The Bromeliad Trilogy: Truckers (Paperback)

by Terry Pratchett (Author) "NOMES ARE SMALL..." (more)
Key Phrases: young nomes, truck nest, old nome, Arnold Bros, Granny Morkie, Prices Slashed (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
British author Pratchett's first YA novel is a rollicking tale about a race of "nomes"--little people who came from outer space and now live under the floorboards of a department store. Since the store is about to be demolished, the nomes must be convinced to move out, even though most of them don't believe in such a thing as Outside. After all, the store has "Everything Under One Roof!" In a story reminiscent of Mary Norton's The Borrowers , Pratchett has added distinctive touches of his own to the hilarious complications that ensue. One of the novel's greatest strengths is the depiction of the civilization the nomes have built for themselves, including an intricate religion based on advertising signs. hung in the store. Truckers is funny enough to warrant sequels (at least one more tale is promised), but a clearer resolution would have made this a more satisfying read. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"Pratchett gives his cast plenty of personality and fuels the plot with nonstop comedy." (Kirkus Reviews )

"Witty, funny, wise and altogether delightful." (Locus )

"Terry Pratchett has created a wild adventure, a fable, a fantasy, an elegant satire."- Lloyd Alexander (Lloyd Alexander )

"Fascinating and funny." (The Horn Book )

"A delicious, rewarding, wry and antic fable."-Harlan Ellison"A rollicking good story." (Kirkus Reviews )

"A wry tongue-in-cheek fantasy.which unhesitatingly lampoons the ingrained habits and complacent attitudes found in any society." (ALA Booklist )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (April 13, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060094966
• ISBN-13: 978-0060094966
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #497,578 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 1 in The Bromeliad Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fabulous and Hillarious Adventure, May 2, 2001

By	Stephanie Noverraz "crooty" (Lausanne, Switzerland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Truckers [Mass Market Paperback] by Pratchett, Terry (Paperback)

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!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Truckers" away, April 19, 2004

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Big problems for little people., October 13, 2000

By	Kurt A. Johnson (Marseilles, Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Truckers [Mass Market Paperback] by Pratchett, Terry (Paperback)

Another race also inhabits this Earth, a race four inches tall that lives and moves very quickly, and they are called "nomes." Masklin, the leader of a dwindling band of nomes, decides that a better life must be found, so they stowaway aboard a truck, and find themselves taken to a huge department store. This department store, Arnold Bros. (est. 1905), is populated by thousands of nomes, something the humans above then never suspect. To Masklin and his band this place looks like heaven, but what is the meaning of the signs that read, "Final Sale: Everything Must Go?"

This book is a laugh-riot. Terry Pratchett succeeds is making the Nomes so different, and yet so human. This book is the first of a trilogy; with the other two entitled Diggers and Wings.