The Colour of Magic

Discworld, Book 1

By: Terry Pratchett

Narrated by: Colin Morgan, Peter Serafinowicz, Bill Nighy

Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin. The audiobook of The Colour of Magic is read by Colin Morgan (Merlin; Testament of Youth; Belfast). BAFTA and Golden Globe award-winning actor Bill Nighy (Love Actually; Pirates of the Caribbean; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) reads the footnotes, and Peter Serafinowicz (Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; Shaun of the Dead) stars as the voice of Death. Featuring a new theme tune composed by James Hannigan.

'It was octarine, the colour of magic. It was alive and glowing and vibrant and it was the undisputed pigment of the imagination....'

Somewhere between thought and reality exists the Discworld, a magical world not totally unlike our own. Except for the fact that it travels through space on the shoulders of four giant elephants who in turn stand on the shell of an astronomically huge star turtle, of course.

Rincewind is the world's worst wizard who has just been handed a very important job: to look after the world's first tourist, upon whose survival rests the peace and prosperity of the land. Unfortunately, their journey across the Disc includes facing robbers, monsters, mercenaries, and Death himself.

And the whole thing's just a game of the gods that might send them over the edge....

You can listen to the Discworld novels in any order, but The Colour of Magic is the first book in the Wizards series. The Colour of Magic is the first book in the Discworld series and was published in 1983. Some elements of the Discworld universe may reflect this.

©1983 Terry Pratchett (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"If you've never read a Discworld novel, what's the matter with you?" (Guardian)

"Pratchett uses his other world to hold up a distorting mirror to our own." (The Times)

Discworld!

Good audio book. If you don't like readers with an accent then pass on this. I personally got used to it quickly and enjoyed the experience. great pronunciation and clarity.

Discworld is back again!

This new wave of audio books for Discworld is a joy to experience.
Once more old friends come to life to show us a realm of magic, snark, and silliness.
The production values of he book are wonderful, the voice acting top notch (Though Rincewind is more nasally than I expected) and relistening to these books again will be a fresh joy.
I can't wait for the Death Series and The Watch series.

To strike a balance while making it your own.

So I'm a fan of Discworld and as someone with a vision problem I've preferred listening to the audio versions of the series for years. After listening to this version of the first book alongside the sequel it's hard for me to try and explain my thoughts but they are still trying to find their own way for the books.

It's more that it feels like the narrators have a respect for the original audio recordings but can't quite figure out how best to find that balance yet. This isn't a bad thing as the first few books in the series feel that way. At present it's actually going to be harder to tell on things but I do think it's got potential. Honestly I think trying to strike a proper balance between all the narrators that have helped bring this series to life in audio form is hard and anyone thet has tried will always feel that weight on their shoulders.

For example I think the later audiobook versions of the last few books of the series towards the end of Terry pratchett's life do a great job at showing how an updated version could be. Personally I think it's actually worth having some of each of the audiobook styles since each has its own charm and character to the characters. I'd say give this a listen and enjoy it for what it is with the understanding that there's been several ways the series has been portrayed in audio.

great but

i’m not sure why it’s frequently listed as the best discworld book. great narration and production although i do prefer single narrator audiobooks, it seems like audible is getting rid of all of them 😭. my comments are preference/taste issues, the book is great and everyone did a wonderful job!

A sort of greenish, purple, yellow bit of wonder.

An excellent, and well told, production of the beginning of a real fantasy masterpiece of a series. I for one loved the narration, and feel it added to the oddity that is Discworld. Not one for the serious of heart, but the fantasy fan will, no doubt, enjoy this series and all it's imaginative strangeness.

Loving the new series

We’ll worth the repurchasing of the series! The updated production values alone are worth the credits. Nothing wrong with the old version with Nigel planer, but I haven’t listened / read them in quite awhile and hearing the new take on these classics is bringing the stories back like almost like new.

Imaginative and heartfelt

Not an altogether riveting plot line, but still immensely entertaining. Pratchetts imaginative wit and tongue in cheek humor shine through without ruining the immersion.

This book is actually a series of 3 short adventures. The chapters are quite long, and there is only 4 of them.

Apart from that, I have nothing but good things to say. I will do my best to finish the series.

Absolute gem from start to finish

Narration was outstanding. Gave me hitchhikers guide vibes with, somehow, even more ridiculousness. Cannot wait to read the rest of the series!

Utterly fantastic

Narration was filled with enthusiasm in a very fun fantasy tale that at once skewers the genre while being clearly infatuated with it. A great intro to discworld.

Love the narration!

I was worried when I saw the less than positive reviews about the narration, but I am loving all of the voices Colin M uses to bring the characters to life!

And of course I will always give any Discworld story 5 stars, even if it isn’t the strongest of the series it is still fantastic.