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CompleteMartialArts.com - The Last Hero: A Discworld Fable

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Manufacturer: Eos

Average Customer Rating:

Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN: 9780060507770
ISBN: 0060507772
Label: Eos
Manufacturer: Eos
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 176
Publication Date: 2002-09-01
Publisher: Eos
Release Date: 2002-08-20
Studio: Eos

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Editorial Reviews:

Cohen the Barbarian.

He's been a legend in his own lifetime.

He can remember the good old days of high adventure, when being a Hero meant one didn't have to worry about aching backs and lawyers and civilization.

But these days, he can't always remember just where he put his teeth...

So now, with his ancient (yet still trusty) sword and new walking stick in hand, Cohen gathers a group of his old -- very old -- friends to embark on one final quest. He's going to climb the highest mountain of Discworld and meet the gods.

It's time the Last Hero in the world returns what the first hero stole. Trouble is, that'll mean the end of the world, if no one stops him in time.

Spotlight customer reviews:

Customer Rating:

Summary: Must have for Discworld fans
Comment: If you are a fan of the discworld series you mst read The Last Hero. I was unsure if it would be worth it at first, because it is a more expensive book for a shorter story, but the artwork makes it totally worth it. And the story is standard Pratchett quality.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Missed the different size
Comment: This is an oversize book which I'm afraid I already own in another format, but for which the cover did not look familiar.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Beautiful Illustrations. Stale wit.
Comment: I love discworld. This was the only book I hadn't yet read. I've read the others anywhere from two to five times.

This one was... okay. You had to really like the Leonard da Quirm character and Captain Carrot, two of my least favorite characters. I like Rincewind but he didn't get to play a very large role. Even the silver horde only got to re-hash their lines from Interesting Times.

Basically, if you've read Jingo and Interesting Times you've read all of the narrative and most of the humor in this book.

That said - the humor and narrative are a side show for what the book really is... a picture book for discworld fans. As someone who prefers books over television for the very reason that I get to see the places and people however I choose (occassionally regardless of what the descriptions list) the picture book didn't do a lot for me.

And again - that said - the illustrations are truly marvelous.

So overall
Discworld Baseline: 5 stars
Rehashed narrative and been there done that humor: -2 stars
Beautiful illustrations: +1 star
Overall rating: 4 stars

Customer Rating:

Summary: Excellent book!
Comment: I loved this book! The story was great fun (as are all of the Discworld stories) and quick to read. I believe the story is particularly interesting as it brings together several characters who have not yet interacted in any of the Discworld novels (Rincewind, Leonard of Quirm, and Carrot work together for example) and introduces some great new characters as well. The premise of the story is quite amusing - any book with Cohen the Barbarian is bound to be entertaining. However, I would not have liked this book nearly so much without the illustrations. I really love the illustrations. Some of the characters of course don't look anything like I imagine them looking, but several of them are spot on. I'm particularly fond of the images of The Librarian and Mad Hamish, both of whom look adorably insane in their portraits. This book is completely worth the price because it effectively combines two books into one - The Last Hero and The Art of Discworld. I would wholeheartedly recommend it to any Discworld fan.

Customer Rating:

Summary: The art makes it.
Comment: As much as I love Terry Pratchett's work, Paul Kidby's art is the reason why I keep coming back to this book again and again. He in part inspired me to become an illustrator, and I'm very glad he's had the distinction of bringing the Disc's characters to life.

This would also be a great book to introduce a wary friend to the series!

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