Insightfully irreverent tales set in a world a lot like our own onlyĬelebrated as one of the keenest practitioners of satire and Iron Lady left Downing Street, and though some things haveĬhanged since then, Pratchett, thankfully, continues to pen Reigned supreme on English bestseller lists since before the Previous decade than any other living novelist. More hardcover books in the United Kingdom during the Intellectually audacious and effortlessly hilarious writer sold Already a worldwide sensationĪnd Great Britain's indisputable number one author, this Although, I know, that’s probably too much to hope.It was only a matter of time before Terry Pratchett would win the I imagine Britain would be a better, kinder and more sensible place if that were to come to pass. She also made the splendid suggestion that at the age of 12, everyone in Britain should be given a Terry Pratchett book, like this one, to read and enjoy. When it was released, AS Byatt suggested that it should win the Man Booker prize. I’m sure it will come to be regarded as one of his masterpieces. This was Terry Pratchett’s 26th book, published in 2002, during his 54th year, and arguably marks the peak of his career. It’s a fillip for anyone who believes in the craft of writing, that practice brings you closer to perfection and that experience and age can be as important as youthful exuberance. I’d suggest we can even find hope in the very fact that this novel was written. Pratchett may think us fools – but he still likes us.

The same is true of the rest of the book. But it’s also full of warmth and sympathy. The sky you see now, you have never seen before. The only appropriate state of the heart is joy. Therefore, he said, the only appropriate state of mind is surprise. Blink your eyes and the world you see next did not exist when you closed them. Therefore, he understood, there is in truth no past, only a memory of the past. Wen considered the nature of time and understood the universe that is, instant by instant, recreated anew. Pratchett has an admirable ability to land home truths, be very silly and also very wise all in one go: The story is as complicated, daft, hilarious and satisfying as vintage PG Wodehouse: part kung fu epic, part philosophical novel, part mind-bending experiment with chaos theory (and a piss-take of those three things). There are other reasons to find hope in Thief of Time, chief among them that it’s a delight to read. Humans have always got it wrong, but we’ve generally muddled through too. And I find such thoughts comforting: there’s nothing new about folly. I imagine future generations will be seeing their own mistakes in this novel, just as clearly as I’ve seen our own. Pratchett understood human nature, for better or for worse.

But even without my current political obsessions and fears, I’m certain that I’d find other kinds of solace in this wonderful novel.

Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett