Before the
Discworld had Tiffany Aching, there
was Eric Thursley. An ambitious teenage
boy, he wants his cake and to eat it, too.
Eric (1991), the ninth Discworld novel, sees the teen on a
journey that parodies the Faust
legend in a manner only Terry Pratchett can.
Rincewind bumbling along in tow, Eric achieves a higher plane of
understanding in most unlikely fashion—all no thanks to the ill-starred
wizard’s mix of luck.
A thirteen
year-old amateur demonologist, Eric summons the unwitting Rincewind into a hex
circle in his bedroom one evening and demands the cowardly wizard supply his
three innermost desires: the most beautiful woman, to rule the world, and to
live forever. The boy’s parrot confusing
matters, suddenly the three (the dirty-mouthed bird, included) find themselves
in the jungles of the Tezumen Empire.
Exploring what is a thin disguise for Aztec culture, they learn many
things while put in some tricky situations, but not before the Luggage with
legs makes its appearance—and not a minute too late. Their Faustian journey only beginning, the
pair proceed to embark on a jaunt through time and space that traverses the
most disparate of lands, hell just the last stop on the line.
