The Wee Free Men
Terry Pratchett
© 2003 Terry Pratchett
HarperCollins Publishers

Tiffany's family has farmed on the same land for generations. She's learned a lot from her Granny Aching, a wise woman, who more than one person in town called a witch. But Granny's gone now, and strange forces of magic seem to be gathering around Tiffany's home.

Tiffany begins to show her own powers when a strange monster comes out of the river and tries to snatch her little brother. She grabs a frying pan from her kitchen, sets a trap and knocks the monster silly. That little act earns her the attention of Miss Tick, a rather befuddled witch passing through the area, disguised as a teacher. Miss Tick, with help from her talking toad, tells Tiffany to be careful and leaves for more help, giving little explanation of what's really happening. But something is up, and before it's over, Tiffany's going to have to depend on some very unusual help: the Nac Mac Feegle—a.k.a the Wee Free Men—a clan of fierce, funny, sheep-stealing, sword-wielding, six-inch-high blue men. Who knew saving the world could be so funny?

The Wee Free Men was read by Kaitlin O'Neal
Kaitlin O'Neal has appeared in more than twenty stage productions across the United States, most recently as Bella in the Triad Stage presentation of Angel Street. She holds an MFA from the Professional Theatre Training Program of the University of Delaware. Kaitlin has a number of special skills and interests, including crochet and T'ai Chi, but she truly impressed the Camel's Hump Radio crew with her skill at sounding like an angry beaver.

When Kaitlin was in 6th grade, she enjoyed reading the Chronicles of the Deryni series and the Legends of Camber of Culdi series, both by Katherine Kurtz. Kaitlin recommends looking for Deryni, High Deryni, Deryni Rising, Camber and Camber the King. She also loved reading The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright.

What do you think?

In a way, our excerpt ends just as the story starts to unfold. You'll have to read the book to see how it all turns out. But for now, here are a few things to ponder, (some courtesy of HarperCollins):

Author Terry Pratchett has fun with some established folk tales and fairy tales. His earlier book The Amazing Mauriece and his Educated Rodents was derived from The Pied Piper of Hamelin. The Wee Free Men uses elements from well-known fairy tales—sort of. For example, when slaying Jenny Green-Teeth, Tiffany uses a frying pan rather than a magic sword. Her mentor isn't a fairy godmother, but a talking toad that used to be an attorney. What other examples can you find?

When they first meet, what does Tiffany do that impresses Miss Tick?

Why does Tiffany want to be a witch? How does her Grandmother's book of fairy tales influence her?

When Tiffany asked the toad to tell her what was going on, he told her "another world is colliding with this one." How did Tiffany react? How would you have reacted?

Mistress Weatherwax tells Tiffany that in witchcraft, you first get the test and then spend years finding out how you passed it. She then compares witchcraft to life. What does she mean by the comparison? Do you agree?

The Queen of Fairies has the power to steal your dreams or your worst nightmares and to trap you in them. Which would you prefer to be trapped in? Why?

Tiffany comments that where she comes from, there are "a lot of people with a lot to do...there wasn't enough time for silence." What do you think she—and the author—means by that?

One reviewer praised Pratchett's skill at portraying the unique bond between grandparents and children. The reviewer also commented that Pratchett "spends more than a little time effectively speaking to the sadness that goes hand-in-hand with being a child." What do you think the reviewer means? Do you agree with the reviewer?

What do you think is the moral of the story?

Fun & Adventure Beyond the Book

Host Bill Harley introduced the Camel's Hump Radio crew to author Terry Pratchett. We're glad he did, because we didn't know what we were missing! Pratchett was first published in 1971 and has had wild success with his DiscWorld fantasy series.  33 books (and counting!) in the series later, he's considered "one of the most significant contemporary English-language satirists" according to the bio on his website. He's written other books as well.  You can learn more about Pratchett on HarperCollins' official Pratchett website.

Pratchett has so many fans that there is a website that includes space dedicated to keeping track of all the other Pratchett-related websites! Here you can see and read more about Pratchett, including his own version of "FAQ" (frequently asked questions).  From there, the links seem endless.

Annotations, information and quotes relating to the Wee Free Men make for some fun reading. Check it out.

You can also hear Pratchett discuss his work on the BookSense "meet the author" website.

Tiffany lives in the Chalklands. And Pratchett himself lives in the chalklands of England. Both are areas infused with stories of mythology and ancient magic. In a Times article, Pratchett recalls that his walk home from school included walking through a chalk pit. He says, "When I learned that chalk was made up of millions of tiny dead animals, it filled me with a sense of deep time. This had been the bottom of the sea, and as a kid I was walking across it. I could practically hear the waves." Read the rest of the article here.

Learn more about the Nac Mac Feegles. Could they be related to Smurfs?

If You Like This Book, Check Out...

Grace Greene, from the Vermont Department of Libraries, says if you liked The Wee Free Men, you'll probably enjoy these books as well:

Other books by Terry Pratchett:

Hat Full of Sky (HarperTempest, 2005) (Sequel to The Wee Free Men)
Tiffany Aching first appeared in The Wee Free Men. In this sequel, set two years later, she leaves home to become an apprentice to Miss Level, an older witch with two bodies and one mind.

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (HarperCollins, 2001)
A talking cat, intelligent rats and a strange boy cooperate in a Pied Piper scam until they try to con the wrong town and are confronted by a deadly evil rat king.

Truckers (Delacorte, 1990)  (The Bromeliad Trilogy, Book 1)
Reluctant to believe that there's a world outside the department store in which they live, Torrit, Dorcas and the other gnomes look to Masklin,  a newly arrived "outsider," to lead them to a safe haven when the store goes  out of business.

Diggers (Delacorte, 1989) (The Bromeliad Trilogy, Book 2)
A group of small creatures called gnomes, whose families have lived for generations hidden in a department store, are forced to flee to a country quarry, where they struggle against harsh weather, destructive humans, and dissension among themselves.

Wings: The Last Book of the Bromeliad (Delacorte, 1991)
Masklin, one of a race of beings four inches high who live secretly among humans, tries to use the portable computer known as Thing to summon back the spaceship in which his ancestors came to Earth.

For adults: books about Discworld such as Thud or Going Postal: A Novel of Discworld.

Companion Titles:

Once Upon a Marigold, by Jean Ferris (Harcourt, 2002)
A young man with a mysterious past and a penchant for inventing things leaves the troll who raised him, meets an unhappy princess he has loved from afar, and discovers a plot against her and her father.

Savage Damsel and the Dwarf, by Gerald Morris (Houghton, 2000)
Lynet, a feisty young woman, journeys to King Arthur's court in order to find a champion to rescue her beautiful older sister. She is joined in her quest by a clever dwarf and a bold kitchen knave, neither of whom are what they seem.

The Rumpelstiltskin Problem, by Vivian VandeVelde (Houghton, 2000)
A collection of variations on the familiar story of a boastful miller and the daughter he claims can spin straw into gold.

Dealing with Dragons (and sequels), by Patricia Wrede (Harcourt, 1990) 
Bored with traditional palace life, a princess goes off to live with a group of dragons and soon becomes involved with fighting against some disreputable wizards who want to steal away the dragons' kingdom.