# Terry Pratchett Reading Club #22-The Last Continent
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [November 16, 2007, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631 "2007-11-16T01:32:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/1 "2007-11-16T01:32:07Z")
Previous threads:
[1. The Colour of Magic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=319942)
[2. The Light Fantastic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=322121)
[3. Equal Rites](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=323881)
[4. Mort](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=325906)
[5. Sourcery](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=329316)
[6. Wyrd Sisters](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=331474)
[7. Pyramids](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=354028)
[8. Guards! Guards!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=356823)
[9. Eric](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=359767)
[10. Moving Pictures](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=362543)
[11. Reaper Man](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=364542)
[12. Witches Abroad](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=366634)
[13. Small Gods](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=368592)
[14. Lords and Ladies](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=370560)
[15. Men at Arms](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=385770)
[16. Soul Music](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=392204)
[17. Interesting Times](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=399321)
[18. Maskerade](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=402762)
[19. Feet of Clay](http://208.100.26.199/sdmb/showthread.php?t=407477&highlight=discworld+reading+club)
[20. Hogfather](http://208.100.26.199/sdmb/showthread.php?t=434568&highlight=discworld+reading+club+feet+clay)
[21. Jingo](http://208.100.26.199/sdmb/showthread.php?t=439916)
Rincewind does Australia. I don’t really know what to make of this one. It took me three readings to finally get into it, and it has grown on me each time. Maybe it’s because I never was much of a Rincewind fan.
To be read for the following quote, if for no other reason: “All bastards are bastards, but some bastards is _bastards_.” 😃
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### Author:  [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/2 "2007-11-16T02:20:24Z")
Fun, but definitely minor Pratchett. No one’s life will be diminished by skipping this one.
(But I was thinking about it just the other day when NPR mentioned drought in Australia…)
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### Author:  [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/3 "2007-11-16T02:21:21Z")
Some funny parts, though it got really weird.
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### Author:  [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/4 "2007-11-16T03:39:04Z")
This was the first one I read after I moved to Australia - in fact it was only a few weeks after I moved here - and I love it for that reason. He totally 100% nailed it exactly! Without being offensive, he parodied Australia, mostly in a totally unique way not done before.
If you don’t know Australia, half of it probably won’t make as much sense to you until you visit. So I recommend you do.
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### Author:  [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/5 "2007-11-16T04:46:04Z")
I loved, loved, loved the _Priscilla: Queen of the Desert_ reference.
Otherwise… eh, it was pretty good. Not as good as _Interesting Times_ (Rincewind Does Ancient China), which managed to pull some heartstrings really hard, but better than _Pyramids_ (Rincewind Does Not Do Ancient Egypt). I wouldn’t mind reading it again.
Also, nothing can top “When it’s time to stop living, I will certainly make Death my number one choice!” but"Rincewind had always been happy to think of himself as a racist. The One Hundred Meters, the Mile, the Marathon – he’d run them all."
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### Author:  [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/6 "2007-11-16T07:43:27Z")
I love it for the bickering among the faculty, which Pterry had perfected at that time. I Like Rincewind, but I can see why people are tired of the cowardly hero schtick. Maybe he’s not good for another book, but I wouldn’t mind seeing him in a cameo, the way Vimes has shown up in books not revolving around the Watch.
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### Author:  [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/7 "2007-11-16T13:58:51Z")
Rincewind gets a look-in in the _Science of the Discworld_ and _Last Hero_ books, **Charlie Tan**. I dunno, I really like Rinso and would love many more books with him in. I think here he’s perfected what he truly is - running without thinking, even better than in _IT_. Plus, despite the initial cluelessness, there are several moments when we see that he’s actually pretty sharp.
I liked _LC_ - in amongst the Aussie jokes there were some nice reflections on evolution and differing worldviews. Plus, I really loved the pea-ship.
Also, refreshing to have one that didn’t have a Big Bad Villain to defeat. We don’t get too many of those.
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### Author:  [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/8 "2007-11-16T22:24:10Z")
[QUOTE=MrDibble]
Also, refreshing to have one that didn’t have a Big Bad Villain to defeat. We don’t get too many of those.
[/QUOTE]
Good point. Of the previous 21 books, only **Soul Music** didn’t have a “Big Bad.” It’s a refreshing change of pace.
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/9 "2007-11-16T22:50:40Z")
**PEOPLE’S WHOLE LIVES DO PASS IN FRONT OF THEIR EYES BEFORE THEY DIE. THE PROCESS IS CALLED ‘LIVING’.**
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### Author:  [@the\_Lady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_Lady)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/10 "2007-11-16T23:01:11Z")
It was a perfect gift for my Aussie brother in law last Christmas.
He’s now working his way through the rest of the series, borrowing the books three at a time.
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### Author:  [@Dunawake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunawake)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/11 "2007-11-16T23:12:00Z")
This was the first Discworld book I ever read, so I has a special place in my heart because of that. I still probably rank it in the top 10 of the Discworld books, if only for the God of Evolution, the creation of the platypus, and Rincewind’s drunken creation of Vegemite. 😃
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### Author:  [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)
#### Post date: [November 16, 2007, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/12 "2007-11-16T23:34:25Z")
[QUOTE=silenus]
Good point. Of the previous 21 books, only **Soul Music** didn’t have a “Big Bad.” It’s a refreshing change of pace.
[/QUOTE]
Eric didn’t. Neither did Mort or The Colour of Magic.
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### Author:  [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/13 "2007-11-17T00:08:13Z")
Well, Eric had a bunch of Little Bads, as did Mort. I try to forget TCoM as much as possible. 😃
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### Author:  [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/14 "2007-11-17T01:05:33Z")
Soul Music did have a big bad - the supernatural force that took over Buddy at the Cavern Club. And in Eric the big bad was the Demon Lord who overthrew the old Demon King.
No major villains in Mort or Equal Rites, though.
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### Author:  [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/15 "2007-11-17T01:11:54Z")
[QUOTE=Peter Morris]
Soul Music did have a big bad - the supernatural force that took over Buddy at the Cavern Club. And in Eric the big bad was the Demon Lord who overthrew the old Demon King.
[/QUOTE]
I wouldn’t classify the music force as “Bad” so much as “primal.” And didn’t the Demon Lord concentrate more on getting power rather than trying to eliminate Our Heroes?
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### Author:  [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/16 "2007-11-17T01:20:25Z")
[QUOTE=Peter Morris]
Soul Music did have a big bad - the supernatural force that took over Buddy at the Cavern Club. And in Eric the big bad was the Demon Lord who overthrew the old Demon King.
No major villains in . . . Equal Rites, though.
[/QUOTE]
Except the Things in the Dungeon Dimensions that will destroy the universe. I don’t know if you get much more major than that.
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### Author:  [@Captain\_C](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_C)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/17 "2007-11-17T04:26:48Z")
16 posts in and we are already discussing other Discworld books. I think that pretty much sums up how significant The Last Continent was.
I did enjoy the wizard’s sub-plot portions of the book, mainly because those guys crack me up. Rincewind however I could do without.
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### Author:  [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/18 "2007-11-17T07:27:42Z")
I found it the funniest of all the Discworld books - I believe it’s the only one that’s made me laugh out loud, rather than simply smile.
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### Author:  [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/19 "2007-11-17T11:07:39Z")
[QUOTE=Captain\_C]
16 posts in and we are already discussing other Discworld books.
[/quote]
Fair enough, My opinions of TLC then.
> [@](#):
>
> I did enjoy the wizard’s sub-plot portions of the book, mainly because those guys crack me up. Rincewind however I could do without.
That reminds me of what I think is one of the fundamental weaknesses of the book. The fact that it is really two separate stories that touch each other only briefly. In fact, the first time read it, my eye must have skipped over a line because I missed the connection.
I think that both stories would have been stronger if he had separated them completely. They would both have worked better as two different novelettes.
And I think the Rincewind story was the better of the two. The wizards on Mono Island story mostly padded out a novelette to novel length.
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### Author:  [@Captain\_C](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_C)
#### Post date: [November 17, 2007, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terry-pratchett-reading-club-22-the-last-continent/426631/20 "2007-11-17T11:35:43Z")
Another comment I just want to make is that it saddened me that the Rincewind mini-series ended on a low note. All of the other mini-series of the discworld progressively got better as they went along. In my opinion \*Thief of Time \* was better than _Mort_, _Night Watch_ and _Thud_ were better than \*Guards Guards \* and _Men At Arms_, you get the idea.
But the Rincewind series, while starting off a bit slow, had some pretty good books in it. However, \*The Last Continent \* was definitely not the best, and I just wish he had ended a bit better. I really hope Pratchett writes one more Rincewind book just to finish the mini-series off a bit better.
(Yes, I know Rincewind is in _The Last Hero_, but that is a book for a lot of characters, not just him)
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