Going Postal
by Terry Pratchett
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Book Summary Information
Author: Terry PratchettEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-09-27
ISBN: 0060502932
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: HarperTorch
Book Reviews of Going Postal
Book Review: "Neither rain nor snow nor glom of nit..."
Summary: 5 Stars
It's a challenge to review more than a few of Terry Pratchett's books without succumbing to repetition along the way. The consistent excellence of his writing is such that, over time, the reviewer would have to thumb thru several thesaurus editions or, else, resort to echoing oneself ad nauseam in the use of superlatives. For the first time (and it won't be the last), let me laud Mr. Pratchett for his incisive wit, his satiric humor, and his persistent insightfulness. I've read just about everything this man's written (including his non-Discworld novels) but haven't had the chance to comment on any of 'em. So why not start with one of my favorite Pratchett books and, I believe, one of his best, GOING POSTAL?
Now, I love stories about confidence men and the world of the sting, with its high-brow swindles and its street corner bunco games (like Find the Lady). I get a kick out of the verbal dexterity involved, the impeccable sense of illusion and timing necessitated, and the nonconforming lifestyle required of the bullsh*t artist. I guess the idea of the con man is so appealing to regular schmucks like you and me because, for a bit of time, we can step out of our drab existence and become immersed in a world seen thru the eyes of our slick protagonist. Thru him or her, we revel in the upper hand we hold over the clueless marks - marks who, in the real world, would comprise of us, of you and me. This now brings us to Moist von Lipwig.
Moist von Lipwig may be burdened with a dubious name but, in all else, he fits the criteria of our crooked hero. GOING POSTAL opens up with the imminent hanging of gifted con man and all around fraud Moist von Lipwig, an act which actually takes place and provides the impetus for this novel. He survives the noose, thanks to the machinations of Ankh-Morpork's Machiavellian ruler (some say tyrant), Lord Vetinari, who then gives Moist the choice of either re-establishing the basically defunct Ankh-Morpork Central Post Office...or walking out a suspiciously offered doorway. Moist, himself a creature of deviousness, errs on the side of caution and opts to become the new Postmaster General. Lord Vetinari sends him on his way but in the company of the inexorable golem, Mr. Pump, who will act as his parole officer.
But getting the post office legitimately back on its feet is a more strenuous task than Moist had anticipated. With the postal service bearing the stigma of long disuse and disfavor, Moist faces the grim reality of mountains of undelivered mail gracing (or disgracing) his new workplace. Then there's the disturbing news that recent postmasters have mysterious "expired" in the handling of their duties. Further obstacles surface: sepulchral voices with insistent demands, an enigmatic pigeon-munching assassin, the watchmen, the press, the Order of the Post, a collection of arthritic postal hangers-on whose rigorous and weird exam Moist must pass...But the most daunting opposition confronting Moist just may be the understatedly malevolent Reacher Gilt, board chairman of the Grand Trunk semaphore company (aka "the clacks"). So, all that, and with the seemingly omniscient Lord Vetinari keeping tabs on his every move...well, it's a good thing Moist has always had a tendency to *ahem* push the envelope.
Terry Pratchett has been plying his trade now for over a quarter of a century, and, in that time, he's honed his satiric wit to a sharp, sharp edge. GOING POSTAL is more of the same superb stuff. Just as THE TRUTH satirically established a newspaper presence on Discworld, so does GOING POSTAL undertake the tongue-in-cheek development of the postal service in Ankh-Morpork. Here, Pratchett delightfully pokes fun at con men, corporate crime, the post office, the Internet, secret fraternities, New Age medicine, the hobbyist's psyche, and the people's sheep mentality.
This British dude has a way with words. To quote from GOING POSTAL: "What kind of man would put a known criminal in charge of a major branch of government? Apart from, say, the average voter" or "the city never did more than doze, and would wake up around three A.M. for a glass of water." Good stuff. Humorous stuff. Penetrating stuff. But what makes Pratchett's stories more than mere parodies and satires is the fine character development he infuses in his works. True, he works thru his characters and the events which befall them to point out the silliness and incongruities of some of our everyday conventions, but Pratchett also gives a damn about his Discworld denizens and imbues them with a decided depth. In the midst of smiling, smirking, and laughing at his keen observations, the reader very often finds oneself caring for his characters. So, while appreciating the author's perceptive scoffing at society, I was even more gripped by Moist von Lipwig's personal story arc and his more or less reluctant quest for redemption. Pratchett writes him convincingly and sympathetically, warts and all. A con man all his life, Moist had been peripherally aware of the damage he's caused with his illicit perpetrations but is usually long gone from the scene of the crime so he's been able to somewhat bury his conscience. It's only when he's forced to remain in Ankh-Morpork for a protracted length of time that he comes face to face with the the consequences of his past crimes. His turning over a new leaf comes slow as molasses but is well worth the wait for the reader. Truly a great character.
Pratchett surrounds Moist with a diverting supporting cast: the unswerving Mr. Pump, the lovely, cigarette-inclined Miss Dearheart, Mr. Groat and his medicinal aroma, Stanley and his little "moments," the frightening Lord Vetinari, etc. The author even throws in a romantic subplot, something of which he doesn't do a lot (with the exception of Captain Carrot's courtship of Angua in other books). With a suspenseful story that moves at a breakneck pace and even veers into John Henry territory near the end, you'll tear thru GOING POSTAL faster than a message is sped thru the Discworld clacks system.
I've read GOING POSTAL three times now and it hasn't yet lost its magic. Moist von Lipwig has quickly become one of my favorite inhabitants of Discworld (after Commander Vimes, Captain Carrot, and Death). The good news is that von Lipwig is slated to star in Pratchett's upcoming novel MAKING MONEY (October 2007), wherein Moist is handpicked by the Patrician to take over the Ankh-Morpork Royal Mint. I honestly cannot wait.
In the meanwhile, I think I'll invest in some thesauruses...
Summary of Going Postal
Suddenly, condemned arch-swindler Moist von Lipwig found himself with a noose around his neck and dropping through a trapdoor into ... a government job?
By all rights, Moist should be meeting his maker rather than being offered a position as Postmaster by Lord Vetinari, supreme ruler of Ankh-Morpork. Getting the moribund Postal Service up and running again, however, may prove an impossible task, what with literally mountains of decades-old undelivered mail clogging every nook and cranny of the broken-down post office. Worse still, Moist could swear the mail is talking to him. Worst of all, it means taking on the gargantuan, greedy Grand Trunk clacks communication monopoly and its bloodthirsty piratical headman. But if the bold and undoable are what's called for, Moist's the man for the job -- to move the mail, continue breathing, get the girl, and specially deliver that invaluable commodity that every being, human or otherwise, requires: hope.
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