Bad Book Review Prerequisite

   "Um, excuse me?"
   "Yeah? How can I help you?"
   "I'm here to learn how to review a bad book."
   "Ah, yes. You. Well?"
   "Right. Um, I guess my question is this: if I call a book bad, does that reflect on the author negatively?"
   

Black and White

   Once again, Rambo and I met on the porch to talk about some random topic which I've been mulling over recently.
   "Okay," I said. "Last time we met we talked about the lack of black-and-white characters in fiction altogether. We basically came to the conclusion that it's not bad to leave the solution up to the readers."
   "We did?" Rambo asked, looking up from licked his hind leg.
   "Yes," I replied. "Don't you remember? Anyway, even though we just talked about it, I'd like to take a slightly different angle: black-and-white characters in children's fiction."
   "Seriously? We're going to talk about this again? Haven't your last four blog posts been on this topic?"
   "No...."
   "Right," said Rambo, obviously not believing me. His tone took that of someone reading a teleprompter: flat and bored. "How does this topic relate to children's fiction?"
   "I'm glad you asked! You see, I've been listening to several fairy-tales and various other children's stories and have noticed that things are more or less clean cut in children's fiction. There's always a good character, an evil character, and the character which has a redemption story. Take, for instance, The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. In that, the Blue Fairy is always good. She is clearly a positive role-model. The fox and the cat are evil role models, villains. Pinocchio is the guy stuck in between. He wants to do what is right, but he doesn't always do it. Gepetto, interestingly, is the same way. He starts out as a grumpy old man but, after he has a son to take care of, he turns into a good father."
   Rambo looked up at my pause. "What's your point?"
   "My point, I guess, is this: fairy-tales get at the heart of humanity. They show that in this world there us pure evil, but there is also pure good. In between the two is humanity, struggling to choose the right side."
   "That's fine, but what to fairy-tales tell us about cats?"
   "Um... they're hungry a lot?"
   Rambo thought about that for a moment. "Fair enough."

Ideas in Stories

   Whenever I fail to think of ideas for blog posts, I grab Rambo and have us sit down to have a transcribed conversation.
   "Hello, Rambo," I said.
   "What's up?" he asked.
   "Not much. What's up with you?"
   "Not much. Just eating and pooping like normal."
   "Rambo! That's not appropriate."
   "What? Everybody eats and poops."
   "Not true, actually. Many people go hungry, and hunger is not a game."
   Rambo shook his head. "That pun is dumb."
   "Yes, but it brings me to my point: how can stories portray ideas? See, The Hunger Games has been criticized for its lack of morality in the story. Some of the characters do evil things and those evil things aren't always shown as evil. Another story I found recently (which you can find here) is a story about a robot which does bad things, and is the protagonist of the story."
   "What's your point?"
   "I guess my point is this: can a good story portray good accurately without a 'good' hero?"
   "Well, how should I know? In all the stories you write I'm a perfectly good hero."
   I paused. "Well, we'll see how you act in further stories before you go bragging about that."
   "Well, what's your point?"
   "I don't know. I just wonder if you can present an idea or propose a question, and never really provide an answer."
   "That sounds like a good question," said Rambo. "Think we should answer it?"
   "Yes."
   Rambo sighed. "Your wit is as unwelcome as your puns."

Outside

   Recently, two of my friends have blogged about other people. Specifically, they have blogged about how to help others and encourage them. (Those posts can be found here and here). It made me think. Stories aren't generally about one person. Few stories can be carried well with only one person. A good blog is not perfected by one person staring at a screen and typing. It is perfected through readers and through those who comment with feedback.

   In the same way, people need others. People need relationships. Ideals are not the main focus, relationships are. In my writing life, and personal life, this is especially true. I need others to help me perfect my writing, and my attitude. And others need me to help them be better people. In Genesis, the only thing that God said was not good was that humans were alone. Even though Adam walked with God, God said that wasn't enough. A story which will help people is not enough. The story will eventually fade. The best way to help people, and be helped by people, is to have relationships.

   Unfortunately, relationships are hard. They are messy. They hurt. And that's part of life. Life sucks. But life is also joyful. Life hurts, but it also soothes. Life bites, and life kisses. Which side do we, do I, focus on?

   So what got me thinking about this? (Other than the blog posts my friends wrote). Mostly it was me perusing my Goodreads profile and seeing how few reviews I have made. Now, that might not seem a big thing, but this is part of relationship. Reviews give the author feedback on how to better their book. Reviews give an opportunity for others to talk about the book. Reviews give others the opportunity to read this book (or avoid the book). And, sure, my review my be silly or lame, but practice makes perfect, right?

   I don't know. I guess these are just thoughts as I progress on a journey to think more outside of myself.

What do you think? Do you avoid relationships, or do you throw yourself in whole-heartedly? Do you think book reviews are a chance to foster relationships, or do you keep what you read to yourself? Comment below and tell me how wrong I am (or just what you think in general). 

Jesse and Rambo - A Conversation on Enemies

   It'd been a while since Rambo and I had talked, due to the fact that we were both so busy. Rambo had been managing the farm and watching the kittens, while I'd been working sluggishly on getting the cats' second adventure on paper. Finally, however, we got together just to talk.
   I started. "Hi Rambo, how're you today?"
   Rambo shrugged, sitting lazily on a table so I didn't have to look down at him. "I'm fine. You?"
   I tried to sit up in my chair so I didn't look unprofessional. "I'm okay." I balanced the laptop on my lap. "You don't mind that I'm writing this down, do you?"
   "Are you writing down what we're saying now?" he asked.
   I paused. "Yes."
   "That's going to be boring."
   I cleared my throat. "Anyway, I just need something to put on the blog and I figured a conversation between me and you would be interesting for the fans."
   "Fans?" Rambo asked. "You mean your grandparents and maybe a bored crow?"
   "Don't crush my self esteem."
   "Whatever. What did you want to talk about?"
   "Well, I was going to talk about enemies, but you seem a bit dour today (dour means grumpy, for anyone who doesn't know) so why don't you tell us why?"
   "Us?"
   "Me. And the fans."
   Rambo smirked. "Right. The fans. Well, I've been busy. Watching out for intruders, keeping everything running smoothly, and making sure [redacted] and [redacted] are doing okay."
   "Don't say that: people don't know who [redacted] and [redacted] are."
   "Right. Still, the hardest part of 'that last thing' is keeping track of all the Sasha rumors."
   "Sasha rumors! Okay, now maybe we can get onto the topic I wanted to talk about: enemies."
   "Why would you want to talk about enemies?"
   "Because enemies are relevant. Especially at this time of year."
   "What exactly do you mean by that?"
   "Well, it's Easter time. That's when we humans celebrate forgiveness."
   Rambo looked confused. "What's that have to do with enemies?"
   I paused. "Well, this is the time of year where we celebrate how Jesus came to forgive and redeem his broken creations."
   "You're saying some guy came to tell his enemies everything was fine? What about justice?"
   "What about justice?"
   "Shouldn't the bad guys be punished? Take, for instance, Sasha. She did some bad stuff. Should I just let her go hurt other animals?"
   "No, that's not what I'm saying at all. What Jesus did, and that's who I try to emulate (that means 'try to be like'), was come and die for his enemies."
   Rambo stared at me blankly. "Die... for his enemies?"
   "Exactly. He came and died so that his enemies might be rescued from their shortcomings."
   Rambo blinked several times, trying to comprehend what I was saying. "And you want to be like this guy?"
   It was my turn to blink several times. "Yes. Why wouldn't I?"
   Rambo was speechless. "You don't... that's not how you deal with animals. Don't you know evil? Evil doesn't just... just change. Evil is evil. The only way to stop evil is to kill it."
   "What about back when Seabert was in trouble? You went and risked your life for him when he got kidnapped."
   "That's different! Seabert's my friend! What you're talking about is like me going to stop... Sasha! Stop Sasha from getting her due."
   "Yeah, that's pretty much what I'm saying."
   "And you don't find that crazy?"
   "No. Well, yes. I do find it crazy. But I also think that Jesus knows better about what's right than me. So I just try to follow after him."
   Rambo shrugged and stood up. "Whatever. As for me, if Sasha was about to get what's coming to her, I think I'd stand there and cheer. The less evil in the world the better."
   "I agree. But there's two ways to get rid of evil: kill it, or redeem it. Which would you rather?"
   Rambo was silent for only one second. "Killing's easier." He jumped off the table and walked away.

What did you think of our conversation? Should I transcribe more of them? Or maybe I can get a guest on and converse with them! Comment below if you have any suggestions, thoughts, or (duh) comments. What would you do to an enemy?