Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Whizbang Dustyboots" data-source="post: 9862228" data-attributes="member: 11760">Ankh-Morpork never stops being Lankhmar. For that matter, almost no fantasy cities do (unless they're trying to be Gondor). It's a lot harder to find a non-Lankhmar city in the Forgotten Realms than to find a Lankhmar-derived one, for instance. (Also see City of Greyhawk, CISO, Ptolus and countless others.)I'm also not sure if being a parody is really an issue. The Last Hero, which I believe is Cohen's last appearance, is Asterix-level parody of the Greek gods, but it's also about aging, death and (again) gender roles. Lots of great work throughout history have been parodies while also being fantastic on their own merits.I think that helps make Small Gods what I would call the single best Discworld novel. If he had never written any other Discworld novels, it would still be a classic.I'm reaching this period in my re-read. As I recall, it was clear that there was a little less polish and a little less complexity in these coming books. I his final books would definitely have been better had Pratchett not been ravaged by the disease. I also think that Shepherd's Crown is probably a little stronger than the few books preceding it, if only because Pratchett was clearly aware it was probably the end and had some stuff to say about it.</blockquote>