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Wyrd Sisters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Terry Pratchett The Discworld series 6th novel – 2nd Witches story  |
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| Outline | |
| Characters: | Granny Weatherwax Nanny Ogg Magrat Garlick Verence the Fool |
| Locations: | Lancre |
| Motifs: | Shakespeare, especially Macbeth and Hamlet |
| Publication details | |
| Year of release: | 1988 |
| Original publisher: | Victor Gollancz |
| Hardback ISBN: | ISBN 0-575-04363-6 |
| Paperback ISBN: | ISBN 0-552-13460-0 |
| Other details | |
| Awards: | |
| Notes: | Came 135th in the Big Read. One of two books made into an animated film. Adapted as a play by Stephen Briggs. |
Wyrd Sisters is Terry Pratchett's sixth Discworld novel, published in 1988, and re-introduces Granny Weatherwax of Equal Rites.
Contents |
Essentially a parody or calque of Macbeth, Wyrd Sisters features three witches: Granny Weatherwax; Nanny Ogg, matriarch of a large tribe of Oggs, who owns the most evil cat in the world, (Greebo); and Magrat Garlick, the junior witch, who firmly believes in occult jewellery, even though none of it works.
King Verence I of Lancre is murdered by his cousin, Duke Felmet, and the King's crown and a baby are given by an escaping servant to the three witches. The witches hand the crown and the child to a troupe of traveling actors, acknowledging that destiny will eventually take its course and Tomjon will grow up to defeat Duke Felmet.
However, the kingdom is angry and doesn't want to wait 15 years so the witches move it forward in time. Meanwhile, the duke has decided to get a play written and performed that is favourable to him so he sends the jester to Ankh-Morpork to recruit the same travelling (now stationary) company that Tomjon is in.
The only problem is that Tomjon does not want to be king. Luckily, the jester turns out to be his brother and he becomes king instead.
Many Macbeth references are worked in such as the Duke always trying to wash blood from his hands with various implements such as a cheese grater. There are also parodies of Shakespeare like The Dysk theater and Please Yourself.
There has been an animated version and a 4-part BBC Radio 4 dramatisation, as well as a play adaptation by Stephen Briggs.
| Language | Title | Round-trip translation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgarian | Посестрими в занаята | ||
| Czech | Soudné sestry | ||
| Dutch | De Plaagzusters | ||
| Estonian | Õed Nõiduses | ||
| Finnish | Noitasiskokset | ||
| French | Trois Sœurcières | Three Sister-Witches[1] | |
| German | MacBest | MacBest | |
| Greek | Οι Στρίγκλες | ||
| Hebrew | אחיות הגורל | ||
| Hungarian | Vészbanyák | ||
| Icelandic | Örlagasystur | ||
| Italian | Sorellanza stregonesca | ||
| Norwegian | Sære søstre | Weird Sisters | |
| Polish | Trzy Wiedźmy | Three Wiches | |
| Portuguese | As Três Bruxas | The Three Wiches | Brazil |
| Portuguese | Estranhas Irmãs | Weird Sisters | Portugal |
| Russian | Вещие сестрички | ||
| Serbian | Sestre po metli | ||
| Spanish | Brujerías | Witchcraft | |
| Swedish | Häxkonster | Witchcraft |
- ^ The title uses a play on words: Trois Sœurcières. Trois Sorcières translates as "Three Witches", and Sœur means "sister".
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