Fine Line

Perhaps one in twenty books that I read have an afterword in which the author (or authors, as in the last book I read) talk about the context for the novel. Sometimes it adds value, sometimes it seems irrelevant, but the book that I finished last night was just hateful.

I won't read either of these guys ever again, not because their novel was mediocre, but because their afterword, their argument was as irrational, ugly and bigoted as Rush.

The book had somewhat interesting truly hermaphroditic aliens with only a single gender, and a biological caste- or class-based system, and way too much religion. It had an amusing slightly self-mocking tone, though the characters were as one-dimensional and stereotypic as late Heinlein, with the same nasty misogynistic overtones.

It was essentially trite in much the same way as "Avatar". Some of the trimmings were interesting and/or pretty, but without them, the story and characters won't be enduring.

I've recently read about studies concerning dementia which assert that maintaining brain health (apart from omega-3 fatty acids and cardiovascular exercise) can be helped by creating conflicts in your brain, talking to people with whom you disagree, even though it can be uncomfortable.

When it became clear that the authors' views on religion differed from mine, I continued reading, and in fact I read the entire afterword, getting angrier with every word. I get that it can be difficult to understand how someone else comes to different conclusions that you do, given the same set of facts, but I respect their right to do so. What I emphatically do not respect is their assertion TO THEIR READERS, of whom they surely want more in order to sell more books and develop a loyal fan base, that they are stupid for reaching a different conclusion.

Stupid me if ever I read another word of theirs.

In happier news, I finished my chunky pearl necklace.

And made a pair of earrings in the same vein, with a pendant in the works.

I've gone through phases during which I've made these beads somewhat obsessively.

I like them better with the contrasting corners; I think they're more interesting and somehow less clunky than the solid-coloured ones.

And then I wondered how they'd look with 4x6mm drops in the corners instead of contrasting seed beads.

Pretty good, that's how, but I'm having a hard time figuring out what they remind me of.

Some kind of alien or microscopic life forms, I think.

I can see a whole lot more of these in my future.