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Small Gods

ILLO REQUEST #12016843
Sep 19, 2013forbesrachel rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Small gods is reverently irreverent. The gods are held with the greatest respect, people's belief gives them power, and they are powerful, but the things that are part of the religions of the Discworld make such a good target for parody. The church of the great god Om is mixture of many religions elements.Om is a god, a great and powerful god....he is a tortoise. His eighth prophet is Brutha, a simple novice, or a novice who is a simpleton. He truly believes though. The notion of faith is difficult for most people to handle, proof is needed by most (a common problem for the modern world), but in this world, belief is everything, and Brutha's true belief gives Om strength. Many of the other characters do not truly believe, they are cowed into saying the words, or do it as a manner of rote; this is what has caused Om's predicament. The funny thing is, it is the god Om that makes Brutha begin to question the Omnian religion, although this does not affect acknowledgement of the god's existence. The story is therefore about Brutha's journey to become a prophet, a knowledgeable guide for his people. The humour of small gods is more intellectual than other books in the series, although it does has its moments of farce, like playing soccer using a tortoise/god. Either way it is less driven by randomness. For the very reasons that some may find this a critical, and thoughtful, discourse on religion, others may see it as disrespectful to their own beliefs, so it should be mentioned that it is the authors intent to reflect on our religions in an amusing way, not to be insulting.