Discworld Monthly Issue 231 July 2016
Table of Contents:
1. Editorial
2. News
3. Upcoming Book Releases
4. July Events
5. Future Events
6. Recurring Monthly Fan Meetings
7. Readers' Letters
8. DiscTrivia
9. Rincewind and the Wild Bush Horses
10. Small Gods - A Discworld Graphic Novel Review
11. The Shepherd's Crown - Paperback Competition
12. The Long Earth: The Long Cosmos - Review
13. The first NWDWW(New World Disc World Weekend) or Endubyadeedubyadubya
14. Competition: What I did/will do on my holidays at the Irish Discworld Convention
15. The End
1. Editorial
Welcome to issue 231. This month we are really proud to announce the release of our new Discworld Monthly Luggage Mouse Mats. They are cloth finished, 5mm thick and measure approximately 22cm by 18cm. See discworldmonthly.co.uk/prod/MM-DML for more details. All mouse mat orders placed before 1st July will receive a free Discworld Monthly Luggage pin badge.
We are also really happy to announce our new "Better Than A Poke In The Eye With a Blunt Stick" mug that we've recently had approved. It features our Luggage on one side of the mug and a quote written by Terry for a one-off Discworld Monthly t-shirt we had made back in 2006. We decided to transcribe the quote and footnote to a mug design and make it available for all (this will be the only place this quote will be available).
See discworldmonthly.co.uk/prod/MUG-BTPE for details.
Are you going to Wadfest this year? If not, why not visit www.wadfest.co.uk and find out what it is all about. The event was started by Waddy back in 2002 and is a family friendly camping weekend with a science fiction bias. Events include Zombie Attack, Smack The Penguin, a Rocky Horror Quiz, Talent Show, Charity Auction, Murder Mystery, Traders and lots more.
You can get involved as much or as little as you like in the relaxed Cambridgeshire atmosphere. You could even visit the animals at the Wood Green Animal Shelter.
Discworld Monthly is a fan run volunteer organisation that is partially funded by online sales of our fully licensed and authorised products. Please take a look at our range of pin badges, keyrings, fridge magnets, car "cling" stickers, mugs and *now* mouse mats at: discworldmonthly.co.uk/shop
All profits are used to pay for prizes, postage, travel expenses, web site fees, domain renewals and various sundry costs that we have to cover to keep everything going.
Want to ensure you get all the latest news direct from Discworld Monthly between issues? Then visit the Discworld Monthly Facebook page and hit the "Like" button. The page is an announcement only page and is always the first place we post new information.
www.facebook.com/DiscworldMonthly
We include all our back issues on our website at discworldmonthly.co.uk where you can also find Terry Pratchett quotes, a full bibliography and links to articles we have written over the years.
The Wadfest auction team are currently looking for items. Please email auction@discworldmonthly.co.uk with the subject Wadfest Auction to let us know what you want to donate. Thank you.
If you visit a play or a talk and would like to let the world know about it, please feel free to email your review to info@discworldmonthly.co.uk and we will consider it for publication.
Also if you have written an article that you think we might want to include in the newsletter please feel free to email us at the address below. We will of course give credit for anything we use.
Please let us have any submissions for issue 232 of Discworld Monthly BEFORE Friday 22nd July 2016.
- Jason Anthony (Editor and Wizzard) info@discworldmonthly.co.uk
- William Barnett (Deputy Editor / Proofreader)
- Rachel Rowlands (News Hound / Feature writer)
- Amy Simmonds (Artist in Residence)
- Richard Massey (Damp Camp Master)
2. News
SFX issue 276 (August 2016) with STAR TREK on the cover will feature an interview with Rob Wilkins about Terry Pratchett's legacy. Much of the information in the article confirms what was previously announced at Terry's memorial in April.
Key points in the interview include:
- Rob giving away the name of an unwritten Discworld story entitled Clang! that would include campanology [bell ringing to you or I - Ed] and a city under siege.
- Terry Pratchett: The Documentary should be broadcast on television early next year.
- There will be an announcement at the San Diego Comic-Con in July (21st - 24th) about Rhianna's adaptation of The Wee Free Men: The Movie.
- Neil Gaiman's adaptation of Good Omens is going well and according to Rob in "fanboy" mode it is going to be "awesome".
- Most people are pre-ordering at least two copies of The Discworld Colouring Book: one to colour the other to keep.
SFX 276 is due for release on Wednesday 22nd June 2016.
The campaign to name the new element 117 Octarine has unfortunately been unsuccessful despite getting nearly 24,000 signatures on a Change.org petition.
IUPAC (International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry) has decided to use Tennessine with the symbol Ts, for the element with Z = 117.
"Tennessine is named after the state of Tennessee, known for its pioneering research in chemistry. "Tennessine is in recognition of the contribution of the Tennessee region, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, to superheavy element research," says the IUPAC."
It will now have to undergo a five month public review before being officially named.
To read more and to find out what the other 3 elements are going to be called:
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/815
Dave Hodges aka The Real Hodgesaargh has been given the go-ahead to release a new edition of his short book "The Arts of Falconrie and Hawking - a - Beginners Guide".
Dave is planning a print run of 500 copies and has asked Discworld Monthly to distribute it for him.
All profits made through the sale of the book will be donated to one of Terry's favourite charities RICE - The Research Institute for the Care of Older People.
This will happen at some point in the future. Please don't try to find them yet. Dave still has to get the book printed and this may take a month or two.
As soon as we have more information we will provide details about availability and costs etc. We will also provide a detailed breakdown of costs to make it clear exactly how much RICE will be getting from each sale.
Have you ever backed the TROLL BRIDGE film and then forgotten about it? How can you be so sure?
Snowgum Films are desperate to track down all the people that have backed the film so that they can ensure you get your appropriate rewards.
They have created a new web page for their AWOL backers. If you think you may have backed this film at any point in history, and your name happens to be on this list; please contact them immediately so they can get you accounted for!
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/807
The Shepherd's Crown has won the coveted Locus Awards 2016 Young Adult Book, it was announced at the 2016 Locus Awards on Saturday, June 25, 2016 in Seattle WA.
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/809
As Rob probably wasn't in the US to pick up the award we have created our own diorama of our Lego Rob picking it up on his behalf. See: discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/810
3. Upcoming Book Releases
* UK Releases *
The Long Cosmos (book five in The Long Earth Series) will be published in hardback by Penguin Random House on 30th June 2016.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857521780/87
The Long Cosmos Slipcase Edition is now available to pre-order from Waterstones. Priced at 35GBP it will be released on the 30th June 2016.
Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd, ISBN: 9780857524294
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/773
The Long Utopia (book four in The Long Earth Series) will be published in paperback on 30th June by Corgi.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0552169366/87
Small Gods the Graphic Novel is currently scheduled for release on the 28th July this year in the UK. It will have 144 pages and be published by Doubleday. See our review later this issue.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857522965/87
The OFFICIAL DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK by Paul Kidby. Each and every drawing in the book had been painstakingly recreated by Paul Kidby. Paul had to rationalise each picture to choose which lines to include and which to discard. Paul estimates that each illustration takes around 60 hours to convert.
The book is due for release on the 11th August 2016. It will have 96 pages of glorious Paul Kidby illustrations for you to colour in and enjoy.
It will be published by Gollancz / Orion and it's ISBN details are:
ISBN-10: 1473217474
ISBN-13: 978-1473217478
The book will measure 15 x 21 cm and will be 2.2cm thick.
It has an RRP of 9.99GBP.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1473217474/87
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner (a collection of 14 short stories written by Terry as a young man) will be released on 25th August 2016 (the day before the Discworld Convention). The slipcase edition will feature an additional story.
/books_thewitchsvacuumcleaner.php
The Terry Pratchett Diary by Terry Pratchett and The Discworld Emporium should be published on 13th October 2016. It will be a perennial diary full of remembrances and tributes from some of those that loved him and his extraordinary body of work. With an introduction by Rhianna Pratchett and an afterword from Rob Wilkins.
ISBN-10: 1473208335
ISBN-13: 9781473208339
Transworld has decided to continue on with what Gollancz started with the Discworld Collector's Library of hardbacks with covers by Joe McLaren. By popular demand, Transworld will expand the collection to include all the adult Discworld novels.
The first four novels will be released on 20th October 2016. We have uploaded an album of the new covers at: discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/808
The Fifth Elephant (464 pages) www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/085752416X/87
The Truth (448 pages) www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857524178/87
The Last Continent (416 pages) www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857524143/87
Carpe Jugulum (416 pages) www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857524151/87
The four titles listed above should soon be available to pre-order. We believe the RRP for each title will be approximately 12.99 GBP.
We really hope they keep the size and format the same as the original Gollancz editions so that we, as fans, can have a complete set of Discworld novels in one consistent format.
The Carpet People (with Mark Beech cover) is due for release in paperback on 1st June 2017.
ISBN-10: 0552573361
ISBN-13: 9780552573368
Author Joanne Harris (via Twitter) has confirmed she has written a new introduction for Wyrd Sisters. We don't have a release date for this yet - but we suspect it will be sometime in 2017.
It has been confirmed that the new paperback editions of Mort and Guards! Guards! we mentioned previously will now be released in 2017.
* Other releases *
Small Gods The Graphic Novel (International Release) is scheduled to be published on the 23rd August 2016.
discworldmonthly.co.uk/USISBN/0857522965
4. July Events
[Australia, New] Wyrd Sisters (adapted by Stephen Briggs) is being performed by The Darlington Theatre Players at the Marloo Theatre,20 Marloo Road, Greenmount, Perth, Australia from 17th June - 9th July with matinees every Sunday. (Matinees at 2pm, all other nights at 8pm).
Tickets cost 22 AUD adults, 20 AUD concessions and 70 AUD for family tickets (2 adults + 2 children)
To book contact Gwynne 92551783 or www.trybooking.com/Kpam
[UK] Paul Kidby has confirmed some of his art will be shown at Widdershins 2016 - Pathways to the Faerie Realm from 25th June 2016 - 27th August 2016.
The free exhibition will take place at Green Hill Arts, Fore Street,
Moretonhampstead, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ13 8LL
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/797
[UK, New] Theale Green School will be presenting Stephen Briggs' adaptation of Mort on Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th July 2016 at The School Hall. They will also be performing the play on Wednesday 13th July 2016 at Bradfield College Amphitheatre (open air performance).
All shows begin at 7pm. Tickets 7 GBP / 5 GBP (concessions) please email ncowen@thealegreen.w-berks.sch.uk to reserve tickets, please pay on the door.
[UK] Carpe Jugulum will be performed by the Colnbrook Amateur Stage Theatre aka CAST from 13th- 16th July at Colnbrook Village Hall, Vicarage Way, Colnbrook, Berkshire, SL3 0RF.
Phone: 07944 215487 (Secretary)
Tickets will soon be available from: cast-online.org.uk/box-office
[UK, New] Greasby Players are performing Stephen Briggs' adaptation of Guards! Guards! from 13th - 16th July 2016 at Westbourne Hall, West Kirby Wirral CH48 4DQ. Tickets are 8.00 GBP and 6.00 GBP concessions. To book tickets either phone 01516779187 or PM Greasby Players via their Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/GreasbyPlayersWirral/
[UK, RESCHEDULED] Lords and Ladies (adapted by Irana Brown) will be performed by the People's Theatre (Newcastle upon Tyne). Originally scheduled for 12th July to 16th July 2016 from 7:30pm but NOW rescheduled to 19th-23rd July 2016.
"Unfortunately we have had to reschedule this production to a week later than originally advertised. All customers who had already booked have been notified of this change. Please contact the Box Office at your earliest convenience to arrange to swap your tickets to a new date, or get a refund if required. We apologise for any inconvenience caused."
Tickets cost 13.50 GBP (11 GBP concessions).
Box office: 0191 265 5020 (Option 2)
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/762
[UK] July 23rd - Sept 18th 2016. Discworld and Beyond, Paul Kidby's touring exhibition, is going to spend next summer in Nuneaton Museum and Art Gallery (Riversley Park, Coton Rd, Nuneaton CV11 5TU).
[UK] Richmond Amateur Dramatic Society will be performing Wyrd Sisters from Thu 28th to Sat 30th July and Thu 4th Aug to Sat 6th Aug 2016 at The Georgian Theatre Royal. Performances start at 7.30pm and tickets cost from 6.50 GBP to 12.50 GBP. The Theatre is located in the heart of Richmond, North Yorkshire.
Box office 01748 825252
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/816
5. Future Events
[UK] Chameleon's Web Theatre Company will be touring with Carpe Jugulum this August around Essex. Most performances are at outdoor venues.
FRI 5th AUGUST 6pm - The Amphitheatre, Promenade Park, Maldon, Essex
SAT 6th AUGUST 7pm - The Tollesbury Community Centre, Tollesbury, Essex (Indoor Venue)
SUN 7th AUGUST 6pm - Beth Chatto Gardens, Elmstead Market, Colchester.
SAT 13th AUGUST 5pm - The Whalebone, Fingringhoe, Essex
SUN 14th AUGUST 6pm - Dedham Vale Vineyard, Boxted, Colchester.
Tickets are available from www.ticketsource.co.uk/chameleonsweb
Telephone bookings - 0333 6663366 (local rate) 1.50 GBP booking fee includes P and P.
Tour Information Line - 0793 6067657
[UK] Wadfest 2016, the Science Fiction Camping Event, dates have been announced. The event entitled: "Putting on the Flicks: It came from Planet W" will take place from 12th - 14th August at Wood Green, The Animal Shelter, King's Bush Farm, London Road, Godmachester, Cambs. PE29 2NH
Adult camping tickets cost 25 GBP with junior tickets costing 1p when booked with an adult. Adult visitor tickets cost 15 GBP. Concessions are available for students / people on low income and cost 20 GBP each.
[UK] Duck in a Hat will be performing Tim Foster's adaptation of MORT at the Studio in Paradise at Augustines in Edinburgh for the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe festival from 15th -28th August 2016 (excluding the 21st)
Tickets cost 9.50 GBP (8 GBP concessions) available from discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/814
duckinahat.weebly.com/mort.html
[UK] Monstrous Productions will be performing Going Postal from August 17th - 20th at the Gate Theatre in Cardiff, South Wales.
Tickets are 8 GBP (6 GBP concessions) and can be ordered from 7889269b08cd.fikket.com/
Monstrous Productions Theatre Company are a Cardiff-based theatre company that solely performs plays by Terry Pratchett to raise money for Alzheimer's Research UK
www.facebook.com/MonstrousProductionsTheatreCompany
[UK] The Discworld Convention 2016: The Band With Rocks In will take place in Chesford Grange Hotel, Warwick from 26th-29th August 2016.
The event sold out in a matter of days when tickets first became available. Though the con have been running a waiting list for people still hoping to attend.
[Australia] Guards! Guards! Will be performed in Brisbane, Australia from 8th October - 12 November 2016 by Brisbane Art Theatre.
Tickets are available from: www.artstheatre.com.au/show/guardsguards
[New Zealand, New] Paeroa Little Theatre will be performing Mort (as adapted by Stephen Briggs) from November 9th to 18th 2016. Auditions took place on Sunday 19th June and rehearsals are due to start in July.
www.facebook.com/PaeroaLittleTheatre/
[UK] Bolton Little Theatre will be presenting "Wyrd Sisters" on 6th - 11th March 2017.
The address is Bolton Little Theatre, Hanover Street, Bolton BL1 4TG
discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/788
[Germany] All the Witches and denizens of the Chalk are invited to the 5th German Discworld Convention which will take place at Castle Ludwigstein from May 18th to 21st in 2017.
Tickets are available now: www.Discworld-Convention.de
[Netherlands] Cabbagecon 4 - July 2017
The Cabbagecon team is proud to announce a new edition of the one and only Dutch Discworld convention.
After visiting the Ankh-Morpork Assassins' Guild in 2015, we will team up with the Guild of Merchants to explore the great city of Ankh-Morpork some more in 2017.
Come and see the sights, meet the colourful city-dwellers, try the local food and, in general, experience the unique atmosphere of the Disc's most famous city. The Ankh-Morpork Guild of Merchants has gracefully agreed to provide a balanced and representative programme of activities to keep all visitors entertained.
Cabbagecon 4 will be held at the Hotel Carlton President in Utrecht on 1-2 July 2017.
Check out our new website at www.dutchdwcon.nl
[Australia] Announcing The Discworld Grand Tour 2017.
The Ankh-Morpork Tourism Board invites you to a journey of wonder, whimsy, and, er, wossname at *Nullus Anxietas VI - The Discworld Grand Tour - The Australian Discworld Convention.*
The Discworld Grand Tour will be held on 4th-6th August 2017 at the Lakes Resort Hotel, Adelaide, South Australia. This convention will be a way to escape on a luxurious trip to the Discworld to enjoy three (or four) fabulous days of fun and frivolity with your fellow fans of the late, great Sir Terry Pratchett.
You can find out more about Nullus Anxietas VI - The Discworld Grand Tour - The Australian Discworld Convention and chat with other potential tourists at:
Website: ausdwcon.org
Facebook page: facebook.com/Ausdwcon
Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/ausdwcon2017
Twitter: twitter.com/ausdwcon
[Ireland, New] The 2017 Irish Discworld Convention will take place from 6-9th October 2017 [the weekend of my 46th Birthday - Ed] at the Cork International Hotel.
Sign up now for entry to all events except the gala dinner (tickets available separately) at:
6. Recurring Monthly Fan Meetings
[UK] The Broken Drummers meet at The Monkey Puzzle, Paddington, London, W2 1JQ, England at 7pm. For more information contact Helen Nicholls on helelnicholls@gmail.com
Also please note that due to email problems some addresses have been lost from the mailing list. If you are not getting Drummers emails and want to, please email Helen Nicholls on helelnicholls@gmail.com
Unless otherwise stated the Drummers meet on the first Monday of each month.
The Drummers are always happy to welcome new visitors. You can find out more about the Drummers at www.brokendrummers.org/ or
www.facebook.com/groups/55107511411/
[Perth, Australia] The Treacle Mining Corporation meet up to celebrate the works of Sir Terry Pratchett, and welcome any fans of science fiction and fantasy.
Join them for their monthly discussion of Discworld, Terry Pratchett and all things sci-fi and fantasy. They meet the first Monday of each month, subject to holidays, and all are welcome.
The group meets up at Carpe Cafe, 526 Murray Street, Perth, WA. Meeting at a cafe means they are under-18 friendly!
For details follow them on Twitter @Perth_Drummers, Instagram perth_drummers, and Facebook www.facebook.com/groups/Perth.Drummers/
Otherwise message Alexandra Ware directly at alexandra.ware@gmail.com
Unless otherwise stated the group meets up on the first Monday of each month.
[Sydney, Australia] Sydney Drummers normally meet on the first Monday of every month.
They meet at the NEW venue, 3 Wise Monkeys, 555 George Street, Sydney, 2000 from 6:30pm
For more information contact Sue (AKA Granny Weatherwax) on kenworthys@yahoo.co.uk
[Adelaide, Australia] The City of Small Gods is a group for fans in Adelaide and South Australia. They have regular monthly dinner and games nights, longer games days, plus play outings, craft-y workshops, and fun social activities throughout the year. For more info and to join their mailing list, visit: cityofsmallgods.org.au
[Brisbane, Australia] The Pratchett Partisans meet monthly at either Brisbane or Indooroopilly to eat, drink and chat about all things Pratchett. For more info about their next meetup, check out: www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/
7. Readers' Letters
If you have any letters or comments, please email them to info@discworldmonthly.co.uk
We assume any correspondence is eligible for use in the newsletter unless otherwise stated, including the sender's email address. We may edit your letters in line with the rules of Mornington Crescent.
It is vitally important that you don't pass off other people's work as your own. If you use information from other resources please let us know so we can give proper credit.
* From: "Jean Lamb" tlambs1138@charter.net
One somewhat stormy evening a couple of weeks ago, we were graced with an extremely sharp and distinct rainbow-in fact, it was a double rainbow, though the second one was not as clear. However, in the first one, we not only saw the violet portion, but a rather odd looking border of greenish purple (my husband saw it, too, and wondered out loud what the heck it could be, and then I told him about Terry Pratchett and octarine). Now, I'm not a witch, a wizard, a cat, or DEATH, and I certainly don't play any of them on TV-but could such a phenomenon have been the inspiration for octarine?
* From: "Billy Morgan" billybobmorgan@gmail.com
I've been a big fan of Sir Terry's work for several years now, and have read anything I could get my hands on. I've read all of Discworld, enjoy the Long Earth books more than most - only thing I haven't gotten to yet is the Science of Discworld series, but they're sitting on my shelf, just a-waitin'.
I've been a subscriber for a bit now, and was also a member of the Facebook group, but never really contributed. I'm more of a look-and-see, analysis kind of person than one who will do a whole lot of participation on stuff like this.
But it's true, I think, that in life we need people like you, who get up in the morning and work at what they love. That's the definition of being a leader - someone who will do the work, when other people can't be bothered; who take what they care about and make something out of it. 230 issues later, I think you've done a fantastic job.
A warm thank you for all of the work you do. It takes a special type of people to keep this going!
* From: "Aine Elmore" atfearon@hotmail.com
It's just struck me how alike Moist von Lipwig and Boris Johnson are. Both showmen in love with the photo opportunity, and able to style (rather than fight) their way out of any tricky situation. Whatever your opinion of Boris's politics, he can keep the crowd entertained to the point where people forget to ask him about his policies. It's uncanny!
DWM replies: we may regret including a letter that makes reference to a leading figure in the referendum campaigns...
8. DiscTrivia
We're back with five challenging trivia questions for you - this time they all come from The Wee Free Men. Good luck, Jason.
The (hopefully correct) answers can be found at the end of this issue.
9. Rincewind and the Wild Bush Horses
Article by Dr. Rod Pitcher, PhD. (ozzwhispers.blogspot.com.au/)
In this article I discuss Rincewind's further adventures in XXXX. He helps a team of stockmen re-capture a prized horse that has escaped from Old Remorse. I show how Rincewind's adventures are similar to those described in the Roundworld poem 'The Man From Snowy River'.
While crossing The Last Continent, after leaving Didjabringabeeralong, drinking lots of beer and winning a sheep shearing competition, Rincewind becomes involved with a group of stockmen who aren't having much luck trying to catch a mob of wild bush horses. With the help of his trusty steed, Snowy, who has the disconcerting habit of walking up and down vertical cliff walls and standing upside down under overhanging cliffs, Rincewind captures the wild horses for them.
The mob of horses is being led by a colt that has escaped from a homestead owned by Old Remorse, who will pay a 100 squids to get him back.
As often happens, with Rincewind's luck, he doesn't get the money. In the process he loses Snowy, which he thinks is 'a good thing' and makes up for the rest of it.
Although Rincewind is not aware of it, Snowy is actually another incarnation of Scrappy the talking kangaroo that has been helping him find food and water in the desert.
The stockmen give Rincewind some food and beer so he does get something for his trouble. He leaves them and continues on his way to Bugarup, where he is destined to save XXXX from the long-standing drought.
Rincewind's adventure are similar to those in the story of "The Man From Snowy River" by Banjo Patterson, one of Australia's most famous poets, which begins:
There was movement at the station, for the word had passed around
That the colt from Old Regret had got away,
And had joined the wild bush horses-he was worth a thousand pound
Patterson's poem tells the story of the escaped horse and the men who gather at Old Regret homestead to try to recapture it. Amongst them is The Man From Snowy River (we are never told his name), described as a stripling on a small and weedy beast, (doesn't that sound rather like Rincewind and Snowy?) who becomes the hero of the ballad. After all the other horsemen have given up the chase, he catches the escaped colt and establishes his reputation as the greatest horseman in the land.
"The Man From Snowy River" was written in the late nineteenth century when Australia and Australians were beginning to develop an identity apart from their old British heritage. Many Australians, even those living in the cities, looked to the bush and the people who lived there for values, mythological characters and heroes to give form to their new identity. In the poem they saw The Man From Snowy River, and his persistence in adversity, bravery and willingness to take a risk, as epitomising the values that they wanted as part of their new identity.
Before Australia changed to decimal currency (AUD) on 14 February 1966, we used the Australian pound (AUP) which became distinct from the pound sterling in 1910. The old pound became 2AUD in the new money. A pound was commonly called 'a quid'.
XXXX is a brand of Australian beer made in Queensland. The name is pronounced FourX and is said to indicate the strength.
The full text of "The Man From Snowy River" by Banjo Patterson (from which I quote above) can be found at: discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/805
10. Small Gods - A Discworld Graphic Novel Review
Reviewed by Rachel Rowlands.
When it arrived through our letterbox, I squealed an internal squeal of excitement. Considering it isn't due out until the 28th July (I was expecting it as a late birthday present) getting to read it now is awesome. It did mean I had to write a review though and as I am sure some of you will remember I hate writing reviews!
So here goes...
It's a hardback graphic novel illustrated by Ray Freisen (we've seen some of his stuff on varying things before. NADCon items, I liked his sampler of Going Postal (raisegrate.deviantart.com/gallery/?catpath=%2F&q=Going+Postal) that he did for fun on DeviantArt and Small Gods is very much in the same style).
I admit I am a Graham Higgins fan (Mort: The Big Comic and Guards! Guards!) but I was prepared to accept someone newish into the graphic novel library.
I must say after some immediate long drawn in breaths, I got stuck into and devoured it greedily (whilst still in my pyjamas sat in bed). It's been a long time since I read Small Gods but it doesn't matter in the least, the story is all here and Ray doesn't miss a second of it.
The illustrations whilst quite dark in colour are bang on with what I see in my head, even though it's all quite stylised and angular. Omnia and Ephebe both have that Egyptian styling and Ray illustrates them both with gusto, the maze in Ephebe is something I want as a poster on my wall. The characterisation of OM and Brutha works well and the dialogue rocks along happily within the illustrations. I love Ray's vision of Death, the way Ray has made it quite clear as to where you are is a joy to see.
It took me an hour or so to read it all. It's worth every second and I will read it again and again.
Please don't be put off by the fact it's a new artist (I've read in several places that some fans aren't open to a new guy doing Discworld). After a couple of pages you become so engrossed in the story that any apprehensions you have because it's not Josh or Paul or Graham illustrating it totally disappear because it's so good.
Ray did an amazing job of bringing Small Gods to the graphic novel, I really hope he gets to do more of the series.
By the way ... I still want to see a finished version of his Going Postal!
Small Gods is due to be released on 28th July 2016. RRP 12.99 GBP.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857522965/87
11. The Shepherd's Crown - Paperback Competition
This month we picked up two copies of The Shepherd's Crown in paperback. One for our shelves and one to give away as a competition prize. We'll also include a Discworld Monthly competition winners pin badge with the novel.
In order to be in with a chance of winning the final Discworld novel to be released in paperback answer the following question:
Send your answers, along with your postal address to competitions@discworldmonthly.co.uk before July 22nd. Your address will only be used for sending out your prize should you be the lucky winner. Once prizes are sent out all address details will be destroyed. Entries received after the closing date or sent to any other address will be ignored. No more than one entry per person will be accepted. Failure to answer the questions or provide your postal address will prevent you from being entered into the competition. Multiple entries will be banned. Answers to the questions must not be posted to any websites before the competition ends. The judges' decision is final. The competition is open to all readers.
12. The Long Earth: The Long Cosmos - Review
Review by Jason Anthony
The Long Cosmos is the final instalment in The Long Earth Series. The introduction by Stephen Baxter explains how Terry finished his involvement in the novel back in the summer of 2014 and then left it for Stephen to complete the book and bring it to publication.
Throughout the myriad versions of Earth a message from the centre of the universe is being picked up. The message transcends language and effects all the sentient species on The Long Earth - the basic message is simple: Join Us... but what does that actually mean? Can the various species work together to interpret this message?
The Long Cosmos is set some six decades on from the original The Long Earth. Many of the original characters of the series have either been killed off or died of old age but in this novel we get to follow the exploits of Joshua, Nelson, Agnes and Lobsang. We also get to meet Sancho (a troll and a Librarian) and some new species we haven't met before.
I've read and reviewed all The Long Earth books and have found some of them a bit slow. There seemed to be a lot of exposition with nothing really happening. For me, though, The Long Cosmos appears to move on at a much quicker pace that made me want to get to the end to find out what was going to happen.
The Long Cosmos seems to have more references to Discworld than I've noticed before but then I wonder how much of this is me looking for them? You may also notice a short section that Star Trek fans will enjoy.
I really enjoyed The Long Cosmos and if you've enjoyed the previous instalments I hope you will too. I'm actually going to miss the series.
www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0857521780/87
discworldmonthly.co.uk/USISBN/0062297376
For other reviews of The Long Cosmos see:
Guardian - discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/811
Scifi Addicts - discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/812
Daily Mail - discworldmonthly.co.uk/uid/813
13. The first NWDWW(New World Disc World Weekend) or Endubyadeedubyadubya
A new fan group meeting took place in State College, Pennsylvania on the weekend of the 10/12th June 2016. It came into being following a throwaway comment on a drive from Spokane to Seattle after the Sasquan event last year. We were speculating on the possibility of another NADWCON after the announcement by individuals that there would be no more. Talking to DW fans at Sasquan, it was clear that the fans felt otherwise and as time has shown, they were correct. However, at the time, there was a space for something to happen and that would likely be an event along the lines of the regional fan meets we have in the UK. At the time it was just an idea, but within weeks of arriving back home, wheels were turning and the word was spreading. Thanks to Steve Taylor (steveastrouk) a venue was found at Toftrees Golf Resort in State College, PA and in keeping with the small numbers known to be interested word was spread quietly to avoid things getting out of control.
Some of us arrived early on the 9th to get the lay of the land and christen the venue (and make many many many U-turns....) And so it was that on Friday 10th June 2016 at noon, the official gathering began. It followed regional meeting format with quizzes and a raffle and a special video hello from Rob Wilkins (who kindly provided a copy of the Memorial book as raffle prize) and Stephen Briggs who wished the participants well. As members of the Northern Institute, myself and Pat Harkin were in attendance to keep things sensible!! *for a given value of sensible... cue hysterical laughter from Carol (phalarope).
Steve and Carol had organised us very well and great enjoyment was had at the venue - talking, quizzing and playing games (Exploding Kittens and Cthulhu Flux being the favourites - although Karen (Nonny Mouse) did explode at one point as she was consumed by unspeakable beings from the nether dimensions (i.e. - she lost!)). Quiz topics covered General Knowledge, Terry's books, and the War of the American Rebellion (in keeping with our shared history). One forfeit was gamely undertaken by newbie Laura on behalf of an early-departing guest, whereupon she read out ... as assigned by Paul (Hansolobiker). Pat regaled the assembly with many tales, not least was a recap of the Trojan Duck story, for which he received a 'special' memento.
Keeping the numbers down also meant it was easy for us all to get out and about for lunch and dinner at a variety of establishments, as being Penn State Uni territory there are lots of good places to eat and drink. Otto's, Barrel 21, Hog father's and many more came in useful. A bespoke Sausage Supper was catered by Hog's Galore, aka Offler's Cafe, on Saturday evening. Susanne (Catch-Up) and Carol had colluded to obtain adjoining rooms, which allowed the socializing to continue into the late hours after the official meeting room had closed.
Images may be found here -
goo.gl/photos/swfQcZMrspSf1Niq9
The raffle raised 180 dollars. Winner Patty was given the choice of charity to support and selected RICE, and the money will be passed on in memory of Sir Terry.
We were especially pleased to hear from those in the know that there will be a 2017 NADWCON with venue and dates to be announced shortly.
This was never meant to be any more than a group of friends and like-minded fans getting together to have a good time but it may very well turn out to be a regular event held in the even years between NADWCONs if they continue. Annapolis anybody?
Hansolobiker
14. Competition: What I did/will do on my holidays at the Irish Discworld Convention
Greetings Discworld fans! Story competition time. We would like to hear from you, our former and future attendees. We're gathering retrospectives on former IDWCons, and predictions on future ones (perhaps by drinking some reannual wines), so if you haven't been before you can still have a go. Please send entries to info@idwcon.org
The prize will be a shiny pre-con t-shirt (a second one or a refund if you've already purchased).
Please send by 25th July at the latest. Our favourite entries will be published on the IDWCon website, and the winner will also feature in a future issue of Discworld Monthly. Entries should be limited to 1000 words, and preferably submitted as a word document.
15. The End
Please let us have any submissions for issue 232 of Discworld Monthly BEFORE Friday 22nd July 2016.
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