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4.0 out of 5 stars
When a man is tired of Ankh-Morpork, he is tired of ankle-deep slurry, Jan 23 2007
"Mort" is the fourth book in Terry Pratchett's hugely popular Discworld series. He has gone on to win the Carnegie Medal for "The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents" and was awarded the OBE in 1998.
Death - tall guy, somewhat underfed, big grin, carries a scythe - appears in more Discworld books than any other character. However, "Mort" is the first where his appearance in anything other than a very brief cameo - though, admittedly, he remains one of the book's support characters. The book's hero is Mort, the youngest son of a farming family living on the Ramtops. He doesn't quite have the look of a typical hero : although tall and overly-helpful, he's also red-haired, freckled and largely built from knees. His family specialises in distilling wine from reannual grapes - you plant the seed this year and harvest the grape last year. (With the wine, you tend to get the hangover the morning before and need to drink quite a lot to get over it). Mort's lack of talent in the agricultural field (boom boom !), however, is causing some concern for his father. Hoping someone will hire him as an apprentice, Lezek takes his son to the hiring fair at Sheepridge on Hogswatch Night. Although Mort is the last one hired, he is probably the most aptly named apprentice - given that his new boss is Death himself.
Despite Mort's initial discomfort with the position - he doesn't have to be dead himself and the bones look is entirely optional - he decides to accept the position. Death also makes it clear he doesn't do the killing himself - that's up to assassins and soldiers, for example - he just takes over when people die. (He has, however, been known to murder a curry). Life (if that's what you call it) with Death is very strange. His home is designed, unsurprisingly, in varying shades of dark and is much bigger on the inside than on the outside. He also has a daughter called Ysabell and a butler called Albert - both human and not just skeletons - and a horse called Binky. All are also very much alive. The problems start when Mort starts shadowing his new boss at work - specifically, when they are due to escort King Olerv of Sto-Lat into the afterlife. The King has just been assassinated by his ambitious cousin the Duke of Sto-Helit. Unfortunately, Princess Keli is next on the Duke's hitlist and Mort's youthful hormones aren't too happy about this. As soon as Mort starts interfering, other questions start coming to mind - like where does Death get a daughter and why does he need an apprentice ?
Despite his profession, Death is one of the funniest characters on the Discworld. Although it's the first book to give him a starring role, it may prove a slight advantage to have read one or two of the other books. (Rincewind is a particular hobby of Death's so "The Colour of Magic" and "The Light Fantastic may be worth looking into). Very highly recommended.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Death isn't all it's cracked up to be . . ., Jan 12 2004
There are, I believe, a couple dozen titles now in the Discworld series, but this one -- the fourth -- is still one of the best. Death, who SPEAKS IN ALL CAPITALS, and takes his job seriously, decides nevertheless that he's in need of a break. So he takes on an apprentice, a young farm lad named Mortimer -- Mort for short. On his first solo soul-collecting assignment, Mort discovers he can't allow the teenaged Princess Keli to be assassinated by her uncle the Duke, tries to prevent what is supposed to happen -- what *must* happen -- and, of course, messes thing up. Reality tends to heal itself in the long run, though, and there's no way the kid can stop history from getting back on its proper track. But he's certainly going to try. As one might expect in a Pratchett yarn, things get a bit out of hand after that, especially when Death goes AWOL for a time, trying out human experiences and vices, and when Mort begins taking on more and more of his boss's characteristics. After all, as Mort explains to Death's adopted daughter, Ysabell, DEATH IS WHOEVER DOES DEATH'S JOB. The final confrontation between Mort and Death is a marvelous set-piece. Can Mort win? Can Death lose? Is it even fair? THERE IS NO JUSTICE, as Death is fond of remarking. THERE'S ONLY ME.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
the fourth novel is the best so far, Jun 11 2003
Book 4 of the Discworld series.After hearing so many great things about Discworld and having read the first three novels in the series, I was not quite as impressed as I had hoped to be with this series. When I starting reading Mort, this all changed. Having only read four Discworld books, Mort is by far the best of the first four books. The focus of the Discworld series shifts to different characters in each book. This time the focus is on a young man named Mort (hence the title). Mort is an awkward young man with no interest in the family craft. His father decides to hire Mort out as an apprentice. So, Mort stands in the village square as all the other young men are chosen, but Mort is left standing. He waits until midnight (the end of the choosing) and just as the bell tolls midnight, a rider appears. Mort is chosen to be an apprentice. Death himself takes Mort as an apprentice. Death is a major recurring character throughout the series, and HE ALWAYS SPEAKS IN CAPITAL LETTERS. Mort begins to learn the craft of the Reaper, but Mort manages to cause a major problem in reality when someone who is supposed to die does not die (Mort's fault, naturally). This is the most interesting of the first 4 Discworld novels, and since the series doesn't appear to follow any sort of important chronology (for the most part), Mort may be one of the better books to begin the series with. While I've been working my way through the series, I haven't had a lot of interest in each subsequent book....until now. Mort has me interested in reading more Discworld novels.
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