I've listened to the first thirteen books of Discworld, finding nearly all of them hilarious and read by some very entertaining narrators (Nigel Planer being exemplary at it) but Tony Robinson's recitation is absolutely miserable. It completely ruined the book. His dynamic range incessantly and frustratingly wavers from a quiet, indoor voice to a conspiratorial whisper, requiring the listener to make a compulsion of adjusting the volume: leaving it loud is no good, because Robinson's portrayal of Om is squeaky and piercing (though not a refreshing "loud" in the conventional sense, as Robinson puts no body or richness into the voice); leaving it at a normal volume means you miss 90% of the characters' dialog, since--apparently--they all stand six inches from one anothers' ears and don't know the definition of the word "project." Even DEATH, the hyper-real, immutable fate of all life on the Discworld, is converted into the faintest whisper by Robinson....One would think that Pratchett's convention of writing Death's dialog in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS would give the narrator some hint of a clue. (Though I haven't read a copy of this book, so perhaps Pratchett decided to shrink the size of Death's words down to the faintest scratchings of an ink-less pen.)

I advise the reader to buy this book read by another narrator, or to buy the paperback. Leave Robinson to whisper sweet nothings into a void of famous Discworldian anti-noise.

Terry Pratchett is a phenomenal writer! I'll tell you that any of his books, especially the Disc World series are well worth picking up! In my youth I loved the Lord of the Rings books by J.R.R. Tolkien (and yes, I'm talking pre-movie adolescence, thank you). I read any fantasy/adventure novels I could get my hands on. Eventually I ran out of books worth reading.... In my late teens I even resorted to Harry Potter, which I thought was amusing (but with a very low reading level) until I stumbled upon Terry Pratchett. Oh what a day! It was as if I had been waiting for his writing since the first time I picked up a book! The worlds he has created within the Disc world series are so interesting and entertaining. On each page he has spelled out endless wit, comedy, and enchantment. The characters hook you from the start and in each book you learn more about them and how they intertwine with one another. The imagery Pratchett depicts with his stories is absolutely amazing! And one of the things that I think is the best about this series is you don't necessarily have to read them in a particular order. There are a few here or there within the series that do fit better together read in a certain order but besides those you can just go with the next one that strikes your fancy. Every time I finish one I CANNOT wait for the next! Soon I'll be done with the series and this is sad... But reading them all was well worth it! See for yourself!

This book was first published in 1992.

Terry Pratchett's 13th Discworld novel (and 23rd overall) is a satire of organized religion. It poses a conundrum to many fans. Most of Pratchett's novels are parody, and Webster's On-line Dictionary defines parody as "a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule". Of course, Pratchett's works have always been a bit deeper and life-true than that pat definition suggests. On the other hand, the same dictionary defines satire as "a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn; trenchant wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly". With most of Pratchett's fans expecting parody from a Discworld novel, satire can be a thorny pill to swallow.

This rare "stand-alone" Discworld novel (like Pyramids and Moving Pictures, it is not part of any previously defined sub-series of novels) sticks organized religion on a spit and broils it mercilessly. It follows a young priest named Brutha, who is the last true believer of the great god Om, in spite of it being the state religion of the theocratic dictatorship of Omnia. On Discworld, gods can manifest to the proportion of their true believers, and because only Brutha is left, Om can only manifest as a one-eyed tortoise. Brutha discovers Om, literally, and carries Om in tortoise form with him through his journeys.

His commander is Lord Vorbis, a blackly pious inquisioner who has no difficulties with torturing unbelievers. The Omnian priests openly pity those who have not accepted Om, though they unknowningly betray the fact that they themselves don't believe in Om so much as the Religion of Om. Therein lies the problem. As Brutha and Vorbis travel, they encounter many nations and religions, with Vorbis the matter-of-fact executioner restrained only by diplomacy. When disaster befalls them, and Vorbis spends most of the rest of the trip unconscious, it is Brutha who selflessly drags Vorbis along, hoping to find safety, because it is just the right thing to do. Ultimately, Vorbis sees Brutha conversing with Om, and predictably does not see it for what it is, and he persecutes Brutha for heresy, leading to a typical Discworld story ending.

While Small Gods ranks as one of Pratchett's best -- I would place only the Discworld tomes Wyrd Sisters and Soul Music above it, as well as the non-Discworld books Good Omens (co-written with Neil Gaiman) and the newly published Nation) -- it is easily the meanest natured book in his ouvre. Pratchett simply does not bother to disguise his contempt and disgust for the hypocrisy and fake faith bred by most large, powerful religious organizations. While Pratchett has sharpened his poison pen from time to time in past and subsequent Discworld novels, it's usually not been at the expense of parody. Perhaps Pratchett sees the evil done by such organizations as not leaving room for fun. It's not that Small Gods isn't funny -- it's uproariously, scathingly funny just about all the time -- just that the fun is taking a back seat to the millions of people who have died because of religious zealotry.

Small Gods is not a good first Discworld novel, or a good first Pratchett novel. It is best enjoyed by those thoroughly initiated into the splendors of the Discworld, and then only those who are not easily offended by its subject matter. Though a dozen years later he treats the topic with much more tenderness and humanity in Nation, Small Gods should not be missed as Pratchett's ultimate hit piece.

Nice critic about inquisition times combined with a great introduction to small gods concept for those not familiar with it. Makes you think about faith while it makes you laugh about everything. If I had not read better Pratchett's books, I would have rated this with a five

Terry Pratchett's Discworld series includes stories that are cynical, funny, satirical, occasionally deeply moving, and very entertaining. Like many of his fans, I believe "Small Gods" ranks at the top. It examines religion in society and manages simultaneously to condemn and endorse religion; deeply critical of religion as a tool of oppression yet supportive of religion as a path to goodness and self-enlightenment. The story takes place in Omnia, a country tyrannized by high priests in a theocracy patterned on the Spanish Inquisition. The society is so relentlessly oppressed by the dictators claiming to speak in the name of their god that the religion itself has been lost, buried in tyranny and bureaucracy. In fact, paradoxically in a country ruled by "The Church", there is almost no one left who really follows the religion. Enter Brutha, a simply country boy who is the last person in the entire country who actually believes in their god. The devout Brutha is the hero of the story, and the interaction between him, the Grand Inquisitor, and especially the abandoned god that only Brutha worships makes a very entertaining and thought-provoking novel with a terrific and moving ending.

Many of the Discworld novels are interrelated with reoccurring characters, but this one happens to be a "stand-alone" story. Although I believe knowing a little about the reoccurring character Death will help a little; Death appears several times and also contributes to the story's closure. At any rate, knowing nothing about Discworld will not inhibit enjoyment of the story at all. Overall an outstanding novel that could easily have won any or all of the major prizes in the genre.