Going Postal by Terry Pratchett

Somehow I had always thought that Terry Pratchett wrote straight-ahead alternative world science fiction, in the vein of Larry Niven and suchlike. Thus, I was surprised when I read somewhere on the Internet that he is considered a comic novelist and that his Discworld series is more akin to Douglas Adam's Hitchhiker series. Sure enough, I find him to be very funny, indeed.

For the few who are as clueless as I was, Discworld is an alternate reality very much like our own, except for the existence of magic and magical creatures like werewolves and vampires and banshees and golems and suchlike. The technology is a bit different, but the people and their motivations are pretty much the same.

Our hero in this installment is a petty conman who is reprieved from hanging only to be sent to work in the post office (a fate worse than death?), where he soon finds himself embroiled in a conflict with the white-collar conman who heads the clacks communication monopoly (think a more primitive e-mail). Hijinks ensue.

Pratchett uses all the gadgets in the comedy toolbox: we have satire of corporate greed and other current issues; we have ridiculous situations and misadventures; we have wacky characters with funny names (the love interest is named Adora Belle Dearheart); we have puns and plays-on-words (the title, for instance); we have, most of all, a constant stream of little jokes, mostly one-liners, which are variously chuckle-worthy, smile-worthy, or groan-worthy. My favorite one-liner characterizes democracy as a "vote-yourself-rich system." Isn't that the truth. Being vertically challenged myself, I also liked the part about the dwarfs and the "Campaign for Equal Heights," with the prohibitions against using terms like "small talk" and "feeling small."

The plot is actually very interesting and suspenseful, in contrast to many comic novels, as the reader wonders how in the world the hero is going to defeat his powerful opponent.

Pratchett has written over 30 Discworld novels and is one of the most popular writers in Britain. I will certainly keep him in mind for the next time I feel in need of some good laughs.