A Slip of the Keyboard

A collection of non-fiction pieces — speeches, essays, journalism, forewords, and letters — gathered from across Pratchett's career. It was edited by Rhianna Pratchett and published in 2014 by Doubleday.

'Shaking Hands with Death' (2010) is Pratchett's BBC Richard Dimbleby Lecture on Alzheimer's disease and the right to an assisted death. Pratchett was too ill to deliver it himself; it was read by Tony Robinson. The lecture is one of the most widely read pieces in the collection.

Not as an entry point to his fiction — it works best read alongside the novels. For readers who have finished the Discworld and want to understand who Pratchett was beyond his books, it is invaluable.

Yes — several pieces deal directly with his diagnosis of posterior cortical atrophy (a variant of Alzheimer's disease) announced in 2007, his public advocacy for dementia research, and his views on the right to a dignified death. These are among the most powerful pieces in the collection.

Yes — many pieces address Pratchett's views on fantasy literature, the creative process behind the Discworld, and his relationship with readers and the genre.