Book Review: Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett (DIscworld #26)

 What is time to you?

I think we humans, have an interesting way to define our day-to-day experience of “time”. For starters, we have the tendency to attach meanings and values to time. For example, we describe time with expressions such as: “I had a good time”, “this is a perfect moment”, “a waste of time”, “an agonizing moment” (so on and so forth). Then we also request time to behave in certain ways, with expressions such as “I wish time could go faster/slower”, or “I wish there was more time”.

The question is, are we saying these things, because time cares? Or, are we saying these things because we care?

Thief of Time, is the 26^th Discworld novel. Like other Discoworld novels (such as Small Gods), Thief of Time wraps metaphysics and philosophy under the cloth of a comedic, fantasy story. It is a book that appears to be packed with light-hearted fun, where you can loose yourself in the depth of the author's imagination and creative power. At the same time, making you think furiously and seriously about yourself. In other words, this is my kind of book (the best kind of book, in my opinion). Today, I would like to share some of my thoughts about this book in a review.

Synopsis:

In our 21^th century, market economy driven world, “time management” is an essential skill.

It should not be a surprise then, on Discworld, time management is also very important. In fact, time management is treated with such paramount importance on Discworld that, it is a duty literally managed by a group of dedicated, highly skilled experts called the Monks of History. On Discworld, saying you are a History Monk, is like saying “I know Kung Fu”.

Our story began, when a talented young man called Lobsang Ludd joined the Monks of History. Lobsang was placed under the tutelage of the legendary sweeper, Lu Tze, who discovered his late apprentice is a bit unusual. Meanwhile, in the city of Ankh Morpork, a beautiful, mysterious woman commissioned a master clocksmith called Jeremy Clockson, to build the mythical glass clock. This is a device that will bring the end of the Discworld, where the 4+1 Horsemen would ride out into the apocalypse.

Is this the end of Discworld?

What I think about this book:

I enjoyed Thief of Time. Like all other Discworld books, Thief of Time will make you laugh, feeling entertained, but it will also make you think.

I noticed Thief of Time is more plot driven when compared to other Discworld novels I've read in the past. As a result, the multiple sub-plots in Thief of Time converged, and revealed its central plot device quite early in the book. I speculate, some readers may appreciate the structure in Thief of Time, because the pace in in this book feels faster, when comparing to past Discworld novels.

Having said this, I still found Thief of Time a very complex book. While the story is simple, but it is complex because the strengths of the story, lies in the exploration of personalities in this book. Thief of Time is cast with a group of imaginative, memorable characters. Fan favorites such as Death and Susan returned in this book. However, Death is cast as a supporting character in this book, who acted as some sort of a “quest giver”. Susan is as an interesting character as ever. As Death's grand daughter, Susan wrestled between “what is logical” and “what is meaningful”, I think most people can relate with her journey.

This book also brought Lu Tze into the spotlight. He made an appearance in Small Gods, but much about Lu Tze was shrouded in mystery. In Thief of Time, Lu Tze became a major character alongside his apprentice, Lobsang. I like the character of Lu Tze. In this book, Lu Tze is given a Master Yoda/Mr. Miyagi role, to mentor his apprentice Lobsang. The story between this master and his apprentice, is packed with funny moments, but it is also an interesting commentary about education.

I also found the style of humor in Thief of Time, is somewhat different to other Discoworld novels. That is, jokes and humors still scattered throughout the book, but they carry less satirical effects. i.e. other Discworld books often commented on social phenomena, exploring philosophical questions via satires and parodies, but in Thief of Time, these things are (more often) explored via the story and the characterization itself. Despite the slight difference in the style of humor, I still had a broad smile on my face while reading this book.

Overall, each character in Thief of Time is depicted with distinctive, impressionable features. They personified the different aspects of the philosophical/metaphysical conjuncture between science, life, death, history, logic, existence, and religion. This is the type of book that will not just entertain you, but will also make you think. For example, in this book, there is a story about a monk called Wen the Eternally Surprised. When I read about Wen, I laughed real hard, then afterward, I felt the need to change my view about “boredom” (Do you want to know why Wen is called “Eternally Surprised”? I thought the explanation was gold. But Read this book and find out for yourself).

I think Thief of Time is an excellent book. From the first page to the last one, Terry Pratchett captured my imagination with a fun, eccentric world. A living, breathing world inhabited with vividly portrayed, interesting characters. The time I spent reading Thief of Time proved to be an exhilarating ride, full of laughter and thought-provoking moments. When I closed the book, I walked away, and got a few meaningful things out of it. I would highly recommend this book (and the entire Discworld series) to anyone who is looking for some good books to read.