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“You know what day it is, Ping?” said Colon. “Er…25th of May, Sarge.” “And you know what that means, Ping?” “Er…” “It means,” said Nobby, “that anyone important enough to ask where we’re going—” “—knows where we’ve gone,” said Fred Colon. The door slammed behind them.

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Happy 35 years of Good Omens! I had no idea what I was getting into when I bought this book 33 years ago. Many thanks and much love to the fandom, please never stop 🧡

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Rincewind, part 2. And a very happy Terry Pratchett Day to one and all! Remember that who you are comes from inside you, and isn't defined by anyone else 🧡

He objected to the fact that you had to be good at magic to be a wizard. He knew he was a wizard, deep in his head. Being good at magic didn’t have anything to do with it. That was just an extra, it didn’t actually define somebody. -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

“Fine,” she said, over her shoulder. “Stay here and explain it to the guards.” “Why are they chasing you?” “I don’t know.” “Oh, come on! There must be a reason!” “Oh, there’s plenty of reasons. I just don’t know which one. Are you coming?” -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

“I was watching you,” she said. “An hour ago you were afraid that your future was going to be dull and uninteresting.” “I want it to be dull and uninteresting,” said Rincewind bitterly. “I’m afraid it’s going to be short.” -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

The death of all wizardry is at hand. Rincewind looked around guiltily. “Why?” he said. The world is going to end. “What, again?” -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

Do you ever understand anything anyone says to you? Rincewind felt on firmer ground here. “No,” he said. “Not always. Not lately. Not often.” “Are you sure you are a wizard?” said Conina. “It’s the only thing I’ve ever been sure of,” he said, with conviction. “How strange.” -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

Who are you? Rincewind, thought Rincewind. And in the inner recesses of his head he tried to think privately to himself…help. -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

Rincewind turned to Conina, who was leaning on the rail examining her fingernails. “You’d better get on with it,” she said. “That’s fifty green fires and hot leads to go, with a side order for blisters and scorpions. Hold the mercy.” “This sort of thing is always happening to me,” he moaned. -- Terry Pratchett, Sourcery

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You can’t really see Isabelle’s picture in the link preview so here are some more. She has brought so much joy in the few months since she was born.

This is my longtime friend's first grandbaby. Isabelle is 4.5 months old and was very recently diagnosed with neuroblastoma. She has already undergone one surgery, and had some complications during that. She will probably need at least one more surgery, and chemo.

I know her family personally, and they are good people, and they don't have a lot to spare, and this is an insanely horrible thing for anyone to go through even if they didn't have to worry about money.

Please donate or boost if you can, anything helps. Thank you.

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This is my longtime friend's first grandbaby. Isabelle is 4.5 months old and was very recently diagnosed with neuroblastoma. She has already undergone one surgery, and had some complications during that. She will probably need at least one more surgery, and chemo.

I know her family personally, and they are good people, and they don't have a lot to spare, and this is an insanely horrible thing for anyone to go through even if they didn't have to worry about money.

Please donate or boost if you can, anything helps. Thank you.

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“Why did he have to go to prison?” “We put all our politicians in prison as soon as they’re elected. Don’t you?” “Why?” “It saves time.”

— Terry Pratchett, The Last Continent

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Terry Pratchett vs. Douglas Adams*:

After all, no one would bother to deny something if it didn't exist, would they? — Terry Pratchett, The Truth

By means of an ingenious series of strategically deployed denials of the most exciting and exotic things, he was able to create the myth that he was a psychic, mystic, telepathic, fey, clairvoyant, psychosassic vampire bat. What did “psychosassic” mean? It was his own word and he vigorously denied that it meant anything at all. ― Douglas Adams, Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

Classically, very few people have considered that cleanliness was next to godliness, apart from in a very sternly abridged dictionary. ― Terry Pratchett, The Truth

"Luckily," he went on, "you have come to exactly the right place with your interesting problem, for there is no such word as 'impossible' in my dictionary. In fact," he added, brandishing the abused book, "everything between 'herring' and 'marmalade' appears to be missing." — Douglas Adams, Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

*I am absolutely not accusing anybody of anything; I believe Sir Terry never read Douglas Adams' books, certainly not the Dirk Gently series. I just think the parallels are funny.

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Of apes and bananas:

Apes had it worked out. No ape would philosophize, "The mountain is, and is not." They would think, "The banana is. I will eat the banana. There is no banana. I want another banana." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

"The Librarian will have some bananas," said Rincewind. "Are you sure?" said Macarona. "I think the Librarian has a motto in these cases: 'If you try to take my bananas from me, I will reclaim them from your cold dead hands.'" -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

It was later agreed that, in a footballing context, mysteriously appearing fruit should have been greeted with a certain amount of caution. But he was hungry, it was a banana and the metaphysics were sound. He ate it. -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Mister Nutt, defying expectations.

"You two have a history, I think," said Nutt. "You are a sharp one, aren’t you? Quiet and sharp. Like a knife. Yeah, I suppose it was a history. I wanted it to be more of a geography, but she kept slappin’ my hand." Trev paused to search for any flicker in Nutt’s face. "That was a joke," he added, without much hope. "Thank you for telling me, Mister Trev. I will decipher it later." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

"No," said Nutt. "I read the works of the masters in the library all by myself. But she did tell me that people, too, were a kind of living book, and I would have to learn to read them." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

Watching Nutt look up was like watching the sun rise, but a hesitant sun afraid that any moment the gods might slap it back down into the night, and hungry for reassurance that this would not be so. -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

"Excuse me, I have a question, if you would be so good?" Looks like a bag of second-hand clothes, talks like a retired theologian, Ponder thought. "Ask away, Mister Nutt." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Okay this comic, but make it Crowley and Aziraphale planning what to do about the Second Coming, and Crowley says, "Yeah, I'm not really sure about steps 1 and 3."

copyright Sidney Harris Inc

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Unexpectedly charmed by this rare instance of Vetinari being caught off guard, in a discussion about orcs.

"I would like you to teach them civilized behaviour," said Ladyship coldly. [Nutt] appeared to consider this. "Yes, of course, I think that would be quite possible," he said. "And who would you send to teach the humans?" There was a brief outburst of laughter from Vetinari, who immediately cupped his hand over his mouth. "Oh, I do beg your pardon," he said.

-- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Here is as much as I could find of the Ankh-Morpork national anthem:

When dragons belch and hippos flee, my thoughts, Ankh-Morpork, are of thee Let others boast of martial dash, for we have boldly fought with cash We own all your helmets, we own all your shoes We own all your generals–touch us and you’ll lose Morporkia! Morporkia! Morporkia owns the day [It is considered in the Sto Plains that only scoundrels know the second verse of their national anthem, since anyone spending time memorizing that would be up to no good purpose. The Ankh-Morpork national anthem, therefore, had a second verse that was deliberately written as ner ner ners and the occasional coherent word desperately trying to stay afloat, on the basis that this is how it would sound in any case. But everyone joined in cheerful unison for the last line, which everybody knew:] We can rule you wholesale, credit where it’s due

-- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Glenda gets it.

"And then there’s dresses," said Glenda. "I’ve been looking around and no one makes proper dresses for trolls. They’re just outsized human dresses. And they’re cut to make the troll look smaller, but they’d be better if they were cut to make them look bigger. More like a troll and less like a fat human. You know, you want the clothing to shout, 'I’m a great big troll lady and proud of it'."

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Ridcully 🏳️‍🌈

"A word to the wise, sir," said Ottomy with unwitting accuracy, "but you’d be wearing your guts for garters if you tried it with some of the types who play these days. They take it seriously.' "Mister Ottomy, I’m sure none of my blokes wear garters—" Ridcully stopped and listened to Ponder Stibbons’s whispered interjection and continued, "well, possibly one, two at most, and it would be a very dull world if we were all the same, that’s what I say." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

"Oh, you mean he was like Professor Hayden. We used to have a name for him…" Ponder braced himself. "Snakes. Very keen on them, you know. Could talk for hours about snakes with a side order of lizards. Very keen." "I’m glad you feel like that, Archchancellor, because I know that a number of the students—" "And then there was old Postule, who was in the rowing team. Coxed us through two wonderful years." Ponder’s expression did not change, but for a few moments his face went pink and shiny. "A lot of that sort of thing about, apparently," said Ridcully. "People make such a fuss. Anyway, in my opinion there’s not enough love in the world. Besides, if you didn’t like the company of men you wouldn’t come here in the first place." -- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Vetinari and Ridcully, bonding:

"People do not understand the limits of tyranny," said Vetinari, as if talking to himself. "They think that because I can do what I like I can do what I like. A moment’s thought reveals, of course, that this cannot be so." "Oh, it is the same with magic," said the Archchancellor. "If you flash spells around like there’s no tomorrow, there’s a good chance that there won’t be."

-- Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

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Rincewind and Twoflower, reminiscing:

“I don’t know why you think your life has been so bad,” he said. “We had a lot of fun when we were younger. Hey, do you remember the time when we went over the edge of the world?” “Often,” said Rincewind. “Usually around 3 A.M.” “And that time we were on a dragon and it disappeared in midair?” “You know,” said Rincewind, “sometimes a whole hour will go by when I don’t remember that.” “And that time we were attacked by those people who wanted to kill us?” “Which of those one hundred and forty-nine occasions are you referring to?” “Character building, that sort of thing,” said Twoflower, happily. “Made me what I am today.” “Oh, yes,” said Rincewind. It was no effort, talking to Twoflower. The little man’s trusting nature had no concept of sarcasm and a keen ability not to hear things that might upset him. “Yes, I can definitely say it was that sort of thing that made me what I am today, too.”

-- Terry Pratchett, Interesting Times

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Book recommendation: When the World Tips Over, by Jandy Nelson

This is a YA book in the sense that most of the main characters are older teens. But if you're not reading YA books because you think you're too old and they have nothing to say to you, you're seriously missing out. I (re)started reading YA fiction in the mid-2010s to vet books for my kid when they were a young teen, and I was floored at how amazing it had gotten in the 30ish years since I'd read it for myself. So I haven't stopped.

This story is told through rotating points of view between each of three siblings (and also their mother through some unsent letters), and a mysterious stranger who has met each of them separately at important times.

Some of the themes are: art (in various forms), connection, destiny, unusual people who are maybe a little bit magic. It's set in the real world but at the edge of fantasy. There are things that are so sad in this book: mistakes, regrets, lost time, lost people. But then there's so much love: family, friends, soulmates. Love for life, love for books and stories and music.

I read novels, no, not read, I tear them open and crawl inside them and hide in between the words. -- Jandy Nelson, When the World Tips Over

All of the characters are fascinating, and there are so many things to figure out about them, what happened to this person, what is driving that person. I never wanted to stop reading because I had to see what would happen next, and it was usually surprising and yet made complete sense.

Lots of CWs, which might get a bit spoilery: rape, neglectful parenting and abandonment, mental illness of a parent, underaged driving, emotional and physical child abuse (in a family story), homophobia (in a family story), death and suspected murder (in a family story), ghosts, alcohol abuse, drugs, car vs. statue, car vs. pedestrian, hospital, coma. I'm sure I'm missing some.

If I have a criticism, it's that the story doesn't have an epilogue. It ends right at the point where you start to believe things are going to be okay, but there's still at lot left up in the air. I'm pretty okay with that, all I really demand from an ending is that it's hopeful, but it would be nice to know more. I fell in love with these characters and care about what happens to them.

I do believe now that when the world tips over, joy spills out with all the sorrow. But you have to look for it. -- Jandy Nelson, When the World Tips Over

Also by Jandy Nelson: I'll Give You the Sun and The Sky Is Everywhere. I've read both but I don't remember The Sky is Everywhere that well. I'll Give You the Sun is breathtaking, and very similar in its themes and the emotions that it stirs up, also recommend very much.