A Novel Approach - The Wee Free Men

Terry Pratchett is probably one of the most prolific writers of our time. And if you’re someone who likes to read a series from beginning to end, you’ll find plenty to amuse you in his Discworld series. However, if you don’t like the first book and never read another one, you’ll miss the four books about Tiffany Aching.

In The Wee Free Men we first meet Tiffany at age nine who is a witch-wanna-be. Living in the Chalk with nothing to do but care for her little brother, her most obvious talent is making cheese, which is an odd way to begin a fantasy book about witches. At this point you may say, “I’m not interested in books about witches,” and move on to something more to your liking. However, I think that would be a mistake because Pratchett takes the idea of being a witch in a totally unique direction. How different? It would be as if he invited you to tea and then served Diet Coke instead. If I were to tell you that most of Tiffany’s apprenticeship about becoming a witch is learning to use common sense along with critical and analytical thinking as opposed to magic, you may reconsider, which I encourage you to do.

Mr. Pratchett says it best in the following trailer:

There are four books in the series (A Hat Full of Sky, Wintersmith, I Shall Wear Midnight) and Tiffany is about two years older in each one. The themes get increasingly complex and Tiffany has to figure out what to do to resolve the problem she faces. She gets help from the Nac Mac Feegles, also known has the wee free men, although she continues to insist they keep their distance. These tiny, Scottish blue members of a clan are a delightful side story to Tiffany’s development as a young adult and as a witch.

Each book is extremely well written with lots of humor and adults will find them captivating as well. Pratchett seems to do the crossover thing better than most. The following trailer, done in a charming Lego setting, gives you a synopsis of The Wee Free Men. If you like to listen to books while driving, I think Audible has the very best version.

Keep reading after the trailer for today’s movie tip on The Hunger Games and the link to the ongoing book giveaway contest.



Today’s Hunger Games movie trivia tip:  The boots Jennifer Lawrence wears throughout the movie were personally selected by her. She knew she would have to do a lot of her own stunts, so she wanted to ensure they were comfortable.  Remember to enter The Hunger Games book giveaway contest by clicking on this link. Simply go to the bottom of the post to enter!

Hunger Games Book Giveaway