The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner and Other Stories

New York Times Bestseller

Do you believe in magic? Can you imagine a war between wizards? An exciting journey in an airship or down in a submarine? Would you like to meet the fastest truncheon in the Wild West?

The Witch’s Vacuum Cleaner is the second fabulously funny short-story collection from the late acclaimed storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, author of the beloved and bestselling Discworld fantasy series. A follow-up to Dragons at Crumbling Castle, this second batch of storytelling gems features stories written when Sir Terry was just seventeen years old and working as a junior reporter. In these pages, new Pratchett fans will find wonder, mayhem, sorcery, and delight—and loyal readers will recognize the seeds of ideas that went on to influence his most beloved tales later in life.

As Neil Gaiman says, “a Terry Pratchett book is a small miracle”—and The Witch’s Vacuum Cleaner proves to be another miracle taking its place alongside Pratchett’s astounding and cherished body of work.

Fourteen early tales from a master storyteller reveal the wit and whimsy that would define a legend.

• Wizards and Witches: Meet a witch who prefers a vacuum cleaner to a broomstick, and witness a wizarding war where the spells get personal and the furniture pays the price.
• Gnomes and Trolls: Join a colony of gnomes on a daring lorry-driving escape from a department store, and follow three trolls on an epic quest for a magical gem that takes them all the way to the moon.
• British Humor: Welcome to the Wild West of Britain... in Wales, where the fastest truncheon in town must stop a train robbery and clean up a feud between rival ice-cream men.
• Magical Adventure: Explore the extraordinary imagination of a seventeen-year-old Terry Pratchett in stories featuring time-traveling televisions, submarines made from walnuts, and an ant who decides he’s had enough of being just a number.