Book Review: Nation by Terry Pratchett

Nation by Terry Pratchett is one of the best books that I have ever read. One of my friends has been telling me to read Disc World for ages, but I never got around to it. I saw this book at a book fair and picked it up just for its author. I didn’t expect much when I bought it, but I’m blown away by how good it is.

I went in expecting a funny book with absurd British humour. And it absolutely delivers on the humour front. It can be very funny when it needs to be. What I did not expect is a book so well-written, profound and full of interesting ideas.

The book takes place on a Pacific island with a “primitive” tribe living on it. Mau is a teenage boy who has just gone through his initiation ritual to become a “man” when a tsunami hits his island and kills everyone but him. The tsunami also brought an English ship carrying Daphne, a teenage noble girl who cares too much about manners. Daphne dresses too much, while Mau dresses too little. It is very easy, when writing such a story, to fall into the trap of demeaning either of the sides for the sake of humour. I was very scared of being disappointed, especially in the first few chapters, but luckily, Terry Pratchett is better than that.

This book explores the concepts of Belief, Community, Grief and Death in a very interesting way. Mau finds it hard to cope with the fact that everyone he ever knew is dead, and he becomes a “ghost” to do what needs to be done without feeling it. Mau sees the Nation as an embodiment of his civilization. Initially he misses everyone, but slowly he comes to terms with the fact that him and the other refugees that now occupy the island are the Nation.

Locaha, the god of death, is a very well-written character. He is neither good nor bad, but does what he needs to do. One can not bargain with him. With him, there is only “happens” or “does not happen”. All the scenes where Locaha appears are chilling. He is similar to the Yama in Hindu mythology, but more cunning. The world of Locaha is scary and dreamy and just plain unusual. Both Mau and Daphne have dealt with death in their own ways. It’s interesting to see Daphne face Locaha, a death god who is not part of her belief system, and come to terms with the death of her baby brother. In a way, the book is trying to tell you that death is the same no matter where you’re from and what you believe in.

The book also deals with the importance of belief in of itself, without regard for whether what you believe is true or not. The character of Ataba, an old priest who knows too much, is used as a device to drive home this idea. Ataba refuses to give up his beliefs in the three god stones even when they find a new god stone that should completely invalidate his belief system. Instead, he clutches even harder to his beliefs and risks his life trying to destroy this new god stone, calling it a demon stone. In the end, after he dies defending his religion, Mau says something along the lines of “He was a good man .. He deserved better gods”.

Nation also explores the origin of religion and storytelling. Does religion give birth to stories, or do stories evolve into legends that become religious beliefs? If the people of the Nation had discovered the globe in the cave without Daphne’s presence, they would not have understood its significance. It took Daphne and her scientific mindset to see through the veils of religion and deduce the truth. This, combined with her prior knowledge regarding the Ice Age, and an open mind that accepts the truth when it sees it, let to the understanding that the ancestors of the people of the Nation were seafarers who knew that the Earth was round.

Finally, the book shows an alternative to colonialism and how good things could’ve been if rulers were as emphatetic, rational and pragmatic as Daphne’s father. The island was allowed to join the Royal Society and participate as scientists in the Empire. This part of the book felt too optimistic and idealistic.

Everything in this book happens the way they are “meant to happen”. None of the plot points feel forced except the ending, but hey, everyone wants a happy ending. I’m sad to have finished reading this book because there is only one of it and I can’t read it for the first time ever again. But hey, I could die tomorrow and then I’d be glad that I have read this book in my life.

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To finish this review off, here are some of my favourite excerpts from the book:

“The heir to the throne must set foot on English soil within nine months of the monarch’s death. It’s in the Magna Carta, down in the small print, or rather, tiny writing”. “Ah I understand now. That’s what is in those boxes. It’s a load of English soil.”

“Ha! But you don’t believe in the gods, demon boy! Or do you? Don’t you listen to yourself, boy? I do. You shout and stamp and yell that there are no gods, and then you shake your fist at the sky and revile them for not existing! You need them to exist so that the flames of your denial will warm you in your self-righteousness! That’s not thinking, that’s just a hurt child screaming in pain!”

“This one? It’s far from perfect” “It’s a little more perfect today. And there will be more days”

“No, Your Majesty. We are forbidden to laugh at the things kings say, sire, because otherwise we would be at it all day.”