A Hat Full of Sky: The Continuing Adventures of Tiffany Aching and the Wee Free Men

5 Responses to “A Hat Full of Sky: The Continuing Adventures of Tiffany Aching and the Wee Free Men”

1. P. Chapin says:

   October 20, 2010 at 11:58 am

   Being a Pratchett fan to the hilt, I made haste to get the three books, Hat Full of Sky, Wee Free Men and Wintersmith. I knew they were basically kid’s books, but it was Pratchett writing, so how could they be terrible?
   
   Well folks, I guess anything is possible, even that Pratchett could trip up once in a while. These books all tread flatly into the land of hard-to-go-with-it, a tough order when you have swallowed all the Discworld books whole. The characters are either twee or overdone to the point of yawn. The humour, watered down rumor has it that for children, comes off as stale, there is small logic involved in the plots, and I got really, really sick of Tiffany. Thumbs down, and I hope Terry Pratchett goes back to what he is super excellent at — hard rights and up-front lampoons directed at recognizable targets — and lays off the goody-two shoes stuff.

   pat chapin
   
   http://www.ThreeMermaids.com
   Reader’s Rating: 2 / 5
2. The Alchemist says:

   October 20, 2010 at 12:39 pm

   I’ve read nearly every Discworld book and this rating is in comparison to additional Discworld books. The plot here is OK, straightforward, and not overly exciting. This may be due to this being targeted more toward children. I also find the Nac Mac Feagles annoying to read, but I seem to reflect of this differently than the additional reviewers.
   Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
3. Harriet Klausner says:

   October 20, 2010 at 12:42 pm

   Eleven-year-ancient Tiffany Aching leaves the Chalk and her friends, the six-inch Nac Mac Feegle, to apprentice as a witch in training to a professional. Adage goodbye to Granny Aching was hard and departing from her Wee Free Men pals (at least her followers when the Nac Mac Feegle are not drunk) is not simple, but service at her advanced age is expected. So though her parents are fooled as to whom she will work for, Tiffany leaves with Miss Tick to start her training.

   Unlike when she was young and immature, Tiffany as she enters adolescence has become aware of her looks. This attentiveness to her outer beauty makes her prone to attack from terrible beings. The hiver, a being that seeks out the potentially powerful by stealing control of the host’s mind until the victim dies, sees Tiffany as a perfect lodging locale. The parasite starts the pre-occupation and occupation with only Nac Mac Feegle to try to rescue his young pal.

   As he did with the way out THE WEE FREE MEN, Terry Pratchett does again with the sequel that is as sharp a satire as a reader will find. The tale line makes it clear that to find one’s full self, one must accept flaws, blemishes, and foibles; not an simple task in a young beauty is best society. Tiffany and Nac Mac are terrific characters though they be inane at times and the hiver is as vile a villain as there is. A HAT FULL OF SKY is amusing, but though nutty, the plot never loses sight of the key underlying message while entertaining the leader’s vast universe of fans.

   Harriet Klausner
   Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
4. doc peterson says:

   October 20, 2010 at 12:56 pm

   _Hat Full of Sky_ is the sequel to _The Wee Free Men_, part of Terry Prachett’s larger “Discworld” series. Like most sequels, this was fun and excellent, but lacked the punch of the previous tale.

   Tiffany Aching is now 11, and has been apprenticed to another witch, Miss Level who lives off the chalk. Soon Tiffany is possessed by a “Hiver” – a parasitic magical creature that occupies the minds of its hosts before it eventually destroys them. As Tiffany struggles with the Hiver, Rob Anyone and the Nac Mac Feegle (the “wee free men”) come to help her and attempt a rescue.

   The tale was entertaining, as Prachett’s writing is amusing. The Feegle in particular are just unadorned fun to read about. But, unlike _The Wee Free Men_ there is much more “hocus pocus” in the magic that Tiffany does, and the Feegle largely play a secondary role in the tale. The way in which the Hiver is eventually dealt with, and the consequences of Tiffany’s actions while under the Hiver’s control were also disappointing.

   I DID like the book, and I DO recommend it. But, read _The Wee Free Men_ first; and admit that as enjoyable as _Hat Full of Sky_ is, it just doesn’t measure up to the high bar set in the earlier book.
   Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5
5. Cherie D. Lyon says:

   October 20, 2010 at 1:08 pm

   Ok, I admit Terry’s ‘Guards, Guards’, and ‘Pyramids’ (not to mention Death glide-fishing in ‘Mort’) were some of the most amusing things I’ve ever read.
   
   This book, but, is not so much amusing as very introspective. What would Esmeralda Weatherwax been like on The Chalk? Would she have been as ancient as a child as Tiffany seems to be, who obviously has never been a small girl?

   Read the book. It’s worth it, even if you aren’t looking for a excellent laugh AND you can get over the thought that a child thinks like a cynical ancient woman.

   Terry has demonstated a gift over the years for the ‘who done it’ creepy kind of fantasy drama. (Stop hanging out with Neil Gaiman, Sir Knight!) He didn’t place me dangling over whether the heroine wins, but in what way she would conquer her issues. But he did place me wondering if he’d ever known any small girls like Tiffany – and I know he has a daughter, who could not possibly have met the expectations of this book. If he did know a name like Tiffany, then that would worry me.

   The Mac Nac Feegle are so much fun. As permanently.

   Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5