Book:Witches Abroad

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Witches Abroad
Co-author(s) {{{coauthors}}}
Illustrator(s) {{{illustrator}}}
Publisher Victor Gollancz
Publication date November 1991
ISBN 0552134651
Pages 288
RRP {{{rrp}}}
Main characters Granny Weatherwax, Esme Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, Magrat Garlick
Series Witches Series
Annotations View
Notes Book #12
All data relates to the first UK edition.

Blurb

It seemed an easy job ...

After all, how difficult could it be to make sure that a servant girl doesn't marry a prince?

But for the witches Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick, traveling to the distant city of Genua, things are never that simple ...

For one thing, all they've got is Mrs. Gogol's voodoo, a one-eyed cat and a second-hand magic wand that can only do pumpkins. And they're up against the malignant power of the Godmother herself, who has made Destiny an offer it can't refuse. And finally there's the sheer power of the Story. Servant girls have to marry the Prince. That's what life is all about.

You can't fight a Happy Ending.

At least – up until now ...

Characters

Main characters

Minor characters

Cameos and Mentions

Locations

Events and Timeframes

  • Fat Tuesday aka Mardi Gras aka Samedi Nuit Mort (literally, "Saturday Night Dead", parodying the TV show Saturday Night Live
  • Although the Roundworld Carnival and Mardi Gras occur in late winter, just before Lent, Genua's Carnival occurs in the fall; Terry appears to have calqued it upon the Haitian Night of the Dead (All Hallows' Eve), when Voudon worshipers beat drums in cemeteries to awaken the dancing Lord of the Dead Baron Samedi (Saturday) and his troupe of Gede revelers; the Duc's masked ball relates the night to the Halloween tradition.

Items and Concepts

Annotations

  • Even though they're on a presumably "covert" mission, Nanny hands her letters to the nearest passer-by for delivery. Does this seem wise? And none of them arrived before she did.
  • 'In some foreign parts "bum" means "tramp" and "tramp" means "hobo"' - On Roundworld, this is true for American English. The full chain goes something like this: "American [kitty] = British fanny", "American fanny = British bum", "American bum = British tramp", "American tramp = uh, ... lady of easy virtue". Interestingly, we've never seen any part of DiscWorld that's similar to the USA. (Even though the riverboat ride down the Vieux River is irrestibly close to the high life of the antebellum Deep South, what with a floating pleasure palace for the gentry, and slaves, ie chained trolls, providing the motive power to turn the wheels of the boat. Could have been the Mississipi running down to the Delta and N'awlins, y'all...)
  • While traveling down a subterranean river, a creature climbs out of the water on a log, declaring to the witches that, "It's my birthday." This is a reference to the character Gollum from The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings books, who acquired the One Ring on his birthday.
  • While walking down a road paved with yellow bricks, a small farm house lands on Nanny Ogg, the only one of the witches wearing red boots. Shortly afterward, a group of dwarves show up asking if they can have her boots. In The Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the East is crushed by Dorothy Gale's farmhouse and her sparkly red shoes are given to the witchicidal young woman.

External links

Witches Abroad Annotations - The Annotated Pratchett File


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