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Terry Pratchett: a Life with Footnotes
Terry Pratchett: a Life with Footnotes: The Official Biography | Rob Wilkins
32 posts | 8 read | 1 reading | 5 to read
'People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it's the other way around.' Terry Pratchett, creator of the phenomenally bestselling Discworld series, knight of the realm, and holder of more honorary doctorates than he knew what to do with, was known and loved around the world for his wildly popular books, his brilliant satirical humour and for the humanity of his campaign work. But that's only part of the picture. At the time of his death in 2015, he was working on his finest story yet - his own. The story of a boy who was told by his headteacher aged six that he would never amount to anything, and spent the rest of his life proving him wrong. Who walked out on his A levels to become a journalist, encountering some very dead bodies and the idea for his first novel before he reached twenty. Who celebrated his knighthood by smelting himself a sword, and who, on being awarded the prestigious Carnegie Medal, switched it during the prizegiving for a chocolate replica and proceeded to eat it in front of an audience of horrified librarians. Tragically, Terry ran out of time to complete the memoir he so desperately wanted to write. But now, in the only authorised biography of one of our best known and best loved writers, his manager and friend Rob Wilkins picks up where Terry left off, and with the help of friends, family and Terry's own unpublished work, tells the full story of an extraordinary life.
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review
BookmarkTavern
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Pickpick

The life of Terry Pratchett, written by his longtime personal assistant and friend, Rob Wilkins.

This was so perfect. It was a heartbreaking joy to learn more about the man whose writing changed my life. His background, his inspirations, his dedication to writing. & it‘s nice to know that he appears to be as genuine & good hearted as I thought he‘d be. #GNUTerryPratchett #OokBOokClub 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗

BookmarkTavern CW 👇🏻 9mo
BookmarkTavern The last quarter of the book deals with Pratchett‘s diagnosis and life with Alzheimer‘s, as well as his support for physician assisted suicide 9mo
BookmarkTavern Footnote 1: I would give serious consideration to giving up an organ if I could get that short story of orcs in Jane Austen. 9mo
BookmarkTavern Footnote 2: I held it together pretty well, only tearing up. Until Rob started listing the books on the hard drive destroyed by the steamroller. THEN I burst into tears. 9mo
julesG Same for me, Re: Footnotes 1+2. I haven't written a review yet. 9mo
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julesG
This post contains spoilers
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Here we are, our final #OokBOokClub discussion for #ALifeWithFootnotes. Feel free to discuss anything! Don't forget to tag each other in the comments so your friends can see your reply. Have fun!

#Discworld #SirTerryPratchett #TerryPratchett #PratchettPosse #ReadAlong #BuddyRead #EpicBuddyread

julesG I enjoyed Rob Wilkins' sense of humour, which might not come as a surprise. He loved Pratchett's books already before he worked with him. And, I'm sure, some of Pratchett's wit certainly rubbed off over the years. 9mo
julesG Do you have favourite anecdotes about Pratchett? 9mo
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willaful Yes, I'm finding it more entertaining than I expected. (But perhaps should hve expected.) 9mo
BookmarkTavern I‘m not quite finished yet, but listening to the stories has been so lovely. Hearing how people and places shaped him. Also, I would have loved to see how he ran a D&D campaign. My mind cannot imagine how awesome it must have been. 💕 9mo
willaful I'm still way behind -- making an effort to finish by the end of the month -- but the chapter on Terry's wedding has tears prickling my eyes. So sweet! (And reminds me of my own husband, who was 18 when we met and also become “the most married person you were ever likely to meet.“) 8mo
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LitsyEvents
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@julesG original post https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2701812

Here we are, #OokBOokClub-ers, our last #Buddyread book. Can you believe that we started this #SirTerryPratchett #EpicBuddyread in February 2018? Five years later and I am ready to re-read some of my favourites again.
Looking forward to our discussion next month!
Happy reading!
#Discworld #TerryPratchett #PratchettPosse
#ReadAlong

julesG Thank you! 10mo
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julesG
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Here we are, #OokBOokClub-ers, our last #Buddyread book. Can you believe that we started this #SirTerryPratchett #EpicBuddyread in February 2018? Five years later and I am ready to re-read some of my favourites again.

Looking forward to our discussion next month!

Happy reading!

#Discworld #TerryPratchett #PratchettPosse #ReadAlong

julesG Would you please share this post, @LitsyEvents ? 10mo
Soubhiville I really loved this! I hope everyone will enjoy it. 10mo
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Cortg 2018?! I‘m impressed with your dedication ❤️ Congrats! 10mo
kwmg40 Thanks for hosting all these years. I had good intentions at the beginning but couldn't keep up with reading in order and so haven't participated much. However, I am still working on the series and hope to get through a few more this year! 10mo
julesG @kwmg40 To be honest, I didn't start as host. I took over from @TricksyTails. Glad you haven't given up yet. You can always jump in on the discussions. 10mo
Soubhiville @julesG I‘m so glad you did take it over. I‘ve enjoyed revisiting Discworld, and I‘m also looking forward to going back to my favorites. ❤️ Terry Pratchett forever. 10mo
Soubhiville @julesG did you know there are documentaries about him and Alzheimer‘s? They are available on YouTube. I thought they were great. I watched after reading this book. 10mo
julesG @Soubhiville Thank you for both comments. 😘 10mo
khooliha Some of the audio books are showing up on Libby and I think to myself "Hmm, is it time for a reread?" 10mo
julesG @khooliha Always! 🤣🤣🤣 10mo
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julesG
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#OokBOokClub

Just a friendly reminder that next month we'll be reading #ALifeWithFootnotes! Dig out your books, put in your library holds, or place your orders! Our final #EpicBuddyread #ReadAlong adventure starts on February 8th! With Discussions starting March 7th.

If anyone wants to be tagged/untagged for future posts please let me know! Happy to oblige!

#Discworld #SirTerryPratchett #TerryPratchett #PratchettPosse #BuddyRead

46 likes1 comment
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Soubhiville
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#2023readingbracket
This was the first year I used the reading bracket, and it was fun. I find it interesting the way the top and bottom mirror each other here.

Top 3 nonfiction this year for me: the tagged, Just Mercy, and Poverty, by America.

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I need to do something like this for 2024. I think it would be a lot of fun to find out which book I loved the most. 11mo
Soubhiville @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I can‘t remember who makes the bracket template, but I‘ll try to tag you when I see the new one. Also StoryGraph is wonderful for tracking your stats. If you review each book and rate it (their process is fast and easy- i like it so much better than Goodreads), you get a graph of your number of starred reads, and you can open the 5 star list to see your favorites. So fun! 11mo
Soubhiville @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm it‘s @chasjjlee who makes the template, though it looks like she hasn‘t been very active lately. If I see something similar I‘ll let you know 🙂. 11mo
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I‘m on StoryGraph and love it, but I think having a bracket system would help me narrow down my five star reads to a conclusive winner. Although maybe not since it can change depending on the day, my mood, etc. 😅 Maybe I‘ll create my own bracket template on Canva. Thank you for checking! ❤️ 11mo
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gossamerchild
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Pickpick

Finished this audiobook today on my way to work. Bad idea-i was SOBBING as I drove along, and still sniffing when I walked into the building. I miss you, Sir Terry. You were one of a kind 😭😭

Highly recommended. Rob Wilkins does an outstanding job.

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Soubhiville
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#readingbracket2023

I really loved Terry Pratchett‘s biography. Getting a feel for a favorite author‘s life and his writing habits and his experience with Alzheimer‘s was really special for me. Especially since Rob managed to write it with such honor and love.

Definitely the best of the nonfiction in September for me.

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Soubhiville
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Pickpick

This was absolutely brilliant. Rob Wilkins was Terry‘s personal assistant and he wrote exactly the book Terry would have wanted. (Some of it does draw from the autobiography TP had started in his lifetime.)

I laughed just as much as if I‘d been read a Discworld novel. The footnotes are perfect in every way. And of course the last hour had me in tears, but also laughing.

If you‘re a fan of TP, don‘t miss this, it‘s well worth your time.

Soubhiville I had no idea TP had done several documentaries. I‘m going in to that rabbit hole next. I may pull a favorite Discworld book off the shelf again soon too. A reread of Tiffany Aching‘s series maybe. 1y
Ruthiella Stacking ! I‘m a nascent Pratchett fan with only five Discworld novels under my belt. 1y
julesG #OokBOokClub is discussing the biography in February 2024. We've just finished the last Discworld novel *sigh*. I am going to miss reading a 'new-to-me' Discworld adventure. 1y
Soubhiville @julesG I know 😢 I put off Shepherd‘s Crown for so long for that exact reason. 1y
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MariaW
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Pickpick

This is definitely a biography which can be called Pratchettian. Wilkins used the notes of Terry and his own memories to write the biography in style of Pratchett - meaning a good lot of laughs and me crying in the end (because we all know the sad ending). I actually always thought there will be time to meet my favourite author, till there was no time anymore. 😓 #gnuterrypratchett #speakhisname

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Robotswithpersonality
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Pickpick

Do NOT skip the footnotes!
A pleasing medley of historical fact and anecdote, touching moments, silly moments and moments of fascinating insight. Great pacing, at no stage in the life recounted does the reader feel lost in the weeds - like a particular time period has overstayed its welcome, or that it was too brief; would that we could say the same for Terry's life span. 1/?

Robotswithpersonality Hard to shake pervasive sadness reading this, knowing he's gone, that his final years were often a struggle, nevertheless a fair amount of giggling was done as well, and I was surprised to realize that Wilkins' writing elicited it almost as often as those passages directly credited to Pratchett. 2/? 2y
Robotswithpersonality Something of a dual narrative, the story of Terry's life interwoven with the story of the biographer's time with Terry, which I don't mind, because I think the warm remembrance of a friend is a better fit than a coldly factual account would be. Which does not stop the biographer from being honest, even matter of fact about Terry's flaws. 3/? 2y
Robotswithpersonality While I appreciate the sparing intermittent references to Pratchett's deterioration throughout earlier chapters, flashing forward before going back to linear narrative, as it feels like an attempt to gently prepare us for the time when it will start to go downhill, I was still sobbing by the end. 4/?
2y
Robotswithpersonality ⚠️ Particularly if you have ever witnessed a loved one dealing with Alzheimer's, there are passages in this book that will rip your heart out; discussion of assisted dying.

I think I was resistant to the idea of anybody but Terry Pratchett writing about Terry Pratchett, but that last line, and footnote, of the epilogue capped it for me. This was beautifully written, and while my eyes and nose and emotions are raw, I'm still glad I read it. 5/5
2y
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Robotswithpersonality
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🎓🤠

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Robotswithpersonality
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"Arise, Sir Terry,"
Now THAT is how you share the news. ?️

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Robotswithpersonality
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👨🏼‍⚖️ Guilty! 😄

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Robotswithpersonality
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Advice I followed; advice I strongly support!

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Robotswithpersonality
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Thoroughly enchanted by Pratchett hobby farm of the 1970s.

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Robotswithpersonality
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"Think of their little faces," ?
Poor, hungry editors! ?

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Robotswithpersonality
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Evolution of language part 2. 😄

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Robotswithpersonality
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The evolution of language. ☺️

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Robotswithpersonality
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Currently pining to read a short story Pratchett wrote in high school.
Addendum: it was published! When he was fifteen! Now I have to find 'The Hades Business' in Science Fantasy, Volume 20, Number 60, August 1963. 🫨

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Robotswithpersonality
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"...seemed to know where it could lay its hands on a decent amount of the rest of it."
Interlibrary loans might not seem particularly touching at first glance, but so much of my life has been libraries, and all they can do, and knowing they were also important to such a wonderful author and human...
Gonna cry ?

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Robotswithpersonality
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☺️🥰📚

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Robotswithpersonality
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Discovering this about the author whose work got me out of a ten year reading slump is making me EMOTIONAL! 🥺

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Robotswithpersonality
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Love the engagement of the senses in the description.

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Robotswithpersonality
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🫣

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MariaW
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Ever since I am back in Europe, I did not have time to start reading again. But I am using my 1,5 hour daily commute to start hearing all the books on my reading list. Right now I am browsing through everything Pratchetty like his biography. 😊
#speakhisname #terrypratchett #gnuterrypratchett

julesG 1.5h commute sounds awful, but it offers audiobook time. The #OokBOokClub is reading the biography early next year. 2y
Ruthiella Back when I lived in a city with good public transportation, I read on the train/tram/bus all the time. 👍 2y
MariaW @julesG Was lest ihr gerade? 2y
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MariaW @Ruthiella Unfortunately, I have to take the car. 🙈 2y
julesG Wir nähern uns dem Ende des ewigen #ReadAlong. Da jetzt aber noch ein paar Short Stories aufgetaucht sind, die erst am Ende des Jahres veröffentlicht werden, haben wir die Biographie nach hinten geschoben. 2y
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julesG
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We won't be reading this until the end of 2023, but I'm glad it arrived at last. (pre-ordered it months ago for delivery by publication day, which was 29th September ???)

#BookMail

#OokBOokClub #Discworld #SirTerryPratchett #TerryPratchett #PratchettPosse #ReadAlong #BuddyRead #EpicBuddyRead

Also pictured a German "English Breakfast" tea and half of a 'microwave brownie/(literal) cupcake'.

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Balibee146
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Pickpick

A fantastic biography, beautifully written. Respectful but truthful, bringing alive a man of blistering talent, sometimes capricious with a habit of telling uncomfortable truths....his withering verdict on a first draft film treatment of one of his books in development for Sam Raimi is classic!
Devastatingly moving in its final chapters. Just about held back tears in the last chapter until the grey sand dream.

GNU Sir Terry Pratchett

Balibee146 The verdict on that film script, delivered to an assistant after hours of stewing fury while waiting for the USA to awaken... "It's sh!t!" 2y
gossamerchild Oh my goodness I need to read this! 2y
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Balibee146
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I remember reading that in his last days film-maker Derek Jarman lost his sight and thought what a cruel thing for his illness to take from him.
Same feeling here with this heartbreaking footnote. I'm really enjoying this biography but know it is starting to head into the difficult waters now 💔💔

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Balibee146
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Very late lunch and some book time.
I am loving this... Rob Wilkins writes so well and it feels like the great P'Terry is coming alive from the page.
The early chapters detail a young working class boy finding the local library and discovering the joys of reading.... It is a homage to a life journey and the development of a lifetime obsession that I suppose many of us here identify with...oh how I miss Mr Pratchett 💔💔

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Balibee146
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I got both of these as early birthday presents, so it's fitting that I finished one and started the other on the actual day 😁

Bookwormjillk Happy birthday 🎁 2y
Ruthiella Happy Birthday! 🥳🥳🥳 2y
Balibee146 @Bookwormjillk @Ruthiella thankyou lovelies 😘😘 2y
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Balibee146
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A rare occasion where I get a book on publication day... Very P'Terry ❤️💔❤️

Ruthiella I don‘t think I‘d ever seen a picture of him before without his hat! 2y
Balibee146 @Ruthiella it was a rare sight.... Its discussed here in this adapted extract from the book https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/sep/17/i-think-i-was-good-though-i-could-... 2y
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