Terry Pratchett - The Last Continent: A Novel of Discworld

As I have been reading along in the Discworld series, my partner has the slightly annoying habit of hinting at what is coming up, or that I will enjoy this or that book. And when he recommended The Last Continent, I knew that I would enjoy reading it; after all, from the cover with the kangaroo, I knew darn well it was going to be about a place very much like Australia.

For the wizards of the Unseen University, life tends to be a long series of arguments and big dinners, and occansionally a touch of research. So when the Egregious Professor of Cruel and Unusual Geography turns up missing while the UU is going through a crisis (the Librarian is suffering from something and every time that he sneezes he changes shape), a window that opens onto a bright, sunny, beach is found, but no sign of the wizard unfortunately.

And wizards being what they are, of course they climb through the window. It's a blissful place, and when the university's housekeeper, Mrs. Whitlow, shows up with a bit of a snack for the wizards, they inadvertedly find themselves trapped when the housekeeper shuts the window...

Then there's Rincewind, trapped in a endless desert where water isn't to be found, and he's down to eating grubs, and anything else that doesn't run off too quickly. However, it seems that whenever he falls, it tends to pitch him into a waterhole. And when a talking kangaroo named Scrappy shows up, and prefinished food starts to appear under rocks, Rincewind knows better and starts to see a great and terrible plan taking place...

Rincewind of course, bumbles his way along, wondering why everyone is drinking beer from tins and not water, the invention of something suspiciously like vegemite, and trying just to find some way to get back home. Depending on how much you know about Australian culture and humour, you'll either get the jokes -- of which there are many -- or you might find yourself a bit bored.

In any case, I had a great time with this one, giggling my way along, and enjoying myself very much. I came to the realization that Ponder Stibbons, one of the wizards at the UU must resemble Sheldon Cooper on a popular television programme, and it was a delight to see the wizards falling over each other to pay attention (or not) to Mrs. Whitlow. The story does wind up nicely, along with a few sly snickers and I can recommend this one to anyone who enjoys the Discworld novels.

Five stars overall, and very much recommended.

Discworld Novels that I have reviewed:
The Color of Magic
The Light Fantastic
Equal Rites (Witches #1)
Mort
Sourcery
Wyrd Sisters  (Witches #2)
Pyramids
Guards! Guards!
Eric
Moving Pictures
Reaper Man
Witches Abroad  (Witches #3)
Small Gods
Lords and Ladies (Witches #4)
Men at Arms
Soul Music
Interesting Times
Maskerade
Feet of Clay
Hogfather
Jingo
The Last Continent -- you are here
The Fifth Elephant
Going Postal
Making Money

The Last Continent
Terry Pratchett
1997; HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN 978-0-06-105907-0

Recommend this product? Yes