I Read Books: The Fifth Elephant

The Fifth Elephant

There’s a new Low King of the Dwarves*. This creates problems, especially with one of the biggest Dwarf cities being Ankh-Morpork, which was negligible the last time a Low King was elected. The Patrician sends a diplomatic mission, headed by the undiplomatic Samuel Vimes.

There are other powers in the Uberwald (I guess the Dwarves live in the UnterWald), including the Werewolves, who are related to Angua, and the Vampires who have their own thing going on. There’s a big crime plot that leads from Ankh Morpork into political intrigue. There’s a few soap opera-y bits of pushing some relationships and things forward a little bit, not changing the status quo so much as putting a few pieces in place. And a sub-plot of what happens when all the senior officers leave the Watch to provide some amusing bits that smooth out the pacing.

Pratchett has a few things to say, about diplomacy and people doing things in full view, and private laws and transparency and so on. And also about gloomy Eastern European stories. There’s some genuinely odd stuff about the fat mines and treacle wells that’s technically unessential to the plot but brilliant worldbuilding in the way that iron or coal or, ahem, silver wouldn’t be. And a moment to explain about the uses of fat in civilisation.

Read This: It’s an exciting and funny fantasy novel of crime and intrigue that moves swiftly and has something to say
Don’t Read This: Although you can ignore the series elements it’s not a great starting point

* Dwarf King has previous been explained as being the equivalent of mine boss; the Low King is, of course, the High King, who adjudicates big Dwarf problems.