Title:

Truckers

Author:

Terry Pratchett

Category:

Science Fiction / Fantasy

Rating:

Date Reviewed:

April 21, 2024

was reading an online article that listed what the columnist considered the funniest books, and in the comments section, several people offered their own suggestions about humorous novels that were not on the columnist's list. No Rosie Project, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, or Confederacy of Dunces? No books written by Carl Hiaasen or Christopher Moore? What was the columnist thinking? Nothing by Kurt Vonnegut? Also missing from the list of funny books was anything by Terry Pratchett. A couple of commentators mentioned Terry Pratchett, but instead of recommending one of his many Discworld novels, they volunteered that the Bromeliad Trilogy was memorable for its jokes. I have read some Discworld novels, and found that I like Pratchett's sense of humor, but I had never heard of the Bromeliad Trilogy. I found the first book, Truckers, in our public library.

Truckers is the first book in the "Bromeliad Trilogy", though I do not recall reading an explanation anywhere of exactly who or what a Bromeliad is. The story is about nomes, which reminded me a lot of The Wee Free Men. Pratchett apparently likes the story-telling possiblities featuring daft small folk.

Truckers is the story of Masklin, who is a nome. Nomes are small folk, like elves, but with no magical powers. Their small size allows them to live and move much quicker than humans, whom they see as slow lumbering behemoths. Human ways are puzzling to them, many of Pratchett's jokes arise from the Nomes misunderstanding of what humans are doing. For example, nomes think that a road sign that says: Road Works Ahead indicates that the street ahead is in working condition, and they are baffled why the opposite turns out to be the case.

Masklin's small tribe of nomes is whittling away, many of the young nomes have gone off on expeditions and never returned. Predators like foxes and cats take a bitter toll. Most of the remaining nomes in Masklin's tribe are too old to fight or hunt, and Masklin is finding himself overwhelmed by too many challenges. Something must be done about their tenuous situation. The nomes try a desperate maneuver - they board a human truck and ride to whereever it takes them.

The truck stops in a bay at a department store called Arnold Bros (est 1905). Inside the store, Masklin and his compatriots are astonished to find thousands of nomes leading a safe, prosperous life, hidden away from humanity. There are different guilds of nomes - some living in hardware, others in clothing or the stationery department. These nomes have never ventured outside of Arnold Bros (est 1905), indeed, they don't even believe that an outside even exists. The appearance of Masklin and company creates quite a stir in the indoor nome society.

Most of the nomes cannot read, but one scribe, Gruder, can decipher human words. An astonishing message is interpreted - Arnold Bros (est 1905) is having a close out sale, it is shutting down. Everything must go. This is not one of the traditional seasonal sales that the nomes are used to, this is a momentous change that will end life as the store-based nomes know it. Since Masklin has actually been outside, it is up to him to concoct a plan to save all nome-kind.

There wasn't any particular joke that made me laugh aloud, but the tone of the novel is light hearted and amusing. Pratchett is a master of word play, and loves making a joke out of what humans say and do. Much of the jokes in Truckers result from the nomes perplexity at human behavior. This is a quick read, and amusing enough, that if I find the second book, Diggers, I will read it.