This is my first entry in the books category. I've finally made the time to take up reading again and it's done me well.

Wyrms by Orison Scott Card is the book I finished tonight. And while many, many books deserve to be talked about and mentioned, as well as my philosophy on books, reading and stories, I'm going to just stick with this one tonight.

Oh and like my movie reviews this isn't going to be an actual review just my reaction or something I want to share from it. Click on the amazon link to read some reviews on the book, I don't want to write one.

Wyrms like most of Orison Scott Card's books has a character, rather a group with one person who is in someway special. And they eventually fulfill their destiny in a way that looks like they weren't actually going to live up to it. This in no way shape or form detracts from the book. It just stood out to me so much that I had to mention it.

So what part of our "soul" makes us, us. Maybe soul is to loaded a word to use, I'm not going to get religious here. Our essence, our life force, whatever in our minds that makes us tick. I've actually had the pleasure of talking with a friend about this a lot lately. And at this hour of the night I can't really go into all of it properly. I just tried and frankly it sounded like bullshit. Don't worry I'll try again later.

Pretend we have 3 parts to us. Our passions, our history (and knowledge) and our will.

Our passions can be swayed, they're not even under our control most of the time. Any drug (chemical, natural, or human) can alter our passions. We crave foods with just a waft of sent passing by our noses. People smoke because niccotine gives them a temporary high, a relief, and it becomes a craving. People can fill us with emotions, or just plain lust. Beautiful people can be quite a distraction. We get addicted to drugs, alcohol, sex. All our additions lie with our passions.

Our history, or more aptly our knowledge of things around us can be boiled down to one question. "Why?" People who are driven by that question will spend their lives trying to answer it. It's usually for the benefit of everyone that this question is asked and answered (our universities are filled with people on this path) but despite that it still doesn't make the person. If you take away someone's knowledge, do they cease to exist? Now for the history part, some people say our memories make us who we are. But there are people out there who forget things, weather it be amnesia, or alzheimer's or just a blow to the head, they may cease to remember but they will still be them selves. Still be them, they may not have the same thoughts but what ever crafts those thoughts will still be there.

Our will is where we reside. Its our action, what we do when we do it. We can have our passions wrapped around us, our history taken away or manipulated, but our will (when exercised) ultimately decided what we do.

Please forgive my poor conveyance of this concept that I probably didn't fully grasp in any detail from the book. I'm actually quite tired and had to rethink my arguments a few times while I was writing. The most important part to me (and you all could care less) is that I wrote it and you can read it. And now if you want you can go read the book - I'll give you my copy - or you can go to your local library, or you can use my link up there and amazon will give me a cut if you buy it. And maybe prove me all wrong in this concept.

Maybe you've even seen it before and already know what to say.

The other idea that I liked from this book... I'd really like to contribute it to the characters but it was all written from one author. I wonder how one would get around that problem with books - or most stories in general - maybe non-fiction is the only escape, its all written by the same person but that person doesn't have absolute control over the characters and events portrayed. I'll refuse to believe any story verbatim.

Where was I? Oh yes. The other idea that I liked from this book was that god was everyone. Our collective will so to speak. If someone is acting by the will of god, it would really be the will of everyone (or their intent anyway).

Another was that we could not exist with out something to interact with. That there always has to be something else other wise we cease to exist. I wish I could explain this one more to you. But for the reasons previously stated I can't, (unnecessary comma) and wont.

Hell of a first book post. Just goes to show I'm better at reading them then writing them. For now anyway. :-p

-Francis