Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett masterfully explores every facet of the human experience in all it’s beautiful ugliness (plus it’s really funny)

I've begun my slow and steady quest to consume every Discworld book, and like many, decided to begin with the Death stories. I liked Mort, but I found myself wanting more of Death and his role in the universe. Lucky for me, Reaper Man did just that and then some.

The book follows two plotlines which shockingly never converge at any point. The first follows Death as he gets forcefully "retired" by the Powers That Be, whereupon he decides to live out his days as a simple farmer named Bill Door. The second follows the consequences of a world temporarily without death, through the eyes of 130 year old wizard-turned-not-zombie, Windle Poons.

Despite the different plotlines , Reaper Man holds fast with a single, powerful thread: getting old sucks. Death, though infinite in experience, got a crash course on mortality thanks to his experiences in the humble farming town. Windle Poons, after 130 years, realizes he hadn't really lived until he stopped living.

I could gush about the clever worldbuilding, hilarious jokes, and unexpectedly eldritch shopping carts, but my favorite part of Reaper Man is how it unabashedly celebrates humanity. The mundane life of Miss Flitworth gave me the same comfy vibes as To Kill a Mockingbird's slice-of-life portions. Old Miss Flitworth may as well be Miss Maudie Atkinson with her sharp tongue and penchant for farmwork.

Meanwhile, I adored Windle Poons' exciting unlife adventure. While I'm sure the story resonates with anybody who feels like an outcast or fears growing old, my personal takeaway is how much it mirrored my queer experience. The idea that you've lived a majority of your life not as you, but who people expect you to be really stuck with me. I love the little gang of misfits Windle meets, and the "coming out the closet" joke with the Boogeyman solidified my take for me.

And the final chapters hit even harder. After exciting battles with a new Death and a literal hive mind mall, I appreciated the slow and melancholy pace of the ending. Death can be terrifying or shocking for some people, but for most, it's simply waiting for the end.

That's how I felt as I watched Miss Flitworth and Windle Poons breathe their last. Reflecting in the lives they've lived, and shrugging, is the kind of stoicism I hope to have when I go. It's a reminder no matter how old I get or how seemingly unremarkable my life has been, there's always room for one last adventure.