Equal Rites (#3) by Terry Pratchett

Published: 15 January 1987 (print)/28 April 2022 (audio)
Publisher: Corgi Press/Penguin Audio
Pages: 240/7 hrs and 50 mins
Narrator: Indira Varma, Peter Serafinowicz, Bill Nighy
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fantasy
★   ★   ★   ★ – 4 Stars

The last thing the wizard Drum Billet did, before Death laid a bony hand on his shoulder, was to pass on his staff of power to the eighth son of an eighth son. Unfortunately for his colleagues in the chauvinistic (not to say misogynistic) world of magic, he failed to check on the newborn baby’s sex…

I love Pratchett’s writing style. It’s a lot like Douglas Adams, even a lot like Michael Ende. It’s serious, has important messages, but is absurd and quirky, funny but also has heart. It’s no wonder he’s so revered.

Equal Rites is third book in the Discworld series and is a refreshing tone form the first two which was good but a bit dull.

The miscalculations of giving the 8^th son of an 8^th son wizard magic, when the baby turns out to be a daughter instead is the initial plot problem. Rules are rules is a great way to deal with this, and I loved the journey Esk, Granny Weatherwax and other characters go on dealing with this fact.

There’s a great introduction to the wizarding world, as well as the overall Discworld which was fascinating to discover. The different regions of the world means there’s always something new to learn and different communities to explore.

I loved how much importance Pratchett places on witches and the good they do in the community to help people, while also acknowledging that belief in the magic of witches goes a lot of the way to believing a herb concoction will cure you through magic and not basic science. And believing something will cure you often will.

Celia Emery is the fabulous audiobook narrator and she brings Esq and Granny to life, her great narration style making Pratchett’s words vivid and lively. I always wondered how the footnotes would work in audio form but there’s wizards in our world too and the subtle little differences in tone, voice, and music let you know when a side bit of information has popped up, never once disrupting the flow of the story.

I really loved Granny Weatherwax and her teachings to Esk, the good and the strict. There is a powerful message through this whole book that despite its age is still very Girl Power and feministic. It isn’t enough to overshadow the phenomenal fantasy story, but enough push back to make you realise yes why are these the rules, and of course this is stupid. Which coming from a Pratchett book set ibn Discworld where a lot of this can be silly and intentionally ludicrous, it was refreshing to see a push back against the more serious stupidity. Of course it ends just as silly as it should, but those sprinklings of moments that make you think are a great inclusion.

With a few more well-known Discworld characters introduced in this book I look forward to continuing my journey through the series and getting to know them all better.

You can purchase Equal Rites via the following

QBD |  Dymocks

Wordery |  Blackwell’s

 Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible