The Bromeliad

For the family of flowering plants, see Bromeliaceae.

The Bromeliad Trilogy (also known in the UK as The Nome Trilogy) is a trilogy of children's books by Terry Pratchett consisting of

1. Truckers, 1989
2. Diggers, 1990
3. Wings, 1990

The trilogy tells the story of the Nomes, a race of tiny people from another world who now live hidden among humans. Through the books they struggle to survive in the world and, once they learn of their history from an artifact known as "The Thing", make plans to return home. References in the books suggest that they are set in the same world as Pratchett's Johnny Maxwell novels (1992–1996), which begin with Only You Can Save Mankind. Pratchett's first novel, The Carpet People (1971/1992), is also about a race of tiny people (presumably much, much smaller than Nomes), but they are not Nomes and the book is unconnected to this series. The title "Bromeliad" was given to the first editions of the books in the UK; subsequent printings do not carry this title, though they have been collected into a single volume titled The Bromeliad Trilogy. In the US the books have always been known as "The Bromeliad Trilogy". Diggers and Wings are both sequels to Truckers, following different characters through (mostly) concurrent events. A stop motion animated series of Truckers was produced in the United Kingdom by Cosgrove Hall. In 2001, DreamWorks acquired the film rights to the trilogy[1], and announced plans to combine all three books into a single film, to be directed by Andrew Adamson.[2]. However, as of May 2007 the company has made no further mention of the project, and Adamson is currently slated to direct both The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and Benighted.[3] The title refers to the fact that some species of small frogs live their entire lives inside Bromeliad plants, a metaphor used in the books to explore some of the series' themes. It is also a pun on The Belgariad, a fantasy series by David Eddings, and The Iliad by Homer.

Central characters

• Masklin — A member of the Outside Nomes, Masklin is brave and adventurous.
• The Thing — A small, sentient computer. A part of 'The Ship'
• Torrit — The leader of the Outside Nomes, tasked with keeping The Thing safe.
• Grimma — A female counterpart to Masklin, who hates sexism.
• Gurder — A religious store nome. Later becomes the abbot.
• Angalo De Habedasheri — Store nome obsessed with the 'Outside'.
• Dorcas del Icatessen — The most scientific of the nomes. Interested by electricity.
• Granny Morkie — Elderly outside nome.
• Arnold Bros. (est 1905) — The 'founder' of the Store and godlike figure to the nomes.

Appearing only in Truckers

• Old Torrit — an elderly nome from the Outside. His recent death is mentioned early on in Diggers.
• The Abbot — The leader of the Stationeri. Dies of old age in Truckers.
• The Count de Habedasheri — Angalo's father. The leader of the Habedasheri.
• Bargains Galore and Prices Slashed

Appearing only in Diggers

• Sacco and Nooty
• Nisodemus

Appearing only in Wings

• The Floridian Nomes
• Richard Arnold

Cast of the Cosgrove Hall Animated Series

• Masklin — Joe McGann
• Grimma — Debra Gillett
• Granny Morkie — Rosalie Williams
• Torrit — John Jardine
• The Thing — Edward Kelsey
• Angalo De Haberdasheri — Nigel Carrington
• Duke De Haberdasheri - David Scase
• Dorcas — Brian Trueman
• The Abbot — Sir Michael Hordern
• Gurder — Brian Southwood
• Vinto Pimmie — Jimmy Hibbert

Translations

• Trilogia del Piccolo Popolo (Italian)
  • Il Piccolo Popolo dei grandi magazzini
  • Il Piccolo Popolo all'aria aperta
  • Il Piccolo Popolo decolla
• Ævintýri Nálfanna (Icelandic)
  • Flóttinn
  • Undir berum himnu
• Le Grand Livre des gnomes (French)
  • Les Camionneurs
  • Les Terrassiers
  • Les Aéronautes
• Die Schlacht der Nomen (German)
  • Trucker
  • Wühler
  • Flügel
• Trylogia Nomów (Polish)
  • Nomów księga wyjścia
  • Nomów księga kopania
  • Nomów księga odlotu
• Noumi (Serbian)
  • Kamionci
  • Buldožerci
  • Krilci
• El éxodo de los Gnomos (Spanish)
  • Camioneros
  • Cavadores
  • La Nave
• Resan Hem (Swedish)
  • Vi far
  • Vi flyr
  • Vi flyger
• Onttujen kirjat (Finnish)
  • Suuri ajomatka
  • Louhoksen Valtiaat
  • (not known yet)
• Manák trilógiája (Hungarian)
  • Sofőrök
  • Földvájók
  • Szárnyalók
• Трилогия за Номите (Bulgarian)
  • Масклин
  • Грима и Доркас
  • Крилете на Масклин
• Τα ανόντα (Greek)
  • Φορτηγατζήδες πάνω στη γη
  • Σκαπανείς κάτω από τη γη
  • Φτερά και πούπουλα στον αέρα
• Trilogia Nomilor (Romania)
  • În Camion
  • În Excavator
  • În Navă
• Мир Номов (Russian)
  • Угонщики
  • Землекопы
  • Крылья