Monstrous Regiment

The Monstrous Regiment in question is made up of a vampire, a troll, Igor, a collection of misfits and a young woman who shoves a pair of socks down her pants to join the army. Here you have the characteristically charming novel by Terry Pratchett.

Polly becomes Private Oliver Perks, who is on a quest to find her older brother, who's recently MIA in one of the innumerable wars the tiny nation of Borogravia has a habit of starting with its neighbors. This peevish tendency has all but expended Borogravia's ranks of cannon fodder. Whether Sergeant Jackrum knows her secret or not, he can't afford to be choosy as Perks and her/his comrades are among the last able-bodied recruits left in Borogravia. This collection of misfits includes the aforementioned vampire (reformed and off the blood, thank you), troll, and macabre Igor, who is only too happy to sew you a new leg if you aren't too particular about previous ownership. Off to war, Polly/Oliver learns that having a pair of, um, socks is a good way to open up doors in this man's army.

For those who haven't made this underrated author's acquaintance, Monstrous Regiment is as good a place to start as any. Readers will encounter Pratchett's subtle and disarming wit, his trademark footnoted asides along with a not-too-shabby tale of honor, courage and duty in the face of absurd circumstances. --Jeremy Pugh, Amazon.com

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Disappointing... - Rated
Some Pratchett books I read, re-read and enjoy more each time; "Going Postal" is one of those.

Some I read, and wonder why they fall so short of the high standard I've come to expect from TP. "Monstrous Regiment" is one of those.

Seems like a one-joke book to me. This is one to borrow, not buy!

Spare Socks, Anyone!! - Rated

There must be very little left that has not be said about the genius that is Terry Pratchett. No wonder he is England's best selling living author.
This book has a slightly different slant to many of the Discworld novels but it none the worse for it.

It is about a young girl, Polly Perks who has her own reasons for going to the recruiting sergeant with a pair of socks pushed down her trousers and asking to join "This man's army". Included in her section are a set of misfits including an "Igor" and a reformed vampire and why not.

They all march off with their new sergeant who says he is determined to look after "my boys" and will not let any harm befall them . . .

There is a nice comic twist at the end of the book, maybe you will see it coming and maybe you won't.

Many people try to imitate Pratchett. Take it from me it's impossible.

Not a Discworld Classic - Rated
There are those who will buy this book simply to have it in their Pratchett collection (I did). Fair enough. It is written by Terry Pratchett so it is guaranteed to be smoothly written with wry humour, mild satire and a tragic yet fondly deprecating look at what passes for humanity.

Unfortunately the underlying message and sermon here is delivered with all the integrity of a multi-millionaire pop star protesting about world poverty and the chokingly politically-correct message is as embarrassing as your father dancing at a wedding. As a whole the book is not funny enough to be engaging, with weak slapstick taking the place of the usual witty humour and the characters too thin for you to care about. The plot is just silly, devoid of believability (is that a word?) and barely has enough substance for a short story let alone a novel. The book then ends on a decidedly jingoistic note in complete contrast to the rest of the story and leaves you feeling completely depressed and like you've wasted your time reading it at all.

All in all this book feels awkward and rushed, with the bare bones of an idea but with way too little thought or planning for the standard we expect from this author. Sadly, when you produce such a high quality for so long expectations will rise and Monstrous Regiment fails to reach them.

disappointing! - Rated
The more I've read Pratchett the more I realise that his work is more parody than inventive (unlike Douglas Adams' 'the restaurant at the end of the universe which I'm currently reading which is hilarious). Don't get me wrong, that's an art form in it's own right but when you read a book that's so long and have to wait EVEN LONGER for the next gag to come along it can be a slog. Don't get me wrong I'm a big fan of his and will continue to show interest in his forthcoming work. It's just that considering this is his longest book (albeit by only umpteen pages) I would've expected something better. As it is I may just manage to finish it but there just won't be any rush. After over 400 pages I can only really recall 4 gags and they were weak ones at that..and at an avg of a gag every 100 pages that is pretty poor. Of his later work read Thud instead or even making money as they have far more LOL factor.

Wonderful, one of his best. - Rated
I enjoyed this book massively- its now one of the books in the series that I revisit again and again, like Carpe Jugulum, Mort, Witches abroad... I rather like it when Pratchett takes us off to an unknown corner of the discworld, as he does here. The character of Polly is fantastic, as a female fan I love his women characters, I dont know much about his personal life but I'm guessing he must have a daughter as he writes so brilliantly from a feminine point of view. Just when you think you've anticipated all there is to come, Pratchett throws a sly suprise or two in towards the end. All in all a refreshing, funny but poignant story. Complete thumbs up.