The Truth
A Discworld Novel
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4.6 • 132 Ratings
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
"Pratchett's The Truth will set you free—and laughing. . . . If 'Dr. Who' had been conceived, written and performed by Monty Python's Flying Circus, the result might be something like Discworld . . . . [The Truth] sets its sights on an enduring institution, the news media, and skewers it." — CNN
Ankh-Morpork gets its first newspaper, unleashing a war of words and a battle for the truth in this in this funny, wise, and prescient novel in Sir Terry Pratchett’s internationally bestselling Discworld series.
The Discworld has seen just about everything. Then comes the Ankh-Morpork Times, its first paper of record, edited by struggling scribe William de Worde, and staffed by a band of axe-wielding dwarfs and a recovering vampire with a life-threatening passion for flash photography.
Reporting the news is a risky business. An ethical journalist, de Worde has a nasty habit of investigating stories that quickly create powerful enemies eager to stop his presses. And what better way than to start the Inquirer, a titillating tabloid that conveniently interchanges what’s real for what sells.
When de Worde gets a tip on a hot story concerning Ankh-Morpork’s leading patrician, Lord Vetinari, all hell breaks loose, leaving the city without a leader. The facts say Lord Vetinari is guilty. But as William de Worde learns, facts don’t always tell the whole story. There’s that pesky little thing called . . . the truth.
The Discworld novels can be read in any order but The Truth is a standalone.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The 25th book (after The Fifth Elephant) in the Discworld series returns to the thriving city of Ankh-Morpork, where humans, dwarfs and trolls share the streets with zombies, vampires, werewolves and the occasional talking dog. Young William de Worde makes a modest living running a scribing business, including a newsletter of current events for a select subscription list. Then he meets dwarf wordsmith Gunilla Goodmountain, inventor of the printing press, who helps transform de Worde's newsletter into a daily called The Ankh-Morpork Times (subhead: The Truth Shall Make Ye Free). While the city's civil, religious and business leaders are up in arms over The Times, Lord Vetinari, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, encourages the advance--as long as it remains a "simple entertainment that is not going to end up causing tentacled monsters and dread apparitions to talk the streets eating people." In the meantime, as de Worde's staff grows and a type turns the subhead to "The Truth Shall Make Ye Fret", two shadowy characters are hired to remove the Patrician--permanently. Pratchett's witty reach is even longer than usual here, from Pulp Fiction to His Girl Friday. Readers who've never visited Discworld before may find themselves laughing out loud, even as they cheer on the good guys, while longtime fans are sure to call this Pratchett's best one yet.
