Feet of Clay and Hogfather- Discworld Reading Challange

Ok, so it's been forever since I did one of these and I'm at least 8 books ahead so it's time to play catch up. I have the notes written, I just need to type them all up.

Published: 1996

Plot Summery: Twelve of the city golems, clay creatures forced to obey the written instructions placed inside their heads, decide to create a "king" golem. They fashion a golem from their own clay and place in his head instructions that would fulfill their hopes: "Bring peace to the world", "Treat everyone fairly" and so on. They enroll the help of a priest and dwarf bread baker to write the sacred instructions and bake the clay, respectively; Meshugah, the "king" golem, is initially sent to work in a candle factory, and later murders the priest and baker who took part in his creation.

Around the same time, a cabal of Ankh-Morpork's guild leaders seeks to gradually depose the Patrician, replace him with Nobby Nobbs as the new king and rule the city through him.

To implement this, the cabal orders the golems' newly made king, Meshugah, to make poisoned candles and have them delivered to the palace. Vetinari is successfully poisoned, making him severely ill. Meshugah, however, is "overloaded" by all the different instructions his creators gave him, and goes "mad": he starts overworking and, when he finishes raw materials, he rampages through the city.

At this point the City Watch steps in trying to solve the murders and the poisoning of Lord Vetinari. With the assistance of their new forensics expert dwarf Cheery Littlebottom, Commander Vimes and Captain Carrot slowly unravel the mystery.

Carrot and Dorfl, one of the golems, fight and defeat the golem king at the candlestick factory. Afterwards, Vimes confronts the city's chief heraldry expert, a vampire, who instigated the whole affair. Dorfl arrests him despite tenuous evidence and Vimes burns down all the heraldic record as retribution against the "elite" and "noble" plotters, who had happily and self-righteously sacrificed the lives of several "commoners" in the pursuit of their scheme.

In the end, Vetinari has recovered completely, Dorfl is sworn in as a Watchman, Vimes gets a pay rise, and the Watch House gets a new dartboard. Vetinari reveals to his assistant, Drumknott, that he had known of the plot for some time already. Vimes' rash actions in the pursuit of truth had considerably scared the city elite, which is precisely why Vetinari had let him continue: so that the plotters would know just how much worse off they'd be if Vetinari died.

Adaptations: None known

Favourite Quotes: 

I AM DEATH, NOT TAXES. I TURN UP ONLY ONCE.

There were no public health laws in Ankh-Morpork. It would be like installing smoke detectors in Hell.

"Today Is A Good Day For Someone Else To Die!"

It was hard enough to kill a vampire. You could stake them down and turn them into dust and ten years later someone drops a drop of blood in the wrong place and guess who's back? They returned more times than raw broccoli.

Reading Time: Started Thursday 18th June 2015 - Finished Tuesday 23rd June 2015

Published: 1997

Plot Summery: In the novel, the Auditors strike again by deciding to eliminate the Hogfather because he does not fit into their view of the universe. They meet with Lord Downey, head of the Assassin's Guild, and commission the services of Mr Teatime, whose particular brand of insane genius makes him an ideal candidate for the assassination of the Hogfather and other anthropomorphic personifications.Death decides to take over for the Hogfather in order to make people continue to believe in him, wearing a long red cloak and a beard, but things start to become complicated because he is taking the children's wishes too literally.

Meanwhile, Death's granddaughter Susan must find out what's happened to the real Hogfather. She visits his Castle of Bones only to find the hung-over Bilious, the "Oh God" of Hangovers, whom she rescues before the castle collapses due to the lack of belief. In an attempt to cure Bilious, Susan visits the Unseen University, where it is discovered that several of these small gods and beings are being created. The University's thinking machine, Hex, explains that there is 'spare belief' in the world – due to the absence of the Hogfather – which is being used to create them.

Susan and Bilious then travel to the land of the Tooth Fairy where they discover that Jonathan Teatime has 'killed' the Hogfather by collecting millions of children's teeth and using them to control the children, forcing them to stop believing in the Hogfather. Upon throwing the Assassin off the tower and apparently killing him, Susan clears the teeth away and brings back the Hogfather by rescuing him from the Auditors, who have taken the forms of dogs. They cannot return to their original state and so cannot stop themselves falling off a cliff.

Afterwards, Teatime tracks Susan to the Gaiters' nursery, but is killed by Susan using the nursery poker, which passes through Death because "it only kills monsters".

Adaptations: A two-part TV series of Hogfather was screened on the 17 December and 18 December 2006 (8:00 p.m.) on Sky One in the UK, with Ian Richardson as the voice of Death and David Jason playing Death's manservant Albert. Terry Pratchett himself had a brief cameo as the toy-maker.

Favourite Quotes: 

"Real stupidity beats artificial intelligence every time."

The truth may be out there, but lies are inside your head.

"Real children don't go hoppity-skip unless they are on drugs."

Reading Time: Started Wednesday 24th June 2015 - Finished Saturday 27th June 2015

Crafty Catz DT - Summertime

Morning all,

Well here it is - the last challenge for Crafty Catz before our summer break. This week's theme is set by the lovely Cindy and she wants to see Summertime cards. We are sponsored this week by Sami Stamps who are offering our lucky winner $12 gift card. 

My card this week uses Cabbage Fairy and was coloured using watercolour pencils. I mounted it on some scrap paper and used scraps for the mini flags, finishing the whole thing of with pearls from stash. 

I'd also like to enter this into Sami's own challenge: Anything Goes

So there you go. I hope you like it and come and play with us for our last challenge until August. Until next time, happy crafting! 

Crafty Catz DT - Anything Goes

Morning all,

So here's to the end of another very busy week. Starting with deaconate ordinatikns last Saturday and it will end tommorow with a Priestly Ordination tommorow. I'm currently in Durham as this post goes live - at a conference on Catholic faith at Ushaw. Ushaw was the sister seminary to Oscott before it sadly closed 5 years ago.

Anyway, enough with the history lesson and onto this weeks challenge which is Anything Goes. We are sponsored this week by Bugaboo stamps who are offering our lucky winner 7 images of their choice

My card this week uses a die by Die-Versions and flowers and leaves from Woodware punches. Lots of scrap papers and gems and there we go. 

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges
Crafting with an Attitude - Anything Goes
Craft your Passion - Always Anything Goes
Crafty Sentiments - Summertime

I hope you like the card and please swing by the blog to see everyone else's amazing creations. Until the next time, happy crafting!

Crafty Catz DT- It's All White

Morning all, 

It's the end of another week and tomorrow is the end of another academic year at the college - which heralds on 8 weeks of building works! (Time to load up the MP3 player and make sure the headphones are in place!) 

It's also the start of a new Crafty Catz challenge, which has been set by me and I want to see cards which are All White (images may be coloured but embellishments, papers etc. must be white) 

We are sponsored this week by The Stamping Boutique who are offering our winner 3 digi images of their choice:

I coloured the image with Promarkers: Apple, Lime Green, Cool Aqua, Sky Blue, Gold, Pastel Yellow, Satin and Lavender, lifted the two largest heads on pads to give dimension and hand cut the shape. I mounted the image on embossed base card stock, using Flourish Cuttlebug Embossing Folder and finished the card with Memory Box and MS butterflies, Cosmic Shimmer Mist - Pearls and gems from stash. 

I hope you like it and that you play along this week. 

Until next time, happy crafting!  

Wishing You Birthday Fishes!

Morning all,

Who stole the sun? it was gorgeous weather yesterday and today it's so grey and miserable I just want to crawl back into my bed. 

I'm here to share one of the many June Birthday cards I've made (19 birthdays in one month is a killer!) Thankfully, I can double up a lot of designs, which I did with this one:

So I'll own up to having seen a few 'birthday fishes' cards on good old pinterest and it entertained me so this is my take on the idea. 

The sentiment is just computer generated, I randomly punched holes using my single hole punch, which I edged with pale blue promarker, hand cut the shape out and the blue metallic paper underneath and then used half of the Whimsie Doodle image - Great Catch in two different sizes to get the fish, which I coloured in Pumpkin and Gold promarkers and highlighted with white gel pen. The fishes were also raised on foam pads. 

I'm pleased with the result and I think a few more of these will have to be in due course.

I would like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Crafting with Attitude - Anything Goes

Passion for Promarkers - Not Square

Craft your Passion - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you like it and until next time - happy crafting! 

Crafty Catz DT - Different Hair Colour

Morning all, 

Wow! it's been an insane few weeks I can tell you. Conferences, exhibitions (and water coming through the ceiling of the exhibition space - stress!), formal dinners at work and a few too many tears shed thanks to horrible members of staff. To say I need a break is an understatement, but we have another week of the academic year to go and then I'm off for a conference in Durham so who knows when I'll actually get some me time. 

In the meanwhile, I'm trying in vain to keep on top of card making and general crafts projects. But one product I was recently sent I just had to play with - free time, or lack thereof, be damned. And it was perfect for this weeks Crafty Catz Challenge which has been set by the lovely Nina and is sponsored by Inky Impressions. 

Winners Prize : $10 gift voucher

This week you are being challenged to colour your images with Different Hair Colours - so no browns and blonds; we're looking for purple, pinks and blues! 

So my project this week is a Postcard. I was sent this amazing tin of watercolour postcards by Hahnemuhle. You get 100 blank 6x4" watercolour card blanks for you to create your own images on and send. I love the idea of creating postcards, rather than just cards - it means I can colour images but not worry about layers and embellishments, and my friends can get more random notes in the post. 

So this week I started by using one of Mo's amazing images and colouring it with promarkers

I used so many promarkers I frankly lost track but it was good fun to do and although there is a small amount of bleed through on the reverse, it's not so bad as to prohibit this being sent as a card. What I do want to do is find some sort of sealant though to stop any bleeding if it gets wet due to the weather. I think a product like that used for art journalling may be the answer, but all suggestions are welcomed. 

Anyway, I hope you like my alternative to a card this week and don't forget to join in this week. Until next time, happy crafting!

Oh and I'd like to enter this into Craft My Life - Anything but a Card (I hope it qualifies - if not, just let me know)

Interesting Times and Maskerade - Discworld Reading Challenge

Published: 1994

Plot Summery: Two gods, Fate and the Lady, oppose each other in a game over the outcome of the struggle for the throne of the Agatean Empire on the Counterweight Continent.

The Patrician of Ankh-Morpork receives a demand that the "Great Wizzard" be sent to the distant Agatean Empire, and he orders Archchancellor Mustrum Ridcully of Unseen University to comply. As the spelling, "Wizzard," matches that on Rincewind's hat, the faculty decide to send him. Using the machine Hex, which has seemingly been augmenting its own infrastructure, they teleport him to the University from a desert island where he has been living since the events of Eric. They offer him the right to call himself a Wizard, which he never actually earned, if he will let them send him to Agatea; he agrees. 

As is typical for Rincewind, his dedicated efforts to run from any kind of danger quickly embroil him in momentous events, and coincidence makes it appear on several occasions that Rincewind is responsible for significant feats of magic. He encounters his friend Cohen the Barbarian, now accompanied by a "Silver Horde" of elderly warriors, who is planning to infiltrate the Empire and live a luxurious retirement by taking over as Emperor. Rincewind eventually learns that the first Agatean Emperor supposedly conquered the land with the assistance of a "Great Wizard" and a "Red Army." Now, a new "Red Army" movement of young people, dedicated mainly to the promulgation of mildly worded slogans, has been inspired by a supposed revolutionary tract, which turns out to be a travelogue of Ankh-Morpork written by Rincewind's erstwhile traveling companion, Twoflower, whom Rincewind ends up freeing from a dungeon and whose two daughters are leaders of the Red Army. It turns out that the villainous Grand Vizier, Lord Hong, has made the harmless Red Army appear to be a threat to the Empire and had Rincewind brought to Agatea so that he could blame the problems on foreigners, then put the "revolution" down violently and turn to the conquest of Ankh-Morpork, whose culture he secretly seeks to emulate. But when Hong murders the Emperor with the intention of framing the Red Army, it inadvertently creates the opportunity needed by the Silver Horde, who have infiltrated the palace. 

As the battle begins, Rincewind flees and inadvertently discovers the actual Red Army, a multitude of terra cotta warriors that can be controlled by magical armor that he accidentally dons. The automatons destroy the Agatean forces. Once Cohen realizes that he is now recognized as the Emperor, he prepares proclamations to relax the regime's oppression of the people. He invites Rincewind to serve as Chief Wizard and found his own university, which convinces Rincewind that something horrible is about to happen. 

The Luggage had followed Rincewind to its native Agatea, but became distracted by meeting and mating with a female Luggage. Upon Rincewind's disappearance, the Luggage leaves its mate and their offspring to once again follow its owner.

The Lady has won the game against Fate. And she interfered in Hex's calculations so that Rincewind is teleported to the unexplored continent of XXXX where he lands safely, while a XXXXian kangaroo (instead of Rincewind) suffers a fatal collision with a wall at Unseen University.

Adaptations: None Known

Favourite Quotes: "Stercus, stercus, stercus, moriturus sum."

"Luck is my middle name," said Rincewind, indistinctly. "Mind you, my first name is Bad."

Rincewind could scream for mercy in nineteen languages, and just scream in another forty-four.

Reading Time: Started Friday 5th June 2015 - Finished Friday 12th June 2015 

Published: 1995

Plot Summery: The story begins with Agnes Nitt leaving Lancre to seek a career at the Opera House in Ankh-Morpork. When Granny Weatherwax realizes Nanny Ogg has written an immensely popular cookbook but has not been paid by the publisher, the witches also leave for Ankh-Morpork to collect the money, as well as to attempt to recruit Agnes into their coven, to replace Magrat Garlick who left the coven when she became Queen of Lancre (in Lords and Ladies). This has the side benefit of distracting Granny from becoming obsessive and self-centred, or so Nanny believes to her great relief.

Agnes Nitt is chosen as a member of the chorus, where she meets Christine, a more popular but less talented girl. The Opera House Ghost, who has long haunted the opera house without much incident, begins to commit seemingly random murders staged as "accidents", and also requests that Christine be given lead roles in several upcoming productions. Due to her incredibly powerful and versatile voice, Agnes is asked to sing the parts from the background, unbeknownst to Christine or the audience.

Having discovered the problems at the opera house and also having coerced the publisher to pay Nanny richly for her book, the witches investigate the mystery, with Granny posing as a rich patron, and Nanny insinuating herself into the opera house staff. Agnes unmasks Walter Plinge, the janitor, as the ghost, though as he is seemingly harmless, the others are unconvinced. Another employee is suspected, but turns out to be a member of the Cable Street Particulars. The witches determine that the finances of the Opera House, which are a complete mess, have been made so intentionally in order to hide the fact that money is being stolen, with the murders being used either as a distraction or to cover evidence.

It is finally revealed that two people had been masquerading as the ghost. The original (and harmless) ghost, Walter Plinge, was being psychologically manipulated by the second ghost, who assumed the identity to commit the murders and theft. With the witches' help, Walter is able to overcome his fears and help defeat the murderer.

Adaptations: A stage adaptation by Hana Burešová and Štěpán Otčenášek (partly using adaptation by Stephen Briggs) premièred in Divadlo v Dlouhé, Prague in April 2006. Pratchett attended the closing performance five years later

Favourite Quotes: 

Ahahahahaha! Ahahahaha! Aahahaha!

BEWARE!!!!!

Yrs sincerely

The Opera Ghost

People who didn't need people needed people around to know that they were the kind of people who didn't need people.

"...my father is the Emperor of Klatch and my mother is a small tray of raspberry puddings."

A day ago the future had looked aching and desolate, and now it looked full of surprises and terror and bad things happening to people... If she had anything to do with it anyway.

Reading Time: Started Saturday 13th June 2015 - Finished Wednesday 17th June 2015