<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?><oembed><version><![CDATA[1.0]]></version><provider_name><![CDATA[Ballastexistenz]]></provider_name><provider_url><![CDATA[https://ballastexistenz.wordpress.com]]></provider_url><author_name><![CDATA[Mel Baggs]]></author_name><author_url><![CDATA[https://ballastexistenz.wordpress.com/author/ameliabaggs/]]></author_url><title><![CDATA[A quote I like, and a book&nbsp;recommendation.]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[<blockquote><p><em>I will meet idiots today</em>, went one version of her after-waking meditation, <em>and one of them will probably be me.  Iau Hau&#8217;hai, Queen of Life and of Making Things Work, grant me of Your courtesy the courage to shred</em> that <em>idiot&#8217;s ears when I meet her, and then get on with work&#8230; for being right is nothing next to</em> having <em>things be right&#8230;</em></p></blockquote>
<p>From <em>The Big Meow</em> by Diane Duane.</p>
<p>I <em>strongly</em> recommend reading <em>The Book of Night With Moon</em> and <em>To Visit The Queen</em> (American title)/<em>On Her Majesty&#8217;s Wizardly Service</em> (UK title), before reading <em>The Big Meow</em>.  In even the first chapter of <em>each</em> book in this series there are (necessarily) spoilers about aspects, sometimes major aspects, of how the previous books turn out.</p>
<p>Here are links to the Kindle Store for both of those other books (you can read Kindle books on most computers and a variety of other devices, you don&#8217;t need a Kindle):</p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Book-Night-Moon-ebook/dp/B001GXF2T4/">The Book of Night with Moon</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Visit-Queen-Cat-Novel-ebook/dp/B001GXF2VW/">To Visit The Queen</a></p>
<p>Those books are also often available used for very little money.</p>
<p>Here is a link to the currently <em>free</em> online edition of <em>The Big Meow</em> (3rd book in the series):</p>
<p><a href="http://www.the-big-meow.com/Chapters-Online">The Big Meow</a></p>
<p>They&#8217;re a series about a bunch of cat wizards, and they&#8217;re the only books I&#8217;ve ever read that have even <em>half-plausible</em> cat characters.  Not that they got it perfect (or anything else perfect), but it&#8217;s a hell of a lot better than <em>Tailchaser&#8217;s Song</em> and the like.  They&#8217;re also a very rare type of book that get at aspects of reality most books don&#8217;t, if you know what you&#8217;re looking for.  (Much like <em>Momo</em> or <em>A Wrinkle in Time</em>.)  So they&#8217;re good even without the cats.  Some people have told me there were problems in the plot of some kind&#8230; but honestly, I&#8217;m not some kind of professional academic literary type who knows what plot &#8220;should&#8221; and &#8220;shouldn&#8217;t&#8221; be like, I just like certain books, and I loved these books.</p>
]]></html></oembed>