Night Watch

by Terry Pratchett

Book Overview

"Night Watch turns out to be an unexpectedly moving novel about sacrifice and responsibility, its final scenes leaving one near tears. . . Terry Pratchett may still be pegged as a comic novelist, but . . . he's a lot more." -- Washington Post Book World

Getting knocked back in time thirty years, Sam Vines, Commander of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch experiences a day like no other in which past, present, and future collide...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060013117
• ISBN13: 9780060013110
• Release Date: November 2002
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.29 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

One of the wisest popular novels of the past 50 years

Night Watch is Terry Pratchett's consummate masterpiece. He applies his insights into politics, ambition, loyalty, commitment, love, duty, sacrifice, and human fragility in a powerful, frequently entertaining, and ultimately overwhelming story. Pratchett shines when he fills each page with something to make it worth inclusion in the whole, and he does so brilliantly in Night Watch. On my first reading, I carefully avoided reading ahead, and although many of the book's conclusions were clearly foreshadowed, I was near tears at the book's final revelations. The book sharply contrasts the potential for great natural bravery among the streetwise downtrodden with the potential for casual cruelty among the powerful elite. Not that the elite are typecast as cruel - several major characters among the "elite" are written with great depth, and the future Patrician of Ankh-Morpork finally has his moment to shine, albeit as a young man. My favorite Pratchett novel, bar none. Worthy of many rereads.

When lilacs last in Ankh-Morpork bloomed

One of the tricky parts of a time travel novel is explaining to the traveler (especially if his journey is inadvertent as it is in "Night Watch") and the reader just what the heck happened. Luckily, in a previous Discworld novel, "Thief of Time" (2001), Pratchett invented Lu-Tze and the Time Monks, so that when Sam Vimes travels back to his own past while chasing a cold-blooded murderer, a little bald wrinkly smiling man (Rule #1: "Do not act incautiously when confronting little bald wrinkly smiling men!") rescues Sam from the clutches of history's cowardly, badly run Night Watch, and explains what has happened. Basically, young Sam Vimes has just joined the past's Night Watch and the older Sam Vimes must teach him to be a good cop while disguised as Sargeant John Keel, newly arrived in Ankh-Morpork and ready to kick some sloppy, sadistic cop butt. If 'old' Vimes doesn't make sure 'young' Vimes becomes a decent cop, his future, his wife, his position as Commander of the Watch will be lost to him. Good men will needlessly die. Historical Ankh-Morpork is also gearing up for a revolt against a Patrician who is propped up by a really nasty secret police gang. Once 'Sargeant John Keel' gets himself clothed, out of jail, his plight explained by Lu-Tze, and is put in charge of the Treacle Mine Road Watch House, he must train up young Sam Vimes (as well as future-Sargeant Colon, and Nobby Nobbs), capture a killer, and make sure the Revolution is won by the right people. Only then Vimes will get to return to the 'future' where his wife is about to give birth. I enjoy all of Discworld novels starring the redoubtable Sam Vimes, but "Night Watch" is something special. The plot zips from beginning to end, never slowing down except for the mandatory insertion of the Time Monks, who have to explain the how and why of Sam's excursion into his own past. Many of the loose ends from previous Night Watch novels are tied together and neatly tucked in. Most of all, I was delighted by a deepening illumination of character--not just of Vimes, but of the Patrician Vetinari, Sargeant Colon, and Nobby Nobbs. While you read, you'll be thinking 'of course they started like this.' Pratchett is that good. If you'd like to read the Sam Vimes/Night Watch books in order of publication, they are: "Guards! Guards!" (1989); "Men at Arms" (1993); "Feet of Clay" (1996); "Jingo" (1997); "Night Watch" (2002); and "Thud!" (2005).

He's still got it! (Well, who ever doubted it.)

This is another excellent book in the Discworld series. It's not the best, by some way, but it's still an incredibly good read. Sam Vimes is cast back in time to old Anhk-Morpork. Whilst there he must drag a vicious killer back to the present, stop a bloody revolution, and teach the young Vimes how to be a good copper, otherwise when he returns, he may find himself faced with no future at all. This book is considerably darker than some of Pratchett's works, and there's not quite as much humour as normal, which doesnt really matter, because it is still there in part. (Indeed, the way Nobby Nobbs imparts news of husband's death's to their new widows is posibly the funniest thing i have ever read.) However, it's still absolutely chock-full of the philosophical musings which lift his books so far most fantasy novels, indeed, almost ALL novels. Not only are his books immensely enjoyable, funny and well written, they make you think, and they say a great great deal about the world we live in today, by using the Discworld societies as mirrors of our own. Some people say that some of books of the last five or so years havent been as good as some of those from his "middle period", i however, couldn't disagree more. In the past few years, terry Pratchett ahs produced some of his absolutely best work, from the best of the entire series, "The Truth", to the cleverst work of detective fiction i've ever come across, "Feet of Clay". This book has another cracking plot with some excellent characters (it was great to see some of the characters we now know so well, in their younger days. Nobby, Fred, etc. Indeed, the young Havelock Vetinari provides an absolutely brilliant performance.) and it's nie to have a window into Anhk-Morporks history, however, after the excellent first 200 pages, the book slows down a bit and gets slightly, dare i say it, mundane, for a very short while, before it picks itself up again and goe son to another great ending. Terry Pratchett really deserves some kind of award for this, and every book he's wrriten. Indeed, with Terry Pratchett writing a book a year, no other fantasy/sci-fi writer would stand a chance.

How the Vimes Character was Formed

Night Watch is the 27th, or 28th (depending on how you count them) book in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. The Discworld series takes place on the flat world of the Disc which is carried on the backs of four elephants standing on the great Turtle, A'tuin, as he (or maybe she) swims through space. On the Disc mariners who attempt to sail over the horizon, in fact, sail over the edge. The Disc is home to magic and many magical creatures and beings abound, gods, dwarfs, trolls, vampires, zombies, werewolves, wizards, witches and more. Terry Pratchett's Discworld books can be grouped into categories depending on who the primary characters are. I tend to think of the categories as the Wizards of the Unseen University, the Witches of Lancre, Death, and the City Watch. Most of the Discworld books fall into one of these categories although a few like Pyramids, Moving Pictures and Small Gods don't. Night Watch though is definitely a City Watch book.In Night Watch, we learn how Samuel Vimes' character was formed. His Grace, the Duke Samuel Vimes, the commander of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is dispatched back in time (along with a ruthless killer) to the waning days of the corrupt Lord Winder's reign as ruler of Ankh-Morpork. Vimes must assume the identity of John Keel, a guardsman recently recruited to the Ankh-Morpork Night Watch as a Sergeant at Arms. In the Night Watch he finds his earlier self, takes him under his wing and teaches him how to be a good copper. In his jaunt back to the past Vimes meets earlier versions of Fred Colon as a corporal, Nobby Nobbs as a street urchin, Reg Shoe as a non-zombie revolutionary and a young new street vendor named Dibbler just starting out. Lu-Tze, the sweeper monk of history, makes an appearance trying to get Vimes to accept his role in the course of events leading up to the revolution that ousts Lord Winder. A young Vetinari, as a senior at the Assasins Guild also takes part in the plot.Terry Pratchett's Discworld books are jewels of humorous fantasy and Night Watch is no exception. The most enjoyable Discworld books involve the City Watch, Guards, Guards, Men at Arms, Feet of Clay, Jingo, and The Fifth Elephant. Night Watch continues the story of the City Watch characters by going back in time to explain how the central character, Sam Vimes, came to be. However, Night Watch, is not the typical hysterical Pratchett romp through the fantastic world of the Disc. This book, while still funny, is a little darker than the average Discworld book and a little bit deeper, which makes it a very nice change of pace. The older Sam Vimes as John Keel, teaches the younger Vimes the meaning of being a watchman, doing the job that's in front of you and keeping the peace. It's in some ways a sad and trying story, but it opens up tremendous insight into one of the most beloved Discworld characters. This book probably is not the best choice for your first Discworld book, but if you are a fan of the Discworld

The Zen of Time Travel and Revolutionary Parody...

While Terry Pratchett is always funny - and one of the wittiest writers in fantasy (if not all of publishing) - many of his last ten books seem a little short of the sparkle that his earlier work had. This is certainly not a problem for "Night Watch", though. In fact, it's his very return to many of his old formulas that, surprisingly, makes it such a success.As with all the Discworld books, "Night Watch" takes three or four popular themes in literature - or fiction or science fiction or whatever - and plays with them and their conventions. For this book, he's taken the idea of everybody's reminiscences of the 'good old days', time travel stories (especially those like "Back to the Future") and revolutions (specifically the French Revolution and at least a couple of Roman revolutions I can think of). All of this is, of course, woven into the story of Sam Vimes, Commander of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, being thrown back in time thirty years to a pivotal revolution in the city when he was just starting as a recruit.All the stereotypes are there: from the dingy, cowardly watchmen that he must whip into shape to the know-it-all monitoring wise people (monks, in this case) and the young versions of many of the other Ankh-Morpork denizens we've met in the past five Watch books. What really makes this great, though, is that he has fun with all of these stereotypes and still manages to tell a story that's both engaging and like going back to visit old friends (albeit cowardly, somewhat-corrupt ones).I wholeheartedly recommend this book to the Terry Pratchett fan as well as to the fantasy fan or even just the humor fan. While going back to "Guards! Guards!" (the first Discworld book about the Watch) may be helpful for those of you that aren't familiar with the series, it's still strong enough that it can hold it's own. If "Night Watch" is your first Terry Pratchett book, you may miss a lot of the references, but you'll still be in for an excellent read.