Story Pile: Lords and Ladies
From time to time I talk about Discworld books, and I will usually say that there’s no reading order. I operate on the assumption that readers have a degree of object permanence, that they are capable of telling if a story happens before or after sometihng and that if you find a story of a character that includes a former drunk in one book, and then find a story of a drunk in another book, you will be able to put the sequence of events in a meaningful order without being overwhelmed by the challenge of the book. The Discworld books are contained stories for dedicated readers capable of managing the complexities of understanding that I could reach when I was twelve years old and in a cult, I do not doubt any adult curious about them will do fine without an authoritive reading list to ensure they do not miss any of the lore.
But.
Ugh I hate that.
But but but but. But! There is a single Discworld Book that I know of (now) which opens with an author’s note that you need to be at least a little bit aware of previous stories in order to appreciate the events of this book. And then it tells you those events.
If I did this more often, I imagine I’d introduce these things by hey, let me tell you about my favourite Discworld book. But let’s do that anyway. Don’t worry, no major spoilers, just a sort of vague gesturing at the plot that’s already covered by the book jacket.
