Going Postal
Suddenly, condemned arch-swindler Moist von Lipwig found himself with a noose around his neck and dropping through a trapdoor into ... a government job? By all rights, Moist should be meeting his maker rather than being offered a position as Postmaster by Lord Vetinari, supreme ruler of Ankh-Morpork. Getting the moribund Postal Service up and running again, however, may prove an impossible task, what with literally mountains of decades-old undelivered mail clogging every nook and cranny of the broken-down post office. Worse still, Moist could swear the mail is talking to him. Worst of all, it means taking on the gargantuan, greedy Grand Trunk clacks communication monopoly and its bloodthirsty piratical headman. But if the bold and undoable are what's called for, Moist's the man for the job -- to move the mail, continue breathing, get the girl, and specially deliver that invaluable commodity that every being, human or otherwise, requires: hope.
Also by Terry Pratchett
What you might want to know about Going Postal
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
Career conman Moist von Lipwig is hanged, then offered a job: revive the city's collapsed postal service. He has a reformed troll for a parole officer, a building full of undelivered mail, and a deadline.
Going Postal is the 33rd Discworld novel and the first in the Moist von Lipwig sub-series, followed by Making Money and Raising Steam. New readers can start with Going Postal as it introduces a fresh protagonist with limited dependence on earlier books.
Yes. Sky One produced a 2010 two-part TV adaptation starring Richard Coyle as Moist von Lipwig. The adaptation is generally faithful to the novel.
Going Postal was written by Terry Pratchett, published in 2004 by Transworld Publishers Limited.
Going Postal is 416 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Going Postal takes most readers 6 to 9 hours to finish.
Going Postal is a standalone novel by Terry Pratchett, not part of a series.
Going Postal is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
