Feature

The Man Who Made Up A New Colour

Ahmed Bhuiyan

THE winter holiday of 2007 was a sad time for me. It was during that time that one of the premier living authors and superb satirist, Terry Pratchett, announced that he had early-onset Alzheimer's. Despite him calling to his fans to remain cheerful about the situation, I have to admit that I was skeptical that he would be able to maintain his steady pace of releasing one book a year.

Then, the unexpected happened. He released a new novel, a young adult novel entitled Nation. I was quite taken aback, considering the fact that he had been only so recently diagnosed with a mentally debilitating disease, he managed to release an excellent novel, in a setting and style that was a departure from his familiar and fantastic Discworld setting.

This year he once more delights his audience by staying true to form, releasing another novel for his readers to devour. The new novel, Unseen Academicals, is the 38th book to be released based on his Discworld setting, a world that is similar to ours but in very fractured ways.

In this new novel, Pratchett introduces the ideas of organized football (soccer) into a city that has perfected hooliganism on top of having a Tyrant, a Guild of Thieves and Guild of Assassins, as well as a University for Wizards. In parallel to this new concept, dwarf fashion shows also take the stage in a major subplot of the story and we find out just how luxurious chain mail can really be.

It is hard to explain the wonderful twists and turns that Unseen Academicals takes, skewering football hooliganism, introducing a wonderful parody of the legendary Maradona, and describing the slightly odd metallic fashions of dwarves, while at the same time addressing the more somber topics of identity and xenophobia. Pratchett juggles each of these topics deftly, enticing the reader to keep turning the page to see how everything will be played out. However, besides playing literary gymnastics to keep the reader intrigued, he still devotes time to each of the topics, exposing and thoroughly exploring them to the satisfaction of any reader.

The one problem that can be said about this book is the fact that Academicals has become burdened by the history and complexity that Pratchett has imparted into the creation of the Discworld. For those who have read his previous works, this does not present a problem, but for those who wish to delve into the stories of the Discworld, it is better to start with a different novel such as The Colour of Magic or Wyrd Sisters.

With the publishing of this novel, we are reminded the reason why Sir Terry Pratchett, he was knighted during the Queen's 2009 new Years Honours, is still a writing force to be reckoned with, Alzheimer's or not.

True Meaning of common HR lingo

"COMPETITIVE SALARY"
We remain competitive by paying less than our competitors.

"JOIN OUR FAST-PACED COMPANY"
We have no time to train you.

"CASUAL WORK ATMOSPHERE"
We don't pay enough to expect that you'll dress up.

"MUST BE DEADLINE-ORIENTED"
You'll be six months behind schedule on your first day.
"SOME OVERTIME REQUIRED"
Some time each night and some time each weekend.

"DUTIES WILL VARY"
Anyone in the office can boss you around.

"MUST HAVE AN EYE FOR DETAIL"
We have no quality control.

"CAREER-MINDED"
Female Applicants must be childless (and remain that way).