The Light Fantastic
- 256
- Pages
- about 4.5 h
- Reading time
- TV film 2008
- On screen
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Our view
The second Discworld novel is early Pratchett: a comic quest with wizards and a looming end of the world that lives on its jokes. Some readers find it disjointed and say that, with no chapter breaks, the episodes blur together and little of it sticks. Short and light, it suits readers who want to follow the series from its beginning; some expect it to improve from here.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Light Fantastic is a comic fantasy novel by Terry Pratchett, the second of the Discworld series. It was published on 2 June 1986, the first printing being of 1,034 copies. The title is taken from L'Allegro, a poem by John Milton, and refers to dancing lightly with extravagance, although in the novel it is explained as "the light that lies on the far side of darkness, the light fantastic. It was a rather disappointing purple colour."
Reading order · Discworld
Full order & progress →- The Colour of Magic
7.77.7 / 10 - The Light FantasticThis book
7.87.8 / 10 - Equal Rites
8.08.0 / 10 - Mort
8.38.3 / 10 - Sourcery
7.77.7 / 10 - Wyrd Sisters
8.08.0 / 10 - Pyramids
7.67.6 / 10 - Guards! Guards!Start here
8.58.5 / 10 - Eric
7.47.4 / 10 - Moving Pictures
7.87.8 / 10 - Reaper Man
8.38.3 / 10 - Witches Abroad
8.28.2 / 10 - Small Gods
8.58.5 / 10 - Lords and Ladies
8.28.2 / 10 - Men at Arms
8.68.6 / 10 - Soul Music
7.97.9 / 10 - Interesting Times
8.18.1 / 10 - Maskerade
8.08.0 / 10 - Feet of Clay
8.58.5 / 10 - Hogfather
8.38.3 / 10 - Jingo
8.28.2 / 10 - The Last Continent
7.97.9 / 10 - Carpe Jugulum
8.08.0 / 10 - The Fifth Elephant
8.48.4 / 10 - The Truth
8.48.4 / 10 - Thief of Time
8.38.3 / 10 - The Last Hero
8.18.1 / 10 - The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents
8.08.0 / 10 - Night Watch
8.88.8 / 10 - The Wee Free Men
8.48.4 / 10 - Monstrous Regiment
8.38.3 / 10 - A Hat Full of Sky
8.48.4 / 10 - Going Postal
8.78.7 / 10 - Thud!
8.48.4 / 10 - Wintersmith
8.28.2 / 10 - Making Money
8.48.4 / 10 - Unseen Academicals
8.08.0 / 10 - I Shall Wear Midnight
8.58.5 / 10 - Snuff
8.08.0 / 10 - Raising Steam
7.87.8 / 10 - The Shepherd's Crown
8.38.3 / 10
On screen
This book has been adapted for the screen once.
- TV filmTerry Pratchett's The Colour of MagicIMDb
Adaptation data: Wikidata · On screen →
Where the score comes from
The sources average 7.8 across 1,288 ratings. With that many, the reader vote carries 90% of the weight and the score stays at 7.8 — the Fantasy average of 8.0 barely moves it.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.0 | 100 | 8% |
| Hardcover | 7.8 | 1.2K | 92% |
Frequently asked
How long is The Light Fantastic?
It has 256 pages — shorter than 97% of the ranked books in Fantasy.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
The same shelf — Fantasy — and a score of 7.8, the closest to this book.
