Men at Arms: Men at Arms

“Unadulterated fun.”—San Francisco Chronicle

The fate of Ankh-Morpork rests on the unlikely shoulders of newly promoted Corporal Carrot and his hapless charges in the City Watch in this wildly wacky Discworld novel from the legendary New York Times bestselling author Terry Pratchett.

Corporal Carrot is now in charge of the new recruits guarding Ankh-Morpork from barbarian rribes, miscellaneous marauders, unlicensed thieves, and other dangerous Discworld denizens. It’s a big job for an adopted dwarf keeping the likes of young coppers Lance-constable Cuddy (really a dwarf), Lance-constable Detritus (a troll), Lance-constable Angua (a woman. . . most of the time) and Corporal Nobbs (disqualified from the human race for shoving) in line.

Especially since someone in Ankh-Morpork has been getting dangerous ideas about crowns and legendary swords, and destiny—which points its crooked finger again when an ancient document reveals that Ankh-Morpork has a secret sovereign.

What's more, Captain Sam Vimes is getting married and retiring from the Watch. For good. Which is a shame, because no one knows the streets of Ankh-Morpork or its criminal underworld better than him.

It’s the beginning of the most awesome epic encounter of all time (or at least all afternoon), in which the fate of a city—indeed of the universe itself!—depends on a young man’s courage, an ancient sword’s magic, and a three-legged poodle’s bladder.

The Discworld novels can be read in any order but Men at Arms is the 2nd in the City Watch collection and the 15th Discworld book.

The City Watch series in order:

• Guards! Guards!
• Men at Arms
• Feet of Clay
• Jingo
• The Fifth Elephant
• Night Watch
• Thud!
• Snuff

| It was a dwarf's dream. Captain Vimes of the Watch was retiring. That put Corporal Carrot in charge of the new recruits guarding Ankh-Morpork, Discworld's greatest city, from the Barbarian Tribes, Miscellaneous Marauders, unlicensed Thieves, and such. It was a big job, particularly for an adopted dwarf who was so homesick for the gold mines of Ramtop that he often locked himself in the dark room and hit himself on the head with an axe-handle, just for fun.

It was a young lord's nightmare. Edward, the 37th Lord d'Eath, newly graduated from the School for Assassins (the ideal institution for those whose rank is higher than their intelligence), had made an astonishing discovery. Ankh-Morpork, kingless for generations, and ruled by Disorganized Crime, had a sovereign! The new king just had to be convinces that he was, in fact, a king.

Corporal Carrot had a job.

Lord d'Eath had a Task.

And so began the most awesome epic encounter of all time, or at least all afternoon, in which good and evil, greed and honor, trolls and dwarves, dogs and bells and swamp dragons would clash, crash, toll, bark, shimmer, and simmer. The fate of a city, indeed a kingdom--nay, a very universe!--was to depend on a young man's courage, an ancient sword's magic, and three-legged poodle's bladder.

Don't look so surprised. This is Discworld, where anything can happen.

Which means that everything always does. |

“One of the more significant contemporary English-language satirists.”

- Publishers Weekly

“There is no end to the wacky wonders . . . no fantasies as consistently, inventively mad . . . wild and wonderful.” - Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine

"[An] always entertaining. . . hysterically funny series." - Kirkus Reviews

"Pratchett skewers the hard-boiled detective novel as effectively as he's satired fantasy fiction all these years. . . . The dialogue is hilarious, and Pratchett's take on affirmative action is a whole lot of fun. . . . As usual, Pratchett provides enough bad-tempered clowns, bloodthirsty trolls and dogs with low self-esteem to keep readers entertained." - Publishers Weekly