All the Discworld's a Stage: Volume 1: Unseen Academicals; Feet of Clay; The Rince Cycle

Feet of Clay

Someone is killing Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork. No one knows who, no one knows why and, worst of all, no one knows how - he just gets weaker and weaker. But it's not just Vetinari - across the city, people are being murdered, but there's no trace of anything alive having been at the crime scene. Commander Vimes, Head of the City Watch, is a man who hates 'clues'. He and his team must question everyone - the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. In a city teeming with vampires, werewolves, dwarfs with attitude and golems, Vimes must solve the crimes and save the Patrician.

The Rince Cycle
As a punishment, failed wizard Rincewind is given the task of guiding and safeguarding the Disc's first tourist, Twoflower (with his magical luggage on legs). As they travel the city and beyond, they meet the world's oldest hero, Cohen the Barbarian. With him, and with Bethan (a qualified sacrificial victim), they encounter druids, trolls, adventurers, a hairdresser and a power-crazed wizard. Oh, and Death. But not fatally. Did we mention that Rincewind also has to save the world from destruction by a huge red star that will collide with the Discworld at Hogswatch? The Rince Cycle is mostly based on The Light Fantastic, with bits of The Colour of Magic and Sourcery added for good measure.

Unseen Academicals
'Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Ankh-Morpork, where we lay our scene...' Football divides the city. Each area has its own team - and rivalry means supporters never mix. Until a Dimwell fan falls for a Dolly Sisters girl. And now an ancient bequest means the wizards of Unseen University must win a football match, without using magic. Luckily they're coached by the mysterious Mr Nutt (and no one knows anything much about Mr Nutt, not even Mr Nutt, which worries him, too). As the match approaches, four lives are entangled and changed forever. Because the thing about football - the important thing about football - is that it is not just about football.


About the Author

Sir Terry Pratchett is the acclaimed creator of the global bestselling Discworld series, the first of which, The Colour of Magic, was published in 1983. In all, he is the author of fifty bestselling books. His novels have been widely adapted for stage and screen, and he is the winner of multiple prizes, including the Carnegie Medal, as well as being awarded a knighthood for services to literature. Worldwide sales of his books now stand at 70 million, and they have been translated into thirty-seven languages.

Stephen Briggs is a British writer of subsidiary works and merchandise surrounding Terry Pratchett's comic fantasy Discworld. The Streets of Ankh-Morpork, the first Discworld map, was co-designed by Briggs and Pratchett and painted by Stephen Player in 1993. The Discworld Mapp, A Tourist Guide to Lancre and Death's Domain followed. The Discworld Companion, published in 1995 with updated editions in 1998 and 2003, is derived from Briggs' database of Discworld information. In 2007 Briggs published Wit and Wisdom of Discworld, a compilation of quotes from the Discworld novels. He also collaborated with Pratchett in the books The Discworld Diaries and Nanny Ogg's Cookbook. Briggs has also recorded audiobook versions of certain Discworld works, in editions released by Isis Publishing and by HarperCollins in the US.