In
his novel Snuff,
Terry Pratchett introduced the character Miss Felicity Beedle, the
author of children’s books on the Discworld.
Having described the works of that author, Pratchett has now
taken it upon himself to create at least one of her books for the
entertainment and enjoyment of his own fans, much as he previously
turned Where’s
My Cow?
into a stand alone book, now young Sam Vimes’s bedtime story Miss
Felicity Beedle’s The World of Poo has taken on a life outside the
confines of Pratchett’s world.
Geoffrey
is one of those immaculate and well mannered children who only existed
within the pages of a certain type of book, the type written by Miss
Felicity Beedle. Sent away
from home to visit his grandmother in Ankh-Morpork because of his
father’s frequent business trips and the pending arrival of a new
sister, Geoffrey must find a place for himself in his vaguely
frightening grandmother’s home.
Except
that Grand-mama’s house is not the scary, foreign place Geoffrey
expects. What he finds is a
warm, nurturing environment where his grandmother not only gives him to
freedom to explore, but also is willing to support Geoffrey’s
interests. The latter trait
must have been difficult for her after Geoffrey made the acquaintance of
her gardener, Plain Old Humphrey. After
Humphrey informed Geoffrey that getting pooed on by a bird is considered
lucky, Geoffrey decides to create a museum with as many different types
of fecal matter as he can collect.
As
Geoffrey, and Pratchett, explore the world of Ankh-Morpork’s sewage
(with a quick trip to the zoological gardens to look at some of the more
exotic animals that reside on the disc), it becomes apparent how slight
this volume is. Pratchett
does an excellent job capturing a very specific sort of children’s
literature, although one which is more nostalgic than current.
Geoffrey’s “adventures” including those with sewage magnate Harry
King, are less adventures and more guided tour of the city’s less
glamorous sections.
Although
the setting for Miss Felicity
Beedle’s World of Poo and Where’s
My Cow? are tied to Pratchett’s popular Discworld series, they do
not satisfy in the same way a Discworld novel does.
The setting exists in the background, and there are nods to
Unseen University, Lord Vetinari, and other landmarks of the city, but
its lacks the feeling of being part of the larger city that Pratchett
has described in so many books. Rather
than being a character in World of
Poo, Ankh-Morpork is merely a setting.
Miss Felicity
Beedle’s World of Poo
comes across more as a novelty book than a novel or a modern
children’s book. Pratchett
appears to be paying tribute to the type of book which was prolific in
the past, but which has largely become extinct.
Set in his Discworld, it is the sort of book that completists
would seek, but not a book that is really part of the series, the way Snuff
or the Tiffany Aching trilogy are. Pratchett’s creation of kids books
based on texts that are read to young Sam Vimes is a development which
was clever the first time, but shows every tendency of becoming stale
with some rapidity.
