I started this book having only read one other book by Terry Pratchett - I was kind of working my way up to reading the massive Discworld Series, so I started with The Carpet People (also a great book) in the summer, which I loved. So, out of curiosity at all the Discworld hype, I got hold of a copy of The Colour of Magic and started reading (despite various people advising me that reading them in order was not necessary).
I'm glad I did - I can't say I was an avid reader of the book straight from the start, but it soon became that way. I loved the characters in this book - Twoflower, Rincewind and Death in particular had me in stitches - and the setting, a flat, disc-shaped world carried on the backs of four giant elephants etc etc, and the amount of creativity with which Pratchett crafted his world, had me captivated.
I have now finished The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic, the sequel, having read them one after another. Although standing alone they are fantastic books, treating them as one book is probably a good idea, going by the cliffhanger ending of The Colour of Magic.
I would recommend this book to any fans of The Carpet People and other books by Terry Pratchett. It's a great book, so anybody else: read it!
