Why temples? thought Moist, as he gazed up at the facade of the Royal Bank of Ankh-Morpork. Why do they always build banks to look like temples, despite the fact that several major religions a) are canonically against what they do inside and b) bank there.

(Terry Pratchett, "Making Money", 2007)

Terry Pratchetts Going Postal, Band 29 in der Reihe, ist dazu noch etwas besonderes - ähnlich wie bei The Truth geht es prinzipiell um die Macht der Worte und schon deshalb macht der Band bei mir mittlerweile The Truth seinen ersten Platz in meinen persönlichen Top Five der Diskworld-Lieblingsbände streitig. Und das bei weitem nicht nur wegen der absolut genialen Namen der Hauptpersonen Moist von Lipwig und Adora Belle Dearheart. Wie die wohl übersetzt werden sollen? Ich hoffe ja sehr, daß der arme Mensch, der den Übersetzerjob kriegt, wenigstens daran denkt, daß der Papageienspruch "Pieces of Eight" aus Stevensons "Schatzinsel" ist und in der deutschen Fassung als "Goldene Escudos" übersetzt wurde. Aber wenn nicht, wird die Welt davon nicht untergehen. Und die Diskworld erst recht nicht.

.
.
'How can I put this...' mused Pelc. 'Words have power, you understand? It is in the nature of our universe. Our Library itself distorts time and space on quite a grand scale. Well, when the Post Office started accumulating letters it was storing words. In fact what was being created was what we call a gevaisa, a tomb of living words. Are you of a literary persuasion, Mr Lipwig?'
'Not as such.' Books were a closed book to Moist.
'Would you burn a book?' said Pelc. 'An old book, say, battered, almost spineless, found in a box of rubbish?'
'Well... probably not', Moist admitted.
'Why not? Would the thought make you uncomfortable?'
'Yes, I suppose it would. Books are... well, you just don't do that.

(Terry Pratchett, "Going Postal", 2004)

... and a dobby stone, which was supposed to be lucky, because it had a hole in it. (She'd been told that when she was seven, and had picked it up. She couldn't quite see how the hole made it lucky, but since it had spent a lot of time in her pocket, and then safe and sound in a box, it was probably more fortunate than most other stones, which got kicked around and run over by carts and so on.)

(Terry Pratchett, "A Hat full of Sky", 2004)

Gerade bei Älis gefunden und die hat es wiederum von Dagbok und da wurde es wiederum von Charming Quark importiert .. etc. ... etc. ...

Blogvirus

1. grab the nearest book.
2. open the book to page 23.
3. find the fifth sentence.
4. post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.

"The forehead was large."

(Monica Ali, "Brick Lane", 2003)

Ohje, hoffentlich habe ich jetzt nicht etwas falsch verstanden, oder hab dem Virus vorgegriffen, aber ich konnte einfach nicht widerstehen ...

Und tatsächlich hat es meine Aufmerksamkeit auf den Absatz gelenkt, aus dem dieser 5. Satz auf Seite 23 von Brick Lane stammt, und der es durchaus wert ist hier zitiert zu werden:

"She is an unspoilt girl. From the village."
She had got up one night to fetch a glass of water. It was one week since they were married. She had gone to bed and he was still up, talking on the telephone as she stood outside the door.
"No", said Chanu. "I would not say so. Not beautiful. but not ugly either. The face is too broad, big forehead. Eyes are a bit close together."
Nazneen put her hand up to her head. It was true. The forehead was large. But she had never thought of her eyes being too close.
"Not tall. Not short. Around five foot two. Hips are a bit narrow but wide enough, I think, to carry children. All things considered, I am satisfied. Perhaps when she gets older she'll grow a beard on her chin but now she is only eighteen. And a blind uncle is better than no uncle. I waited too long to get a wife."
Narrow hips! You could wish for such a fault, Nazneen said to herself, thinking of the rolls of fat that hung low from Chanu's stomach. It would be possible to tuck all your hundred pens and pencils under those rolls and keep them safe and tight. You could stuff a book or two up there as well. If your spindle legs could take the weight.

Chanu went on talking, but Nazneen crept away, back to bed. A blind uncle is better than no uncle. Her husband had a proverb for everything. Any wife is better than no wife. Something is better than nothing. What had she imagined? That he was in love with her? That he was grateful because she, young and graceful, had accepted him? That in sacrificing herself to him, she was owed something? Yes. Yes. She realized in a stinging rush she had imagined all these things. Such a foolish girl. Such high notions. What self-regard.

(Monica Ali, "Brick Lane", 2003)

"Well, so long, Bessie - promise me you'll always be a happy Cow .... and not some Happy Meal."

(Patrick McDonnell, "Mutts III - More Shtuff" 1998)

Nachdem der zweite Band der Khaavren-Bände "Fivehundred Years After" auch geschafft ist, bin ich mittlerweile so weit, daß die überdehnten und umständlichen Dialoge mich nicht mehr nerven, sondern sie im Gegenteil zum wahren Genuß werden und ich mich über jeden besonders gelungenen unnötigen Satz freue. Und genau wie im ersten Band sind es wieder Pel und Tazendra, die dem ganzen noch die Krone aufsetzen:

Tazendra gave a cry upon seeing Pel, and embraced him with an exuberance that simultaneously raised the doorward's eyebrows and threatened the Yendi's ribs. He nevertheless returned the embrace as well as he could before disengaging himself and paying Tazendra a thousand compliments.

"So," he said at last, "you have been seeking me?"
"More than seeking you," said Tazendra. "I have found you."
"Well, you have," said Pel. "And yet - "
"And yet?"
"Well, I wonder - "
"Ah! I recognize you so well in that!"
"Oh, to be sure."
"But tell me what you wonder."
"Oh, I am about to."
"Begin then."
"I wonder why you have been seeking me."
"Why else, but to find you?"
"Yes, yes, I understand that, only - "
"Only you wish to know why I wanted to find you?"
"Yes, Tazendra. You have guessed it. I wish to know why you wanted to find me."
"Oh, as to that - "
"Yes?"
"I will tell you."
"And at once, I hope."
"Why, this, this very instant."
"Then I am listening."
"I wished to find you because I wish to learn what you know."
"You wish to learn what I know? But surely you must
understand - "
"Ah, ah! You know that understanding is not something I do well."
"Oh, but this is something you will understand."
"I am skeptical."
"I know you are, Tazendra, and I assure you that it is a mark of intelligence."
"Do you think so?"
"I am convinced of it."
"Well, what must I understand, then?"

.. und so geht es noch weiter, seitenlang. Oh dear, eigentlich wollte ich ja etwas anderes lesen, aber um "Paths of the Dead" komme ich wohl doch nicht herum, wie es aussieht, da nicht nur die Dialoge süchtig machen auf Dauer. Ah well.

It was a bitch wind, knife sharp and cutting, and it blew
bad and cold.

And they came with it, scurrying and skittering, like yellow
leaves and old newspapers, from a thousand places and from nowhere at all.

They came in their suits and their tee shirts, carrying rucksacks and briefcases and suitcases and plastic bags, muttering and humming and silent as the night.

It seemed like the bitter fall wind brought them there.

Perhaps it did.

----------

The first wind of winter blew from the North, and it had ice and rime on it's breath.

It was dirty and sharp and it cut like a razor, and if it touched you, you could wash and wash until your skin was tattered and bloodied, but you'd never be clean again.

It scattered them into the night, the quiet ones with death in their eyes.

But they left more tentatively than they had come, as if they had seen something unholy inside themselves, something they would never be able to forget.

And they left slowly, one by one, with reluctance, leaving the safety of the light for the chill uncertainties of the darkness.

It seemed like the night sucked them up, took them into it's dark heart.

It seemed like the darkness swallowed them ...

Perhaps it did.

(Neil Gaiman, "The Sandman Library II - The Doll's House", 1990)