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I miss them

#eskarina smith #simon discworld #discworld #equal rites #my art #art #idk if ill finish this #terry pratchett

some equal rites tomfoolery.. i really liked this book

#discworld #simon discworld #eskarina smith #potatart #discworld witches #equal rites #i cant quite put into words what exactly i like about this book. i think sir pratchett handled the topic he was writing about with care #and as a trans person i think esk really stuck out to me. theyre great #they very much read as nonbinary to me and i think thats wonderful #also; i think simon can be a trans egg. for fun. as a treat #i do not have proof for this aside from vibes #and that part in the book where esk asked “what if a woman became a wizard” and simon smiled at the question #i know how that line is supposed to be interpreted. but still #there is no harm in having a little fun #“wow esk where did you find such a long bacon?” “long bacon store”#i like discworld a lot........

Discworld Project 3

Equal Rites

Equal Rites is a bit of a stumble for some folks. It's technically the start of the witches series, but a lot of folks put it down to the 'old discworld weirdness' and recommend Wyrd Sisters instead. But I see a lot of value in this novel.

I'll say it straight out, Eskarina Smith is WONDERFUL. She is, bar none, my favorite Discworld character, most certainly my favorite Discworld Protagonist. She's funny, adorable, and entertaining from the first moment you meet her to the moment she says her final word. I love her.

The book's focus on her learning to become a witch, showing her wizarding tendencies in both magic and behavior is so very flavorful, and as her magic grows you see more of her character expressed in the things she doesn't *actively* do, but passively does with her magic.

The adventure she has to get to Ankh Morpork is a treat. I love all of the characters she meets along the way. Treatle is perfectly up his own ass, Simon is kind but misguided, the Zoon are an absolute treat (if somewhat problematic in how they're described). And the whole bit with the broom is hilarious.

Granny Weatherwax, in her debut role, is not particularly fleshed out yet. She's not the all-powerful mind bending witch we see later, but a bit rough around the edges, and, at points, too passive or too weird or not right. It works for this novel though.

The whole of it is just enjoyable, exciting, funny, and so cute. A really good start to the witches series.

And then the third act starts.

Some people say this book is just not up to snuff with the rest of the series. I disagree with them! I think it's a fantastic novel, which throws itself off a cliff for no reason the moment Esk gets to Ankh Morpork.

The wizards? Infuriating. Awful. Granny? An absolute pushover, annoyingly passive especially to Cutangle. Simon? He's good in the first scene he's in, and proves to have as much chemistry with Esk in the third act as Oil and Water. He's awful to her, and she falls in love with him? It's ridiculous.

And then, it ends, and none of it even matters. Esk is brought up, perhaps, once in the entire series after this. Everything about this adventure was meaningless and doesn't affect anything about the Wizards going forward.

The way Esk fawns over Simon and how Granny even slightly falls for Cutangle's shtick (despite him continuously being just the absolute worst) undermines everything the book had set up thus far, and the ending leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

There are very few portions of Discworld I hesitate to read, portions that actively upset me. But lord all mighty it took me a DAY to get through the third act because I enjoyed it that little. The book would be an A if it had a serviceable third act, it'd be an S to me if it was a good ending, maybe even my favorite if it was a VERY good ending. But the third act of this book, and its impact on the series (that being: none whatsoever) forces me to give it a C on the whole. I ADORE Esk, and I LOVE the first two thirds of this book, but. Yeah.

Eskarina Smith, I will remember you always...

I give Equal Rites a C