Collecting the Discworld

I've been reading TP's Discworld since I was bought Mort for a 16th birthday present more years ago than I care to remember... I've bought them all since in the same paperback size format. Until Snuff. Which I still haven't read because they've only gone and issued it in a different format. So my nice neat shelf of books would be ruined, and I can't cope with that.

Reading my copy of Mort again I realised that it probably won't last too much longer, there's a few loose pages and it's certainly well thumbed. So I have turned thoughts to replacing the series in hardback. If I'm going to replace, I figure hardback is the format less likely to change size (I may be entirely wrong, but that's my impression) but a number of them are going to be out of print now. So what's the strategy to adopt? Pick a cover format and stick to it? Buy in reverse order - am I more likely to find the later ones?
If anyone's tried this, some ideas on how to go about it would be helpful.

I decided to upgrade my collection to hardback but found that not all were available in that format and in three cases I had to get 'collections' - i.e., three books in one volume.

So I have some in hardback and some in paperback. Not all of the hardbacks are the same size. If you are so concerned with the look of your bookcases then putting them on different shelves will solve the problem.

I doubt if they will go out of print for a very long time but booksellers like Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk have very good second-hand options so if you are happy to shop online then those sellers are worth looking at.

I've been collecting hardbacks for the last 8 or so years (since I won a TP contest and recd signed copies of Going Postal and Monstrous Regiment) and there are numerous difficulties with the format. The earlier pratchetts I was able to find were a smaller hardcover size and the latter ones (except for The Truth) are larger. Add in geographical differences because of UK and US versions and you have a discworld sized headache. My shelf does look nice now -- I'll try to post a pic to give you an idea of the size differences in the books and you can see if it will bug you. I'm echoing Minnie on where to find them -- amazon is an excellent option. You can also try your local used bookstore; I've lucked out a few times and once found a truly rare, signed, first edition hardcover of Guards! Guards!.

Singe best place to start looking is Bookfinder.com. You can pick specific ISBNs; it gives you the results in your own currency; you can include the cost of shipping or not in the results; it looks at new as well as second hand. It included Amazon and ABE results.

I have paperbacks of all of them as reading copies, and precious hardcovers of everything from Soul Music on which are my ‘keep pretty and get Pterry to sign if possible’ copies. I personally prefer the Gollanz and Corgi versions, so I don’t collect the others. Like you, I do get a little extra something out of having them all look nice together. And I think it makes them happier too, to be amongst their own kind …

Thanks all.
The hardbacks are different sizes? That's not going to help my shelf, nor make this any easier. ho hum.
A picture of a shelf might help me decide if this is worth the effort, anatwork.k, if you wouldn't mind.
Not heard of bookfinder, so that's helpful. Being able to narrow the search that tightly is interesting.

I'm collecting the letterbox editions, and I'm having decent success with amazon.co.uk for the 2nd hand earlier versions. Certainly if you don't care about price you can get them all in a year.

as you can see on my 1st shelf, there are 2 sizes, though they don't differ that much.
Equal Rites-Jingo, and Jingo->
The first 2 books are only available as an omnibus edition in the letterbox version, I'm holding off on getting those until I'm complete with the others.


(click to zoom)

.

As you can see on my 2nd shelf, the uniformity starts to disintegrate :(


(click to zoom)

At some point VG started to reissue the older books in the letterbox versions.

http://www.colinsmythe.co.uk/terrypages/tpconventionfolder/editions.htm

The letterboxed versions are the reissued ones.
Colour of Magic & Light Fantastic LB - 23 April 1999 - 0861404211
Equal Rites - 15 Jan 1987
Equal Rites LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064102
Mort - 12 Nov 1987
Mort LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064080
Sourcery - 19 May 1988
Sourcery LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064099
Wyrd Sisters - 10 Nov 1988
Wyrd Sisters LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064110
Pyramids - 15 Jun 1989
Pyramids LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064846
Guards! Guards! - 9 Nov 1989
Guards! Guards! LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064854
Eric - only illustrated large format HC
Moving Pictures - 1 Nov 1990
Moving Pictures LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064862
Reaper Man - 23 May 1991
Reaper Man LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064838
Witches Abroad - 7 Nov 1991
Witches Abroad LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 057506580X
Small Gods - 21 May 1992
Small Gods LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065796
Lords & Ladies - 5 Nov 1992
Lords & Ladies LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065788
Men at Arms - 11 Nov 1993
Men at Arms LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 057506577x
Soul Music - 19 May 1994
Soul Music LB - 21 Oct 1999 - 057506689X
Interesting Times - 2 Nov 1994
Interesting Times LB - 21 Oct 1999 - 0575066881

Maskerade and onwards are only in LB format, although the latest ones are not always any more (some are LB on the spine, some aren't).

I'm not even starting with the American covers, I think they're butt ugly.

ETA: ISBNs for the LB editions for future reference and easier searching.

Thanks Jerry - I'm in love with shelf 1, but shelf two does make me wince. It's that step change that does it... Thanks for the information, that's useful. I might just have to pull my finger out & do something rather than merely think about it.

Yes, the Young Adult books are significantly smaller than the rest of the works :(

I get all my new books from Paul Kidby, signed.
I have to wait til father's day before I can read the latest The Science of Discworld IV ...

Great, I just discover I've got a frankenstein. Men at Arms, 1st edition, 2nd Impression 1993 with a DJ from the 1998 LB edition.

eta: my other copy, ex-library poor condition so I got a new one, is the same. So perhaps they used the stock from the 2nd impression of the first edition, or they forgot to change the edition page.

The uniformity isn't as big an issue with me as is the having them in the right order and all together. Something I have done with different sized books by one author or a series is, lay the odd ones on their sides underneath those which match in size. Or, if there are enough of them, a stack of them on their sides beside those which match. Not a perfect solution for you, but possibly one to get you over the hump until you find your perfect matching set?

re the young adult novels, there's only 3, and only the first two Tiffany Aching novels are small, the last 2 are normal sized.

Thought I'd resurrect this thread to try to compile all things Discworld one might want to collect.

I'll add more when I've got more time.

I love this thread! My collection is a bit mish-mashed since I had to get rid of most of my earlier books when I moved overseas. I'm slowly trying to rebuild it by grabbing one here and there when I'm at the bookstore.

Hello everyone. I just joined up here because I have a problem with the different issues of the letterboxed HB versions of the Discworld novels.

I recently bought a set of five Letterboxed HB Novels, Feet of Clay, Maskerade, Hogfather, Jingo and Lost Continent. They're all in really great condition, but they're absolutely the wrong format.

All other Discworld books are much larger than they are, and from reading into it a little, it seems that I've gotten the 22x15 cm reprints.

Now since they look very much identical to the regular LB releases... how do I keep them apart, and make sure that I don't make that same mistake twice? It's really hard to tell their size from ebay pictures, for example.

Also: Are there collectors for these formats? They look horrible next to the larger books, and I'd love to find someone to take them off me.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Maskerade through Jingo should all be 23,5cm high, The Last Continent 24cm.
I have all of these in first impressions. Interesting Times and earlier were reprinted in the same format as Maskerade and further, so should also be 23,5cm high if you get ones reprinted in 1996-1999. (see list above)

Can you check your ISBNs and compare with the ones I listed above?

I had no idea they started to reprint to even smaller format..

I had no idea, either. All I know is that I now have five books, that are utterly useless to me. :(

They're about... 15x10 cm in size. They're the Letterboxed versions, but are missing the logo on the book's spine.

I'm at work right now, so I can't post the ISBNs, but I'll do that once I get home!

According to the data inside of the books, they're from 98-ish.

Okay, these books are weird. They have no ISBN.

The inside of the book has a BCA logo, here are the barcodes, with the number printed above the barcode, as well (another weird thing, I've never seem that before).

Jingo: 0000000051064 - CN 5106
Maskerade: 0000000088626 - CN 8862
Feet of Clay: 0000000044011 - CN 4401
The Last Continent: 0000000019521 - CN 1952
Hogfather: 0000000025775 - CN 2577

No idea, if these things are just ecceedingly rare, or so nice that no one actually wants them. Maybe they're some sort of book club edition?

Either way, I'm willing to sell them, if anyone wants them. The measurements are 20x14, instead of the regular 23.3 x 16.

Ah, they're BCA editions. You need to look for Victor Gollancz in future.
If your seller failed to note this, I would complain.

It was mentioned in the auction that those would be BCA editions, but since I had no idea, what that would mean, and they looked the same as the Gollancz editions, I didn't pay further attention to it.

Do you know a good place, outside of ebay, to sell these books? Dicworld forums or something? Just looking at making back the money I'd paid for them so I can go look for the proper editions that I'm missing...

amazon marketplace? I have no idea.

I also really want to collect the Discworld novels. I must confess, I'm pretty picky though, so I want them to be hardback and also to match in size and look as much as possible.

My main question at the moment is whether it's worth buying the Collector's Library editions (http://www.gollancz.co.uk/2013/10/announcing-the-discworld-collectors-library/) or ones with the original artwork?

If I can't get a uniform set of the original artwork then my thinking is that I may as well go for the CL because they're cheaper and Transworld might bring out the full set eventually.

If I go for the Kirby/Kidby set will it definitely be different sizes?

>22 L.A.Markham: If I go for the Kirby/Kidby set will it definitely be different sizes?

Yes.

Well after dithering for ages I've finally started doing something about collecting a hardback set. Has meant rearranging the book shelves to get them to fit, but I think that's a worthwhile sacrifice to make. 10 down...

Pic?

Serious (the geeky kind) collectors might consider a visit to abebooks.com too, signed copies, first editions- Once more, with footnotes for example: http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?an=pratchett&sts=t

he wealthy kind as well. Signed copies of books not on Paul Kidby's site are expensive :(

Also I see a lot of US copies.

^That's true. Anyone else collecting the hardcovers with Joe McLaren's illustrations? I like the art better than kidby's personally.

>28 Strattegif: You my friend, are a dangerous person! I had never heard of Joe McLaren's illustrations, so I Googled it and fell in love. After a trip to the BookDepository I am now $100 poorer, but am anticipating my very favorites with his covers. I sat here struggling with myself, trying to justify it as a Christmas gift. Then I thought, well I could buy the Death novels for my son for Christmas, the Witch novels for my daughter, and the Guard novels for me. But I love Hogfather and several of the witches novels, too, so they will all be MINE. Now, if any of my family wants to know what to buy me for a gift, I can send them there to fill in with the others I restrained myself from buying.

Yes, it's a great artistic style and fits the novels well enough to make me smile. Glad you like them; Good Omens is a part of these collections; https://www.pinterest.com/ruinurulokird/discworld/

The problem with these new collector editions by Gollancz is that they don't own the rights to anything past Jingo. Just like the letterboxed versions. Now I understand why that is.

Gollancz blog:

N.B. #2 Many of you are asking whether the series will continue after Jingo. The short answer is: we don’t know. The slightly longer answer is that we do not control rights in any of the Discworld books after Jingo; they are published by Transworld. At the moment, we know of no firm plans on their part to continue the Collector’s Library, but if that changes we’ll certainly note it on the Gollancz blog. We now return you to your regular viewing . . .

I wonder if Transworld could be influenced or encouraged?

I wonder if Joe McLaren could be persuaded to make a cover for each DW novel, and put it up on his website to print out in the same way Jasper Fforde does with the Thursday Next novels. :P
Semi kidding but I would really love to see all of them in his style.

I too would love to be able to get all the editions after Jingo in Joe's artwork. Prior to their release I was undecided as to whether they would fit on my bookshelf, however I jumped in and bought them all plus the Good Omens too. Now my Pratchett/Discworld collection sits at a healthy 241 books, plus original art, prints, jigsaws, Oh it's so addictive. Never really worried about book height, I just have them in chronological order. From The Carpet People (1971) to We R Igor's Diary (2015).

Nice collection :)

I combined 2 editions btw, snuff amd wit&wisdom. And you're missing the author on a few books.

Thanks Jerry, I uploaded a quick file from Datacrow. LibraryThing only seems interested in ISBN, My Unseen Library from BCA has CNxxxx format, which doesn't seem to work. I'll have to manually add them. I also have different VG versions of the Letterbox editions, I need to be able to list them separately from each other. I'll have a look at my collection data and I'll try to fix them. You combined editions?? I have different versions of both of those titles.

Ewww... LibraryThing's images don't match the actual covers. I'll now have to see if I can update those to. Pictures, How do you embed a picture, like further up?

I am slowly adding the Joe McLaren editions. I love having Discworld in hardcover because they are books I will read more than one time. I still have to get the Rincewind novels and Good Omens and maybe a couple of others. Just bought the Death novels and Eric for my birthday. As I pulled them out of the packages, my son was Oooing and Ahhhing over them, then grabbed Eric and ran to his room to read it. He has read the Death novels.

I have in hardcover also, but I don't read them, I just collect........ I have multiple editions of the same title..... for example 8 different versions of "The Colour of Magic"

To put an image in a talk thread you use html: <img src=http://urlofimagehere.jpg>

You can put random images in your junk folder on LT.

On LT we do combine editions, yes. You can just add your editions to the main work. The cover and details you put in will stay with your books.

You can search for the covers on the work page, select the one you want and it will stay with your book. If you can't find one you want/like, you can upload your own.

Hi, I joined the group after looking for an answer to my inquiry...
I started collecting Discworld, paperback copies from Corgi. So far I've got 6 and my only issue is with "Equal Rites" which is larger than the rest of them... Does anyone else collect this edition? Did you find the same issue?

I don't really mind that much, the ISBN is 978-0552166614 and the cover is the same than this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Equal-Rites-Discworld-Novel-Novels/dp/0552166618/ but it's larger than the rest (same type of cover, Corgi, etc) for some reason!

That seems to be a reissue, which is about 2cm larger according to amazon than for example this one:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Equal-Rites-Discworld-Novel-3/dp/0552131059/

The cover also doesn't look like the original ones, it's more like the new hardcover ones.

Oh, so they are indeed two different listings... Well I guess my collection won't be uniform then. I've already got around 5 in the larger size :/

To answer the questions in >22 L.A.Markham: and >31 JerryMmm:

http://discworld.com/discworld-collectors-library-covers-continue/

By popular demand, this collection of beautiful but affordable hardback editions, currently available up to Jingo, will now expand to include ALL the adult Discworld novels.

WOOOOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!! So happy to hear this! I really hope that Book Depository will be carrying them as well, since I am in America.

Thought I would check at Gollancz to see if any more books had been published with Joe McLaren covers, and they have! Soon to be winging their way to my house:
Monstrous Regiment
Night Watch
Thief of Time
Going Postal - will be released on October 19th, I pre-ordered

These are an indulgence I allow myself.

Just a quick shout-out to JerryMmm whose ISBN list for the Letterbox editions has been very useful to me and seems to be only spot on the internet where all this info is compiled in one location. I, too, collect the Letterbox editions, and over the last five years have watched a number of them become hard to find.

A quick rundown, using Jerry's list, as of Oct 2018:

Readily available:

Men at Arms LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 057506577x
(beware, often incorrectly listed and the actual copy for sale is The City Watch Collection)
Lords & Ladies LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065788
Witches Abroad LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 057506580X
Reaper Man LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064838
Moving Pictures LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064862
Guards! Guards! LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064854
Wyrd Sisters LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064110
Sourcery LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064099
Mort LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064080
Equal Rites LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064102
Colour of Magic & Light Fantastic LB - 23 April 1999 - 0861404211

Now when I say "readily available" that may refer to copies that are in a condition the dedicated collector does not much care for. But at least there are choices, starting at the $10 price point and going up.

$100-$200 (ballpark):
Pyramids LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064846
Soul Music LB - 21 Oct 1999 - 057506689X
Small Gods LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065796
(beware, often incorrectly listed and the actual copy for sale is The Gods Collection)

You may find cheaper ones but they will not look great. At all.

Not available anywhere at all right now:
Interesting Times LB - 21 Oct 1999 - 0575066881

Hope this helps anybody else who is crazy enough to hunt for these!

yup, I'm stuck on those expensive ones as well.

I have had some success with incompetently listed titles on eBay; i.e. seller does not know how to describe the copy correctly and does not use the ISBN in the listing; only the photo gives away that it's a letterbox edition. Of course finding those is tricky...

I also managed to find two fairly cheap copies of SMALL GODS on Abebooks; one was Near Fine but had a terribly torn and dirty dust jacket, the other one had a Near Fine dust jacket but the book itself was all beat up. End result was one very nice copy for the shelf and one for the trash. Sheer dumb luck though...

1st/1st editions go for less than these letterbox editions :(

btw, those hard to find ones were hard to find 5y ago as well. I should've focused on them when I realized they were becoming more expensive 10 y ago. Instead I was cheap and went with the cheaper ones first.

Take this advice and use it when collecting stuff.

New for pre-order in the Gollancz collection:
Making Money
Thud
Unseen Academicals

I was sad that Snuff was not there though.

I was at the friend's of the library store on Monday and picked up a copy of Reaper Man 1991 published by Victor Gollancz, LTD for a dollar. I already have this book in the newer published series, but this one is in excellent condition and the cover has a saucy skeleton in overalls having a drink. How could I leave it there?

>52 MrsLee: Looking at that cover - the same one I have - it's just struck me that it shows a eclipse. The dicworld's sun is a tiny thing that the elephants occasionally have to move their legs to let it pass between the disc and the turtle's shell. Is there mention anywhere of a moon?

There's a description somewhere of how daylight flows across the landscape in the disc's strong magical field at dawn, and drains away at dusk. It makes me wonder whether you would see the orb of the sun.

>53 Cynfelyn: I don't have the answers to that. I wonder if it is explained in The Science of Discworld?

for future reference for me:

still missing
Sourcery LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064099
Pyramids LB - 22 May 1997 - 0575064846
Soul Music LB - 21 Oct 1999 - 057506689X

spines faded:
Wyrd Sisters LB - 14 Nov 1996 - 0575064110
Witches Abroad LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 057506580X
Small Gods LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065796
Lords & Ladies LB - 6 Aug 1998 - 0575065788

I have half of the list in paperback, with the US covers because thats all they were selling at the time, otherwise from UK with brit covers. Id love to change out the US covers to UK - whats the best way to do that?

Not too concerned about the hardback - unlike a poster above I read them not collect. The diff in sizes is problematic, so the larger ones lay on their sides.

Terry was here for the US Discworld con in 2009. He was wonderful of course. He signed his new one at the time where is my cow and my first edition Good Omens which Neil Gaiman also signed years later

>56 cindydavid4: You might look on BookDepository.com I have had good luck finding the ones I want there.

>57 MrsLee: is there a way of ordering by cover?

>58 cindydavid4: It's been a while, but when I was getting the series I am collecting, I remember seeing their covers on the web page. I also checked publication date and publisher, but it may be that it would give the cover artist in the details?

thanks to both of you ill try those ideas

the LB covers have specific ISBNs, I can imagine other covers being the same?

If you aren't aware of them, the Discworld hardback library has been putting out really nice hardback editions for some time now. Not all of them yet, but they seem to be marching in that direction. This site shows many of them: https://www.discworldemporium.com/product-category/books/the-discworld-collector...

>62 tnilsson: Oh, thanks for the link. I have been collecting those, but I wasn't aware they had published the Tiffany Aching series yet.

>62 tnilsson:

Unfortunately, I intensely dislike most of the covers of this series. There are a few exceptions, but all in all they really aren't my cup of tea. Otherwise I would have bought it, though the quality isn't as good as one might wish. I do wish that Folio Society had been allowed to continue, but they unfortunately had to stop after two volumes.

>62 tnilsson: Corrected the imbalance on my shelves and purchased all the Tiffany Aching novels.

excellent. I had always wondered about Esk in Equal Rites such a great character but then disappears. it would make senst to me that Tiffany a renamed version of her it works for me. but thats just my fantasy Is Esk mentioned elsedisc?

These are the new books I purchased. There are a couple more to go, but my wallet said, "Stop."

>67 MrsLee: I love those covers! who publishes these editions. And enjoy your reading, quite good!

>68 cindydavid4: Penguin Random House. I think the cover design is by Joe McLaren (I'm horrible at names though). I purchased mine on The Book Depository site. It helps to search by hardcover and title.

great thanks

>69 MrsLee: You got the name right, they were done by Joe McLaren, love his covers!

Question re the letterbox Kirby covers - does anybody know if the presence of gilt (real or fake) around the edges of the author's name as well as the top and bottom edge of the letterbox image on the front of the DJ and the same on the spine means anything? I have some with, some without. Initial print runs with, later ones without? Any help appreciated.

BTW some of the ISBNs mentioned earlier have stopped working on Bookfinder.com.

>72 GreatGonzo: While my Men at Arms is a second impression, my Lords and Ladies is a first (or not indicated as anything else) impression, neither have a gold band. However both appear to have an earlier inside compared to the next in series Interesting Times.

It's too hot for me to do reach too much to the top of my shelves, I'll give some more information in the coming weeks.

Thanks JerryMmm, appreciate it! I can't make heads or tails of it at the moment and can't find a thing about it online. Related to this - seeing as they are basically identical reprints of the Gollancz publisher's editions, but with altered DJs, how would one properly catalog them? Second issue, first impression and so on? Or does the fact that they were done for W. H. Smith's make them First Editions thus etc.?

Personally, I like the Corgi editions with the (rather hectic) cover illustrations by Josh Kirby. I bought The Colour of Magic when it first came out, which was issued by Corgi. Unfortunately, I didn't continue buying Discworld books at the time and now they've changed the style.

And I prefer MMPB to trade paperbacks or hardbacks purely because I can fit more on a shelf - my husband has just allowed me to put in more bookcases but that will be the last time (there's really no more space in the house. Unless we can persuade the kids to move out and I can take over their room? Hmm.) and it's amazing how fast bookshelves fill up.

I love the Kirby illustrations. I know DW purists take issue with them on many levels, but to me they're an essential part of discovering Pratchett for myself. Kidby is great, of course, but most of the other reprint cover art leaves me cold.

Is there a resource with all of the Discworld titles listed, including the science volumes, where's my cow, the journals, and the cookbook (and any others)?

>77 elorin: The Wikipedia article on the Discworld isn't a bad start, but you probably want The L-Space Wiki.

>78 haydninvienna: Thanks so much! L-space had exactly what I was like for

Does anybody have any info on the gold "porthole" edition of SNUFF, a Waterstone's exclusive? The complete Kidby art is printed on the boards, the DJ exposes part of it as seen through a ship's porthole. Also contains an additional short story. Do we know how many of those there are out there? This title already seems to be hard to find with an undamaged jacket.

If we're talking about the same edition, there are several copies on Ebay in varying conditions, most pretty good. The short story seems to be A Collegiate Casting-Out of Devilish Devices, which is available in a collection, so not exclusive to this edition anymore.

Just bought the one that claimed to be VG, bit of a gamble but still better than the other ones. Just amazed there are no NF or F copies to be had.

bookfinder.com is the place to go; I often get good-very good copies, hope that helps

Ah, there's two to be had! (With the usual killer UK shipping attached.) Will try those if the eBay one isn't all that great. Thanks!

Just found a copy of
Terry Pratchett's Discworld Imaginarium by paul kidby;through bookfinder.com. oh my Kidby captures the humor and moods of Sir Ts stories perfectly Love the illustration of Pratchett playing chess with Death (aka " the seventh seal) this collection of his works are fascinating and lots of fun