Diggers

Having come late to Terry Pratchett's writing and his wonderful sense of humor, I must say I thoroughly enjoyed all three of the Bromeliad books. The insights into human nature clothed in truly funny just plain stupid thoughts and actions by the nomes resonated with me on a primal level. I'm one of those who sees something funny when nobody else does, and only see poignant or tragic many times others' sides are splitting. What a story of triumph of the little fellow! Now I can't wait to read the rest of Terry's books!

Terry Pratchett's lovable nomes return in "Diggers," the second book of the Bromeliad trilogy. It's an improvement on the first book "Truckers," with a steadier pace and a new twist on this tiny-aliens-among-us plotline. It gets a bit silly at times, but doesn't wear out its welcome.When last seen, the peculiar, lovable nomes had managed to drive a truck away from the Arnold Bros. store, and had set up a new home in an abandoned quarry. Masklin and his little band are doing fine, although many of the more pampered nomes are having to get used to the idea of farming and living in a place with no heating and too much open space.Then everything changes. A human brings a paper to the quarry, and the nomes learn that the quarry is going to be reopened -- and the nomes risk discovery unless they can find a new place to live. When Masklin ventures off to the mysterious Florida, to find the descendent of Arnold Bros., a fanatic called Nisodemus takes the opportunity to rally the nomes in rebellion. Just then, Dorcas (a sort of nome technogeek) reveals the Cat (a bulldozer), which might help them against the humans.Terry Pratchett seems to have found more solid footing in "Diggers." The book feels a lot steadier and surer, now that he's established the groundwork. He weaves in a little subtle social commentary (particularly on religious fanatics); it's not as subtle as it could be, but it isn't too annoying."Diggers" is also faster-moving than "Truckers." His sense of quirky humor (like the idea of Florida being made of orange juice) is present constantly, but he doesn't do it in a mean-spirited way. You laugh with the innocent nomes, not at them. Probably the biggest problem is that "Diggers" ends on a cliffhanger of sorts, with the line "I'd very much like to know what Masklin has been doing these past few weeks."Masklin and the Thing aren't present for most of the story; they show up again in the third book, "Wings." So most of the focus is on Grimma, the girl Masklin wants to marry, and Dorcas the nome technogeek. Their characters are well-drawn, and their struggles to deal with the fanatical nome is tense and well-plotted.While it's not his best work, Terry Pratchett is in good form in the second book of the Bromeliad trilogy. "Diggers" is a good return for the nomes, and a fun fantasy read.

This the second book of the Bromeliad trilogy (following Truckers and followed by Wings).After escaping from the doomed Store of Arnold Bros (est. 1905), the nomes find refuge in a disused quarry. And although life's harder Outside than it was in the Store, after a while everything goes well... until they find out that the quarry is going to be reopened.At the same time, they also learn that Grandson Richard, 39, an heir to the Arnold Bros (est. 1905) fortune, is going to Florida to watch the launch of his first telecom satellite. To Masklin it's an oportunity to send the Thing back into space where it could contact the Ship which will bring them back HOME. And so he sets out, with Gurder and Angalo, on a trip to the airport.And as the rest of the nomes are waiting for them to come back, their food reserves are inexorably running out and the humans' presence is starting to be a real nuisance. Are they going to flee and hide or are they going to stand up to them?As expected, Diggers is brilliant and extremely funny. And again, the confrontation between the nomes' and our view of the world is the source of many of the typically "Pratchettian" puns we've all come to love!

In Truckers, Masklin rescued the other nomes from the store before its demoliton. Then, he led them to a quarry, a place that they could call home. But now, Masklin realizes that the nomes can never really be at home in the human's world, so he sets off to find the airport, and the spaceship that brought the nomes to Earth some 15,000 years ago. But for the nomes left at the quarry, now led by Grimma, things go from bad to worse, and worse still. Where is Masklin, and who will save the nomes?This book is as funny as the last one. The nomes are so very human, and yet so very different. Plus, the story kept you at the edge of your seat, right up to the surprise finale. What a wonderful book!

this is a wonderful book and Terry Pratchett is a wonderful autho