Designing Terry Pratchett's Discworld

As a committed reader, you start to see the signs that you are living a long life. One stark reminder is when a favourite author dies. This has happened too often already for my liking; one particularly heavy hit was Sir Terry Pratchett. In a world in which authors continue to write into their 8th and 9th decade, Sir Terry left too soon. But what a legacy to leave. With no new Discworld books being published, the Pratchett Estate continues to feed the fans information on the wider Discworld. Designing Terry Pratchett’s Discworld by Paul Kidby may just be the perfect legacy title for a fan. 

Kidby was not the first artist linked to Sir Terry. The early Discworld novels had cover illustrations by the legendary Josh Kirby, but even before being offered the job of being Pratchett’s new illustrator of choice, Kidby was working on designs for characters in the Discworld and on numerous occasions tried to get the attention of the author with early sketches. This book is a deep dive into many of the works that Kidby did for Sir Terry and, later, the Estate. It is part coffee book, part glimpse into the development of art, but it is also an insight into the artist and his relationship with Pratchett. 

As a fan of the books, the universe and Kidby’s images, this book was like catnip to me. This version is the hardback full colour version with hundreds of images from Kidby that cover almost every aspect of Discworld. It has that look and feel to it that makes it a special type of book for a fan. Even the smell of the book is lovely with so much colour ink used. 

As a passing curio it has its place. The type of old school coffee book that you could leave on the table for guests to peruse for a moment. Open almost any page and you will come across a glorious picture that you can admire, images of Discworld or its characters. Of special interest to the non-Pratchett fan would be the clever homages that Kidby undertook over the years which placed Discworld characters into versions of famous paintings, from Michelangelo to Star Wars. 

To skim the book is valid but would be an injustice to what is an interesting insight into the world of illustration. The book feels like a gentle autobiography of Kidby as he describes how he was inspired by a certain character or image. He also references his relationship with the great man, and in this way the book also feels like a biography of Pratchett and his relationship to the art of the Discworld. Finally, the book also pays homage to the characters of Discworld. We get another biography this time of the characters that Kidby has come to know and love. 

The very formatting of the book has been designed to make it an inviting and entertaining read. The full colour images hold the centre, but the text is interesting and there are ‘handwritten’ asides all over the place that give even more insight. To top things off, there are quotes taken from the books that play into the images shown. Just being reminded of the excellent writing of Pratchett is a joy. 

As someone who would rush to the bookshop before Christmas each year to buy that year’s Terry Pratchett novel, it is as much this tradition I miss, as much as the man. There are yearly titles that come out from the Estate that can scratch that itch, but Designing Terry Pratchett’s Discworld is the best that I have read yet. It is perhaps the first time since Sir Terry’s death that I feel that same warmth as I did from reading a new Discworld novel. Kidby’s respect for the man and the universe if clear. You get a lovely sense of being closer to Pratchett, but also a kinship to Kidby.