A Comprehensive Guide for Reading the Discworld 🦧

Over the years, I have had many readers of my blog ask me about where I would start with Terry Pratchett/the Discworld series as a whole. I know his series is one that many would love to read but there are just so many books. So this post, is going to be a detailed look at his series as a whole and the many ways to read through it.

“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it's the other way around.” Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett

 

 

 Terry Pratchett: The Author 

 

Sir Terry Pratchett was known for his absurdist humor, fantastical worlds, and satire. His best known series was the Discworld which includes 41 books and many different companion books. Other popular books by Terry Pratchett are The Carpet People (his first published novel), Nation, Dodger, Good Omens (which he wrote with NG, though the majority of the book was written by Terry), The Bromeliad Trilogy, The Johnny Maxwell Trilogy, The Long Earth series (a science fiction series he wrote with Stephen Baxter), and so many other books.

Terry Pratchett is my favorite author. Over the years, I have read over 60 of his books and adore his writing style. He has been one of my biggest inspirations as a writer ever since I first picked up my first Discworld book back in 2017. I cannot believe it has been about nine years. 

 

 "The place where the story happened was a world on the back of four elephants perched on the shell of a giant turtle. That's the advantage of space. It's big enough to hold practically anything, and so, eventually, it does.
People think that it is strange to have a turtle ten thousand miles long and an elephant more than two thousand miles tall, which just shows that the human brain is ill-adapted for thinking and was probably originally designed for cooling the blood. It believes mere size is amazing.
There's nothing amazing about size. Turtles are amazing, and elephants are quite astonishing. But the fact that there's a big turtle is far less amazing than the fact that there is a turtle anywhere."- The Last Hero by Terry Pratchett

 

Welcome to the Discworld

 Many of the Discworld novels start with a description similar to the one above. They take place on a flat, circular world which sits on the backs of four elephants, which are standing on the back of a giant turtle named the Great A'Tuin. Terry used this fantastical world and humor to show very human issues.

Reading in Publication Order 📚

 There are many methods of figuring out what order to read the Discworld books. If you would like to see the books in the order that Terry wrote them, so you can see how his writing and world evolved with time, I would recommend the publication order. The series started in 1983 and continued until 2015. This is the method I chose to read the books and I enjoyed my time doing so. It was always a joy to pick up a new book in the series. I cannot say I loved ever single book, but I enjoyed most of them. Also, I will say that it took a a few books for Terry to really get into his style, so the earlier books do not show the full extent of his writing abilities. The series only gets better with time. 

  

 

 Reading the Subseries 📖

Another method of reading the books is through the subseries. The Discworld Series is divided into ARCs or Subseries, which each focus on a set of characters. They each can be read by themselves, though there is some overlap between them, but they are independent enough to stand on their own. I would recommend reading from the subseries that sounds the most interesting to you. Then, you would read the first book in it. Here are all of the subseries with information about each. 

Rincewind/ The Wizards of Unseen University Books: 

The Wizards of Unseen University/Rincewind books focus on the adventures and antics of the wizards both at their university and all over the Discworld. Many of these books specifically focus on the most inept wizard of them all Rincewind. The Wizards also appear in a few of the other books in the series including: Equal Rites and Hogfather.

Witch Books:

My favorite of the subseries is probably the Witch books. The books focus on magic and are set primarily around the country town of Lancre. It's interesting to see how different witch magic is from the wizards. The Wizards also make appearances in some of these books. 

 

 

 

Death Books:  

The character who appears in almost every book in the Disworld series is Death. He is a parody of many different personifications of death. He looks like most Grim Reapers, a skeleton dressed in a black robe, and carrying a scythe to reap souls. Unlike other depictions of death, Terry Pratchett's Death contemplates what it means to be human, adopts a human child, and loves cats. Most of his books focus on him and his adopted Granddaughter Susan Sto Helit.

 

The City Watch Books:  

The Ankh-Morpork City Watch is a fictional police force who are in the city-state Ankh-Morpork. They are often called The City Watch, The Watch, and were formally called The Night Watch. These books are some of the most popular in the series because of the strong character development, especially for Sam Vimes. Terry uses both parody and deep satire on police procedurals throughout the subseries. 

 

Standalone Books:

The first two of the standalone Discworld novels deal with gods. 

 

Pyramids takes place in the kingdom of Djelibeybi, which is the Discworld's equivalent to Ancient Egypt. It focuses on the new pharaoh Teppic, who has to take up the throne after his father dies. Teppic spends the novel trying to figure out how to be the next pharaoh, though he has some problems because he was trained in Ankh-Morpork's assassins' school. It also deals with a high priest named Dios, who "interprets" what the gods are saying for the pharaohs for many years. He is basically the ruler of the kingdom. This is one of my favorite Discworld books though it is not very popular. 
 

"In the beginning was the Word.

And the Word was: 'Hey, you!' "- Small Gods by Terry Pratchett 🐢

 

Small Gods is another of the standalone Discworld books that deals with the gods. It is one of the books that many people recommend for a good starting point in the series. I thought that Terry's his look at religion and its many forms was quite entertaining and insightful. His commentary about religious upbringings and also powerful religious figureheads was a great mix of poignancy and satire. This gets dark at times but Terry knew how to balance these topics in a way that makes the reader not only think about it all but also think about their own beliefs. I really liked that he wasn't leaning towards one point of view in this book. 
 

The other standalone book in the Disworld is The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents. It is the first young adult book in the series. This book focuses on a cat named Maurice who is able to talk because he ate a rat who previously ate magical garbage from The Unseen University. The story is a clever retelling of the Pied Piper, where Maurice is the mastermind behind it all. It also has a book within the book which was a wonderful addition to the story. 
 

The Industrial Revolution Books: 

The Industrial Revolution books bring new technology to the Discworld. Each book focuses on something new such as: movies, newspapers, fixing the mail, banks, trains, etc. The books Going Postal, Making Money, and Raising Steam all are part of the Moist Von Lipwig arc. Moist is a con artist and a fraud who is given the choice: be hanged or fix the Ankh-Morpork post office, in the novel Going Postal. 
 
Going Postal is considered one of the many great starting points for the series. It is definitely one of my favorite books in the series.  

 

 

Tiffany Aching Books:  

The other young adult books in the Discworld series. These focus on the character Tiffany Aching as she learns how to be a witch. The first book starts when she is nine years old and the series follows her until she's in her late teens. These books are connected to the Witch subseries and I highly recommend reading them after those books. 

 

 

Commonly Recommended Starting Places

Guards! Guards!, Small Gods, and Going Postal are some of the most recommended starting places in the series. They are some of the best books and really show Terry's writing style. I would definitely recommend them myself, though there are plenty of other places to start.

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”- A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett

 

Important Days for Terry Pratchett Fans

 

Here are some dates that many Terry Pratchett fans decide to honor Terry and read one of his many different books. 

 

- March 12th- The day he passed away. Many fans memorialize him by using the phrase GNU Terry Pratchett. GNU comes from his book Going Postal. It's a way of keeping his name alive. 

- Terry Pratchett Day: April 28th- His birthday

- The Glorious 25th of May- In honor of one of his books Night Watch. Many fans were a lilac. This day also coincides with another popular day in the sci-fi/fantasy community: Towel Day which is in honor of Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. 

 

Final Thoughts

I hope this helps out anyone interested in learning a little more about The Discworld. It is a series I have been loving for about nine years now and I know it will always be a favorite. I've been thinking about starting a complete reread of the series pretty soon. Over the years, I've reread many of the books but never the entire thing.

Happy Reading!

A to Z Bookish Tag 2026 🔖

I have done this tag many different times on my blog over the years. The last time was in January 2024. It's interesting to see how my answers have changed over the years.

The tag was originally created by: Perpetual Page Turner 

A- Author you've read the most from:

    ~ Terry Pratchett- I have read over 60 of Terry's books. Most of these books are a part of the Discword or companions to the series.

B- Best Sequel Ever: 

   ~  Hogfather by Terry Pratchett- This is the 20th book in the Discworld series and is a favorite of mine. There are so many great books in the series. I reread Hogfather every year at Christmastime. It is the perfect book to get me in the mood for the season and I just adore it. 

C- Currently Reading:

   ~ Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett- I started this book earlier this month and put it down for a while. Started it again last night and I'm hoping I finish it soon. 

D- Drink of Choice While Reading:

    ~ Hot Green Tea

E- Ereader or Physical book:

    ~ Physical book, though I do like reading on my Kindle.

F- Fictional character you like the best:

    ~ Granny Weatherwax from the Discword series by Terry Pratchett and Hoid from the Cosmere by Brandon Sanderson

G- Glad you gave this book a chance: 

    ~ Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte- I was spoiled for many of the major plot points of Jane Eyre back in college. One of my friends had read it in one of her classes. She hated the book and told me a lot of the plot, though she did not remember the name of the book. 

    ~ So a few years later, I got the book My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows. I decided to try to read Jane Eyre before reading it, since it is a retelling of the book. I got to about a 100 pages and could not get into the writing style, so I put the book down. Instead, I just read My Plain Jane and was surprised by how much of the plot I already knew and realized Jane Eyre was the book my friend had been talking about. 

    ~ Last year, I decided to finally pick up the book again and absolutely adored it. It is a favorite classic for me and I cannot wait to reread it in the near future.

H- Hidden Gem book:

    ~ Insanity series by Cameron Jace- One of my favorite series for the last ten years has been the Insanity series. It is a dark and twisted take on the world of Wonderland. These books are very entertaining.

I- Important Moment in your reading life:

    ~ Finding the many reader and writing communities that I was a part of or still am a part of. They bring a lot of joy to my life. 

J- Just finished:

    ~ The Poet X  by Elizabeth Acevedo- Such a wonderful book! 

K- Kinds of Books you don't read:

    ~ Science heavy science fiction

    ~ Most horror- This depends on the book

    ~ Westerns

    ~ Most thrillers

L- Longest book you've read:
  

    ~  Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (1463 pages)

M- Major book hangover because of: 

    ~ I have not had a "book hangover" in quite a long time. Sure there have been plenty of books which have made me think of them long after I finished them, but none in a long time that made me not want to pick up more. . 

N- Number of bookcases you own: 

    ~ Six full

    ~ Three smaller ones and some shelves

O- One book you have read multiple times:
 

    ~ I am a lover of rereading so there are a lot of books I have reread over the years. Here are some of my favorites.     

 

        ~ The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

 

        ~ Many of the books in the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett

 

             ~ (Hogfather, Eric, Wyrd Sisters, etc.)

        ~ Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones     

 

        ~ A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

        ~ Caught Running by Madeline Urban and Abigail Roux   

  

        ~ Thirty Things by Cate Ashwood

        ~ The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer

        ~ Inkworld trilogy by Cornelia Funke

 

        ~ And so many others 

P- Preferred Place to Read:

    ~ My bed, our couch, or the chair in my office. 

Q- Quote that inspires you/ gives you all the feels from a book you read:

    ~ “If you take a book with you on a journey," Mo had said when he put the first one in her box, "an odd thing happens: The book begins collecting your memories. And forever after you have only to open that book to be back where you first read it. It will all come into your mind with the very first words: the sights you saw in that place, what it smelled like, the ice cream you ate while you were reading it... yes, books are like flypaper—memories cling to the printed page better than anything else.”-Inkheart by Cornlia Funke

R- Reading regret: 

    ~ Not reading Little Women by Louisa May Alcott before I did

S- Series you started and need to finish:

    ~ There are many differently series I have started over the years and would like to finish soon. Here are some of those series.

        ~ Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde- 3/7 At the moment there are only seven books in this series, but I do believe there is going to be eight by the end of year. The eighth is going to be the last book.

        ~ The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden- 1/3

        ~ The first arc of The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson- 3/5

        ~ The Saint of Steel series by T. Kingfisher- 1/4 I started this series in January, but would like to finish it soon.  

T- Ten of your all time favorite books:

    ~ This list changes quite often, but here it is as of today: 

        ~ Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones- My all-time favorite

        ~ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

        ~ Hogfather by Terry Pratchett

        ~ Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

        ~ The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

        ~ The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

        ~ The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

        ~ Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

        ~ A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher        

         ~ Slaughterhouse- Five by Kurt Vonnegut

U- Unapologetic fangirl for: 

 

    ~ Greek Mythology, Fairy Tale, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and other classic retellings

    ~Time Travel stories/Books that Play with Time

    ~ The Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett

    ~ The Oz series by L. Frank Baum

    ~ Diana Wynne Jones's books- specifically the Chrestomanci series and the Howl's Moving Castle trilogy

    ~ The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer

    ~ Poetry- especially books told in verse

    ~ Books with unique formatting- such as epistolary novels

    ~ Insanity Series by Cameron Jace- This goes along with the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland retellings, but this one is definitely the top for me in that category.

    ~ My favorite classics- The Great Gatsby, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Little Women,  Slaughterhouse-Five, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Odyssey, Jane Eyre, Peter Pan, etc. 

V- Very excited for these releases more than any others:

    ~  The Adventure Zone Vol 7: Story and Song by Clint McElroy, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Travis McElroy, and illustrated by Carey Pietsch- This is my most anticipated release of the entire year. I have been eagerly awaiting this final volume in the series since I read the sixth in 2024.

 

    ~ Lore Olympus Volumes 10 & 11 by Rachel Smythe- I'm looking forward to the conclusion of the Lore Olympus graphic novel series. The final book comes out in October.

    ~ Daggerbound (Swordheart #2) by T. Kingfisher- I'm excited to read any new book that T. Kingfisher is writing, especially in the World of the White Rat.

 

    ~ The Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia by Leia Haim- I cannot wait for this book. It looks like it is going to be wonderful. Especially Leia's illustrations.

    ~ Styx: The River (Goddesses of the Underworld #2) by Nikita Gill- Nikita Gill is my favorite poet. I'm looking forward to reading about Styx's story.

    ~ The Secret World of Briar Rose by Cindy Pham- I have been looking forward to this ever since Cindy first talked about it in one of her Booktube videos.  

   

    ~ This Immortal Heart by Jennifer Saint- Loved Hera and I've been wanting a retelling about Aphrodite for a long time.

    ~ The Witch Queen (The Crimson Crown #2) by Heather Walter- The Crimson Crown was one of my favorite books of 2024 and I have been very excited to read this final book in the duology. 

W- Worst bookish habit:

    ~ Not dnfing books I know I'll never get into- I have gotten a lot better at doing this and I'm glad that I do. It greatly helps with not getting into slumps.

X-  X Marks the spot (start at the top of your self and pick the 27 book):

    ~ Rose by Russel T. Davies.- This is the 27th book on the book shelves in my office. It is a novelization of the first episode of the Ninth Doctor's Arc in Doctor Who. Such a wonderful book!

Y- Your latest book purchase:

    ~ This Winter by Alice Oseman- The last time I bought books was at a library book sale last month. My favorite from that trip was was this book, which I have been wanting to get for my Alice Oseman/Heartstopper book collection. I recently read it and loved it so much. Cannot believe the Heartstopper webcomic is going to be ending in April. I have been reading it for about nine years now. 

Z-  ZZZ Snatcher book (the last book that kept you up way late): 
  

    ~ This Wretched Beauty by Elle Grenier- I just finished reading this book on the 10th. I didn't love it as much as I wanted to.