Damn. There’s really not much more to say. Far more intelligent and eloquent people are singing Terry Pratchett’s praises even now, so suffice to say that this is terrible news! Even though his illness was well known, I would have hoped that Death would still save him for later — but in the end, he probably wanted to finally meet the man who had made him into one of the best supporting characters ever, I suppose.
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld books have a very special place in my heart, because they are a triumph: Wonderful fantasy with an abundance of humour and some excellent stories hidden within: Few fantasy writers seem to realise that fantasy novels need compelling worlds and interesting narratives above all else — narratives that could even stand on their own if all the fantastic elements were to be removed from the equation. Sir Terry was one of those people, which makes his loss all the more tragic.
I remember wanting to be fluent in English, so I could read his books in the original. In that, Terry Pratchett probably did more for my multilingualism than any school lesson. I remember being overjoyed late last year when I discovered the Discworld Diary had made a comeback after several years. I remember reading his last few books and wondering, time and time again, whether the book I was reading was going to be the last one. Or whether it would – possibly even worse – be the one where the rot finally set in.
That never happened, and maybe we should be glad for that, in spite of everything. Terry Pratchett’s work seems far removed from the grimdark setting of Warhammer 40k at a glance, but in the end, all of this may have come from a similar breed of very British satire. So it is probably safe to assume that many 40k fans frequenting this blog will feel this loss just as keenly as I do.
My condolences to the family. And all the best to Sir Terry Pratchett, wherever he may be now. May you live in interesting times, sir!
EDIT: It has since come to my attention that fellow hobbyist and very talented artists Henry South is holding a raffle/auction that will allow you to own some of his beautiful models (which have already been featured in Blanchitsu, no less), with the proceeds going towards supporting Alzheimer’s Society, in honour of Terry Pratchett. Please take a minute to check out the following links and maybe make a contribution! And thanks for the wonderful idea, Henry!
The raffle is here, and the auction can be found here.
Filed under: Pointless ramblings Tagged: a bad day, obituary, RIP, terry pratchett
