Recently an interaction with a person went very wrong. The initial fault was mine, but the situation got worse because both of us took insult from the other persons’ actions and proceeded to ‘up the ante’.
It is important to be the person that ignores the insult and maintains their manners. For as was said in Shibumi:
...in the long run, the "minor" virtues are the only ones that matter. Politeness is more reliable than the moist virtues of compassion, charity, and sincerity; just as fair play is more important than the abstraction ofjustice. The major virtues tend to disintegrate under the pressures of convenient rationalization. But good form is good form, and it stands immutable in the storm of circumstance.
-- Trevanian: Shibumi
The more I look at that quote however, the less I like it. Because there is a higher calling than just manners, and it is this:
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. --Matthew 7:12
There. That is something to strive for, and while we are at it here is another:
Be the change that you wish to see in the world. --Mahatma Gandhi
You cannot help but feel the strength of these ideas. A final one, for those looking to tie in a bigger picture:
God is love.-- 1 John 4:8
Start from this.
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
The Summer Queen (8.5/10)
Joan D. Vinge
Science Fiction
The Summer Queen is the kind of book I really enjoy reading. It begins in small parts of complex and original world, and slowly expands the readers understanding of that world until the final framework is laid clear.
This book is the final book in the so called “Snow Queen” sequence. I had read the Snow Queen many years ago, and I will now be looking for a copy of World’s End, the second in this series. Reading the first two books may or may not have increased the power of the final novel, as I quite enjoy working out was has gone before just from the asides in the story.
The first third of the book is somewhat stop-start as the author is trying to cover important events that occur over a span of years, but as the pace slows the quality of the story increases, and I found myself glued to the book for the final third enjoying myself immensely.
The book has strong characters, and is an excellent space opera in a similar tone to Walter Jon Williams at his best. Extremely good read…
Quality 4/5
Readibility 4.5/5
Science Fiction
The Summer Queen is the kind of book I really enjoy reading. It begins in small parts of complex and original world, and slowly expands the readers understanding of that world until the final framework is laid clear.
This book is the final book in the so called “Snow Queen” sequence. I had read the Snow Queen many years ago, and I will now be looking for a copy of World’s End, the second in this series. Reading the first two books may or may not have increased the power of the final novel, as I quite enjoy working out was has gone before just from the asides in the story.
The first third of the book is somewhat stop-start as the author is trying to cover important events that occur over a span of years, but as the pace slows the quality of the story increases, and I found myself glued to the book for the final third enjoying myself immensely.
The book has strong characters, and is an excellent space opera in a similar tone to Walter Jon Williams at his best. Extremely good read…
Quality 4/5
Readibility 4.5/5
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