Steven Briggs, the man behind the Discworld maps and stage versions of the Discworld stories and the Discworld Companion, has compiled in this single volume many of the funniest -- and wisest -- moments from the whole series of Discworld novels, all the way from "The Color of Magic" to "Making Money" (and including the four "youth" books). I say "many" moments, not all, because to do that, as Briggs says in his foreword, he might as well have tied a set of all the Discworld novels up with a ribbon. Some jokes, Briggs tellsus, would not fit in this compilation because too much context was required, and the judgment of what is most funny is too subjective for everyone to agree. But any Discworld fan can be assured that at least many moments happily remembered make their appearance in "The Wit & Wisdom of Discworld" (and, if the fan is like me, some moments you have forgotten). Excerpts range from single sentences to several paragraphs, and occasionally Briggs supplies a comment or two of background to explain what the joke is about. The excerpts are arranged in chapters, one for each novel. And there is even an index in which you can look up such things as "witches: Omnians and," and "Vetenari, Havelock, Lord (Partrician of Ankh-Morpork): tyranny in practice".
The book makes for wonderful browsing, or reading straight-through. And it makes you want to go back and read the novels themselves again.
