Review: Monstrous Regiment (Discworld Book 37 of 49ish)

Monstrous Regiment  (Discworld, #31) - Terry Pratchett

Monstrous Regiment is the third book in the Industrial Revolution subseries of Discworld

 

The book starts off with our main character, Polly, transforming herself into Oliver.  Yep, she’s chopping off her hair and dressing up like a boy so she can go and enlist in the military.  She lives in a small country that’s always at war with its neighbors.  Women here are not allowed to dress like men or fight.  It is, along with many other things such as cats and chocolate, an Abomination to their god. 

 

This Industrial Revolution book seemed a little different from the previous two because it didn’t introduce a revolutionary new industry.  It was more of a war (or anti-war) book, and a book about prejudice and stereotypes.  It did have some ties to the previous books though, mostly in the form of character cameos.  I liked the story pretty well, and it had some good (if not very original) messages as well as some humor.  It did get over-the-top ridiculous at some points, even for Discworld, particularly toward the end.