Given recent events, I guess it's not purely coincidence that I've been rereading the Sam Vimes books too. I've been reading them out of order though (they are stored in different houses).

What I had forgotten is that though Vimes is at the center of the books and it's Vimes who develops the reputation, it's actually Carrot who precipitates the change from a moribund group of three ineffectual coppers to a city-wide Watch force with an international reputation. It's funny, because everyone knows Carrot, everyone knows he was born to be King (even though hardly anyone ever saw the evidence) and yet it seems that no one realizes how much he changed the whole city. Makes me wonder if he could somehow become the next Patrician without ever being King. (Though I don't think *he* would think it possible.)

Also, the reread has reminded me that I'm finding paperback books annoying these days(you have to hold them with your hands, which makes it more difficut to do other things while reading - knitting, say, or brushing your teeth) though not quite as annoying as the lousy proofreading in some of the e-books.