed the Witches previous Discworld outings but found this novel a little flat. The first half of the novel feels like Pratchett ticking off boxes of fairytales to poke fun at and undermine. It's vaguely amusing but feels too routine for Pratchett. I think the book improves when the
Those criticisms Discworld and the fact I thought Witches Abroad just not that funny compared to other novels in the series meant I finished this one feeling a little underwhelmed.
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heroines arrive in Genua but even then the story feels rather unsatisfying. I think this is largely for two reasons: one is that we see so little of Emberella that there's relatively little reason to care about her fate. Second, I thought Magrat's portrayal as a "wet hen" was a little merciless and it was additionally disappointing when she was given no opportunity to really prove her worth (even if Granny Weatherwax is the star of the show).Those criticisms Discworld and the fact I thought Witches Abroad just not that funny compared to other novels in the series meant I finished this one feeling a little underwhelmed.
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LibraryThing member SimoneA
Another Discworld book that had me laughing out loud in public! In Witches Abroad, the three witches have to travel and play fairy godmother. Except that they have to make sure the girl doesn't marry the prince! This book incorporates many classic fairy tales and gives them a good and funny twist.
Media reviews
Perhaps because the novel's picaresque structure seems commodious rather than contrived, one reads with less of an obtrusive sense of stage machinery being wheeled into place. Still, Pratchett's taste for complicated climactic scenes remains, so that his novels, rather than coming to a point as
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much comedy does, tend to blow apart like a firecracker. Show Less
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Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Paperback)