Damn You Jim Butcher!

A linguistics professor was lecturing to his English class one day. "In English," he said, "a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."

A voice from the back of the room piped up, "Yeah, right."



For any of you who may be unfamiliar with the individual addressed in the title, Mr. Butcher is an author. He has written the Codex Alera series, as well as the Dresden Files. I had my first run-in with his work while spending a summer in Maine as the fitness director of a summer camp. My wife and I spent a lot of our off time in the local Barnes and Noble, and the cover of the recent Dresden book looked intriguing. I picked up book one, and that's where this whole mess got started.

Here's the thing. Jim (I've spent enough time with his characters that I feel like I can call him Jim*) is a great writer. Great is probably the wrong word. Fantastic? That probably works well. Tell you what, we'll play this like mad-libs: Jim Butcher is the (insert hyperbole) writer putting words on paper in America today. That's the problem. Sometimes (read "every night"), I like to read myself to sleep. Can't do that with Jim's books. I can barely make it to work on time if I happen to pick one up for a couple quick pages before I walk out the door. Pick up a Butcher book, and you're lucky to put it down until you hit "About the Author." Damn you Jim Butcher, sometimes I just want to read for 30 minutes and turn out a light.

Here's another thing. I'm a busy dude. I have crap to do. Often, this crap takes a significant portion of my cognitive bandwidth. It's hard to focus on writing an assessment report, planning an intervention, or any of my other "duties as assign" if a Chicago based wizard, or Aleran based hero, are running through my head. This guy has the audacity to write interesting, conflicted characters who make me want to read more and more. Damn you Jim Butcher, sometimes I want to set a book down and not think about it for a little while.

Here's the last thing (for this blog). I'm a laid back kind of guy. I exercise regular. I enjoy a good book. I play the occasional video game. Given the types of sports towards which I've applied myself, when I get excited or worked up I feel the need to throw something (or someone) as far as I can, or kick someone. Jim's books tend to get me all excited, and where am I supposed to put that energy? People don't take well to large men throwing them around, and my wife doesn't appreciate it when I use our decorations in place of a discus. Damn you Jim Butcher, I just finished Changes! Holy Crap! You left me there?!?!

A few days from now I'll calm down. I may even for get about Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden for a while. Until that time, Damn you Jim Butcher! And one more thing... Thank you Jim Butcher. I appreciate what you're doing. You're an inspiration for young writers, like myself, who need to know that there are still new and interesting ways to look at the themes we've grown to love.



* Jim, if you read this, and you would like me to use another form of address, please let me know.**

** Jim, if you read this and DON'T want me to use another form of address, please let me know. It'd be WAY cool to know you read this.