A Tip of the Chapeau

After long consideration - read the minute and a half I spent waiting for the microwave to do microwavey things to heat my honey-and-milk - I decided that due gratitude should be shown to the inestimable persons who upload novels onto the internet without riddling them with viruses. They do a great service to the community.

I was provoked to this conclusion by a desire to read another of my beloved Amelia Peabody books, spurred in turn by having passed the public library this morning on my weekly grocery jaunt with a friend. For some time, I have been unable to make use of the facilities to read one of the above-mentioned series, which is an activity I occasionally pursue at that location. Therefore, I decided tonight that, oh, what the hell, it's a holiday, and took advantage of the - downloaded - complete works on Amelia Peabody and read the next in the series. (Also, I honestly don't think I could have stood much more Ecology without tearing up the book and jumping on the remnants.)

My distaste for prolonged exposure to Ecology aside (it has to do with Bugs - before they told me about having to touch the damn things in the labs, I was quite enthusiastic about the lessons), I am very grateful to whichever kind soul took the time to type up the considerable works of Elizabeth Peters in particular and decent writers in general for doing so. All literate but time-constrained individuals should join me in giving thanks, to a degree. Of course, there is the consideration of piracy - I never mentioned that I owned such books, merely that I had read them! - so long as people are willing to show due respect for the author and purchase at least a few of their books so as not to completely destroy their well-deserved earnings, I believe that this is a valid compromise.

To be certain, though, if I were to ever write and publish a novel, I am quite sure I would take a diametrically opposing view of the whole thing, but, hey, consistency, as David Eddings said, is the defence of a small mind.

Now, if only someone would see to uploading the latest Wheel of Time novel . . .