FORMAT: HARDCOVER (REVIEWED), DIGITAL | RELEASE DATE: September 3rd

Sir Terry Pratchett passed away 2015 and is quite rightly regarded as one of the greatest humourists of his generation. His books are known for their warmth, wit and possess a knowing cleverness which is charming and entertaining. The Time-Travelling Caveman is likely to be the last book produced written by Terry, but it is not the last book he wrote.

This short-story anthology is a collection of children’s stories written by Terry back in the 60’s and 70’s for legendary local newspaper The Bucks Free Press. Terry’s voice is very clear and present in all of these short stories, and if you are familar with his more famous books you will certainly recognise his brilliant sense of comedy. There’s a nice focus on science, space-travel and histor, but all in a fun and daft sort of way. It’s full of whimsy and silliness. All the stories are short and aimed at children. This means we get steam powered trips to the moon, talking horses, wooly mammoths and joke wizards. It’s charming and entertaining stuff, but anyone expecting the sort of brilliance and fun of Terry’s famous Discworld series will be disappointed.

Part of the problem for fans of the author is that this is a reminder that they are no more books coming and that Terry is gone. It would have been nice to see these stories with commentary from the creator and some more context to the tales. As a book for kids though, it’s a great choice. Mark Beech’s illustrations are hilarious, and the stories encourage young minds to think about the world in a broad and interesting way. It’s a lovely book and a great gift for kids. Discworld fans will find it lacking, however.