Truckers (The Bromeliad Trilogy) (ISBN 184657661X)

A Fabulous and Hillarious Adventure:
Truckers is the first book of the Bromeliad trilogy (followed by Diggers and Wings). Masklin and his family are the last ten nomes of their warren, devastated by cold, predators and hunger. Desperately, they set out on a last chance journey and climb up on one of the lorries of the humans. What they'll soon discover is that this lorry has lead them to the Store of Arnold Bros (est. 1905), the home of thousands of other little nomes who, having never left the Store, think of the Outside as of nothing more than just another fairy tale. The coming of Masklin will be a great upheaval in their quiet lives. And as they learn that the Store is to be demolished, they make plans for their escape. Although Truckers was originally written for a young audience, it's an enthralling adventure but also a story about understanding other people's ways and helping each other, and no doubt grown-ups will love it too. Because Terry Pratchett's unique sense of humour is lurking round every corner, especially when nomes try to interpret our human world... and what's more to make sense of it!

"Truckers" away:
Terry Pratchett's Bromeliad trilogy is a mix of childlike fantasy and offbeat SF. While the opening book, "Truckers" lags in places and takes quite some time to really get moving, it's imaginative and very funny. Certainly it's a good place to start off with Pratchett's fiction. Masklin and the other nomes are tiny people who scavenge on the streets, and now there are only a handful of them left. In an act of desperation, they climb into a lorry and ride to... The Store. Also known as Arnold Bros (est. 1905), where a complex civilization of nomes (about two thousand) live in semi-peace and prosperity. They either are dazzled by the idea of "Outside," or insist that the whole world is in Arnold Bros (est. 1905). Seemingly, everything is fine for Masklin and his friends, especially when the mysterious Thing (a black box that is a spaceship's flight computer) comes to life and tells them more about their history. But suddenly their world is disrupted by the news of "All Things Must Go -- Final Sales." Now the nomes must escape the Store and find yet another place to live. Tiny people living in a department store? Who are from another planet? That is something that could have bombed easily and hideously. But it doesn't, at least not in "Truckers." Clever plot elements like the sign-based religion (they take "everything under one roof" seriously!) and the department-based clans (Stationari, Corsetri) keep this unlikely plot afloat. While "Truckers" is a self-contained story in itself, it has plenty of loose threads (mostly involving the Thing and the origins of the nomes) at the end, for the second and third books of the trilogy. The writing has Pratchett's usual sparseness and wit; the only problem is that it takes forever for the nomes to do anything. At least it's a fun slow ride. The wacky truck drive near the end is one of the best parts of the book. Masklin and his nome band (especially the indefatigable, vaguely frightening Granny) serve as a good window into the nome civilization, since they're learning about it too. The better-off nomes are a bit snottier but eager to explore the Outside. But the Thing steals the show; despite being just a computer, it has a better idea than the nomes what is going on. "Truckers" will delight fans of Pratchett, but you don't need to be a fan already to enjoy this story. While the plot takes awhile to go anywhere, the quirky characters and wonderful worldbuilding make it worthwhile.

Very nice and noncondescending writing for younger readers:
Pratchett is best known for his off-the-world Discworld yarns, but he also has produced a number of highly engaging, wryly funny, and thoroughly humane novels for younger readers. This one, the first of the "Bromeliad" trilogy, introduces the "nomes," four-inch-high people (well, humanoids) who live on highway medians and under the floors of buildings. They live fast (ten years is a very advanced age for a nome) and humans strike them as slow and stupid. Masklin, in escaping danger in the back of a truck with the last remnants of his tribe, finds himself in the Store -- "Arnold Bros. (est. 1905)" -- where there are thousands of nomes. These are divided into contending tribes by store departments, live a good life in the Food Hall, and worship Arnold Bros. And then he becomes aware that the store is about to be demolished. The strength of the story is Masklin's struggle to convince everyone else of the danger when most of them don't even believe in the existence of Outside, and then to organize an exodus by stealing a truck and learning to operate it. (Think lots of long levers, pulleys, and bits of string.) But the nomes turn out not to be "little people" at all. The nomes' interpretation of the signs they see will give you thoughtful pause, as will their unthinking belief in a nome-centered God in the sky. Or on the top floor. Pratchett fans will enjoy this, regardless of their age.

Pratchett at his best:
This is the first book in Terry Pratchett's Bromeliad Trilogy, and it gets the series started well. It is about a group of nomes who live in a department store--but they have lived there so long that they have forgotten there is a world outside. The only problem is that the store will be demolished in 21 days. It's up to a group of just 8 outside nomes to convince thousands of stubborn people to leave a place they think is the entire universe, then hijack a truck and leave. This book has a perfect blend of humor, mystery, and plot, but the in my opinion the greatest element is the characters. The seemingly emotionless yet somehow smug spaceship computer known only as the Thing provides a touch of science in a world whose inhabitants don't even know what the word "thousand" means. Dorcas del Icatessen, the mad scientist of the nomes, who has complete control over the store elevator system. Angalo de Haberdasheri, who is fanatic about the possibility of life outside the store and has a pet rat named Bobo, and finally Grannie Morkie, the annoyingly apocalyptic nome elder. The final scene, in which hundreds of nomes wielding levers, pullies, and wires manages to hijack a truck and drive it on a chaotic romp through the city, might be one of the cleverest and funniest scenes in the history of fiction. One of the greatest quotes: "Give me a big enough lever, and a firm enough place to stand, and I could move the Store." The next two books in the trilogy are even greater, and do a good job of developing the already marvelous characters.

A fun romp!:
These books (Truckers, Diggers, and Wings) are a fun romp! Well thought out, well told, with a liberal dose of humor. If you have read any of Terry Pratchett's "Disc World" books, you'll love this light hearted series....