Vous voulez voir cette page en fran�ais ? Cliquez ici.

2 used & new from CDN$ 36.95

See All Buying Options

Have one to sell? Sell yours here

Share your own customer images

Search inside another edition of this book

Hogfather (School & Library Binding)

by Terry Pratchett (Author)

4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (42 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.

1 new from CDN$ 36.95 1 used from CDN$ 41.53

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Feet Of Clay

by Terry Pratchett

4.8 out of 5 stars (64) CDN$ 10.79

Soul Music

by Terry Pratchett

4.3 out of 5 stars (51) CDN$ 10.79

Maskerade

by Terry Pratchett

3.9 out of 5 stars (33) CDN$ 10.79

Reaper Man

by Terry Pratchett

4.9 out of 5 stars (44) CDN$ 10.79

Jingo

by Terry Pratchett

4.6 out of 5 stars (47) CDN$ 10.79

› Explore similar items

Product Details

School & Library Binding: 354 pages
Publisher: San Val; New title edition (September 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 061357222X
ISBN-13: 978-0613572224
Product Dimensions: 17.3 x 10.4 x 3.3 cm
Shipping Weight: 227 g

Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (42 customer reviews)

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

This is item 20 in The Discworld Series.

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

The master of humorous fantasy delivers one of his strongest, most conventional books yet. Discworld's equivalent of Santa Claus, the Hogfather (who flies in a sleigh drawn by four gigantic pigs), has been spirited away by a repulsive assassin, Mr. Teatime, acting on behalf of the Auditors who rule the universe and who would prefer that it exhibited no life. Since faith is essential to life, destroying belief in the Hogfather would be a major blow to humanity. It falls to a marvelously depicted Death and his granddaughter Susan to solve the mystery of the disappeared Hogfather, and meanwhile to fill in for him. On the way to the pair's victory, readers encounter children both naughty and nice; gourmet banquets made of old boots and mud; lesser and greater criminals; an overworked and undertrained tooth fairy named Violet; and Bilious, the god of hangovers, among other imaginative concepts. The tone of much of the book is darker than usual for Pratchett?for whom "humorous" has never been synonymous with "silly"?and his satire, too, is more edged than usual. (One scene deftly skewers the Christmas carol "Good King Wenceslas.") Pratchett has now moved beyond the limits of humorous fantasy, and should be recognized as one of the more significant contemporary English-language satirists. U.K. rights: Victor Gollanz, The Cassell Group; trans., first serial, dramatic, audio rights: Ralph Vicinanza.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Pratchett's best-known creation is "Discworld," in particular the fantastic medieval urban city-state Ankh-Morporkh, populated by humans, dwarves, and trolls aligned in a firm social pecking order. A keen observer of human behavior, Pratchett portrays nearly every conceivable type of Earthly people, and they work through social issues as the "Discworld" stories unfold. Jingo takes on discrimination and xenophobia as the crusty Sam Vimes, leader of the city's policing Watch, heads off war with the neighboring land of Klatch. Hogfather is a bit less accessible, possibly because most characters are so abstract. Discworld's equivalent of Santa Claus, the Hogfather has a price on his head. Death plays a large part, and his diminutive rodent counterpart, the Death of Rats, also appears. Death's granddaughter Susan is the worldly heroine who saves the day in this adventure involving the city's Magicians. Similar to the "Discworld" novel Reaper Man, Hogfather is an optional purchase. Jingo is highly recommended, especially if your patrons appreciate British humor. Nigel Planer is a stunning narrator in these stories, delivering a wide range of voices and styles while remaining wonderfully energetic and consistent.DDouglas C. Lord, Hartford P.L., CT
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

See all Product Description

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

What do customers ultimately buy after viewing this item?

	70% buy the item featured on this page: Hogfather 4.6 out of 5 stars (42)
	8% buy The Colour of Magic 4.4 out of 5 stars (86) CDN$ 10.79
	8% buy Maskerade 3.9 out of 5 stars (33) CDN$ 10.79
	7% buy Mort 4.6 out of 5 stars (66) CDN$ 10.79

Explore similar items

Customer Reviews

42 Reviews

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.6 out of 5 stars (42 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HO HO HO, Jan 11 2009

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Hogfather (Paperback)

Twas the night before Hogwatch, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring... because the only person stirring was Death in a Hogsfather costume.

With the possible exception of Tim Burton, only Terry Pratchett could come up with such a deliciously warped idea and actually make it work. "Hogfather" follows Pratchett's tradition of gutsplitting fantasy-satires, and manages to mingle plenty of unsentimental observations about human nature with a feel-good message -- not an easy thing to do, especially in a Christmas-related book.

On the night before Hogswatch, the Auditors enlist the Assassins' Guild for a very special job: "delete" the Hogfather (think a tusked Santa Claus). For this, Lord Downey calls on the psychotically childlike Mr. Teatime -- and soon Death finds that the Hogfather has vanished. So he takes on the Hogfather's duties for the night, much to the disgust of his granddaughter Susan, who is trying hard to have a normal life.

But realizing that something is very seriously wrong with the world, Susan begins investigating terrible reasons that the Hogfather has vanished: belief in him has somehow vanished from the world, courtesy of Mr. Teatime, a locksmith, a wizard and a little gang of thieves. And the wizards discover that strange creatures are coming into existence, such as the Verruca Gnome and the Eater of Socks (not to mention Bilious, the Oh God of Hangovers).

Now Susan must somehow find a way to bring back the Hogfather -- or else despite all Death's best efforts (AND WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR HOGSWATCH, SMALL HUMAN?) the world will lose much more than a jolly fat anthropomorphic personification.

"Hogfather" is quite recognizably a classic Discworld novel, with in-jokes, cameos by much-beloved characters, and a deeply weird sense of humor ("And who is Archchancellor of this University, may I ask? Is it Mrs Whitlow? I don't think so! Is it me? Why, how amazing, I do believe it is!"). And while the four main subplots seem scattered and sometimes unclear, as the book goes on they intertwine tightly and suddenly become very relevant to one another.

And since this is based on a Pratchett book, we're graced with some cynical views on humanity and the nature of belief -- and occasionally touching moments, like Death rescuing a little match girl. There's even a bittersweet edge near the end when Susan confronts the core of the Tooth Fairy's castle, and finds something very unexpected there.

But along the way, we're treated to plenty of hilarious dialogue (AND HAVE YOU BEEN A GOOD BO ... A GOOD DWA ... A GOOD GNO ... A GOOD INDIVIDUAL? the "Hogfather" asks Nobby), oddball characters and in-jokes (Bloody Stupid Johnson's bathroom). Barely a scene goes by without something to laugh at, whether it's Teatime's hysterically sick behavior or Death's attempts at yuletide jollity (including a list of things to do at each house, ending with a halfhearted HO HO HO).

The brilliant comedy hits a high note when Death invades a shopping mall's Grotto so he can have the children tell him what they want ("AND BE GOOD. THIS IS PART OF THE ARRANGEMENT. THEN WE HAVE A CONTRACT."), much to the dismay of the store owner.

Susan is not an entirely endearing heroine -- despite being efficient, strong and matter-of-fact, she's kind of chilly. But Death is always a lovable character, with his patchy understanding of human beings and his kindly personality... except to the Auditors ("When he spoke next, avalanches fell in the mountains. HAVE YOU BEEN NAUGHTY... OR NICE?"). The polite psycho Mr. Teatime makes an excellent villain, and Pratchett provides eccentric characters ranging from a hungover deity to the sweet, mentally-challenged Banjo.

"The Hogfather" is a Christmas story with a Discworld edge -- meaning it's funny and unique, but also riddled with deeper messages and sharp satire. Have you been naughty or nice?

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you?

Report this

4.0 out of 5 stars Death dons the Red Suit. Ho. Ho. Ho., Dec 16 2007

By	Mike Perschon (Edmonton) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Hogfather (Paperback)

Not Pratchett's funniest or best Discworld novel, but when considered against other possible holiday reads, especially within the fantasy genre, this one's a gem. I read it in December of 2007 as a placebo for not being able to see the film version made in the UK. The plot is simple; the Hogfather, Discworld's equivalent to Santa, has gone missing, and the hilariously deadpan Death has decided to take his place on Hogswatch night. Highly recommended if you're looking for something festive and are a fan of fantasy, British humor, Douglas Adams, or Christopher Moore. As with most of Pratchett's Discworld books, no prior knowledge of the other books in the series is necessary; it helps enrich, but does not hinder enjoyment.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you?

Report this

5.0 out of 5 stars a christmas classic, Oct 21 2007

By	darkhorse dave "pratchett fan" (indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hogfather (Audio CD)

The story runs parallel to our Christmas celebrations, and sheds some light on how some of our old traditions may have gotten started. While the plot and players of the story entertwine, the humor is nearly non-stop, except when poignant moments of reflection and sometimes sadness pop up. Pratchett jabs at humans, and the conditions that we have brought onto ourselves.The land that Pratchett has created,( the disc world) runs perilously close to our own dimension, and the ways of the world here on earth. I read this story every year at christmas time. It truley sets the mood of the season for me.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you?

Report this

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 42 customer reviews...

Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars COWER BRIEF MORTALS. HO HO HO.
"Hogfather" is the twentieth book in Terry Pratchett's hugely popular Discworld series and was first published in 1996. Read more

Published on Jan 23 2007 by Craobh Rua

5.0 out of 5 stars The Dark Side of Terry
The release of this book evoked some distress among Terry Pratchett fans. Expecting another City Watch or Rincewind book, this one took most by surprise. Read more

Published on Jan 21 2007 by Stephen A. Haines

5.0 out of 5 stars A great novel
Perhaps one of my favorite Terry Pratchett novels, Susan Sto Helit and her grandfather, Death, are back and play well off each other. Read more

Published on May 19 2002 by M. Pak