The Folk of the Fringe Book

I am trying to re-read this book for some reason, but I just might re-read Walk This Way by Aerosmith instead having already finished that book recently.
This book BUGS me. I think it's because half the characters are just so dang self-righteous. Like in the first story, how did they know the Mormons would have everything running in Utah? I reckon it's supposed to be about faith and such and just leaving things to faith but as I get older I become more of a skeptic and all I can think is, really?
Plus, of all the people to torment and persecute, why Mormons? Mormonism frustrates me, mainly because of the historical inaccuracies that make my head explode and the fact that the church spends millions on keeping gays from getting married which makes NO SENSE to me when they can be fixing their own flock's fences instead. But, I'm not going to persecute and torment MORMONS over it. I'd just say, could you kindly reconsider and stop doing that?

But, as usual, I am going on a tangent. Fact is, this book is very frustrating in the way too many Orson Scott Card books are frustrating. Too many hyper moral characters that are TOO GOOD because they don't drink or have sex outside of marriage. Too many characters that are TOO EVIL. It gets old after a while.
You get to the point where you'd rather read about Aerosmith drinking, doing drugs and having irresponsible sex and then getting better and helping themselves than self-righteous religious folks. This is probably why Jesus hung out with prostitutes and such and not the Pharisees. They had better stories.

Also, brother Carpenter was my favourite character even though he was overly moralistic. I wonder if everyone with Cerebral palsy or ALS would feel this way. I am not so sure. I will go and read the perspective of people with CP.

Another thing is, why is Katie treated like she's a bad person for not wanting to do her family's plays? Just because people are wealthy it doesn't mean they don't appreciate Shakespeare or something or that it doesn't have meaning in their lives. And morality police? REALLY, Orson Scott Card, REALLY? You rant about Muslims and put morality police in your book?


See, I still hate this book, but I was reading the Pageant wagon story and I just don't get why Deaver wants to join this crazy family, why they can't add Shakespeare to their repetour, why it's a bad thing for Katie to WANT to do plays for people who actual appreciate her? The fringe people don't even like these folks. They hate them. They think the whole family, even the women will just impregnate girls, so why get stuck doing this in the first place? Why don't they perform for the city? Why does Ollie's ho-bag behavior get rewarded with freedom while Katie doesn't get her freedom? She'll just marry Deaver, give up her dreams, have babies and do these plays she hates for the rest of her life.

Urg. OSC is so ANNOYING. Worse of all, I'm trying to find Xenicide and I'll read it. As if I don't suffer enough?!



I need to get these books out of my house. Now another problem is some people with cerebral palsy can have families and children and spouses!


I know his son had cerebral palsy, but that doesn't stop him from being ablist as all hell. It's just, do most people with cerebral palsy feel like this? Why should you feel like a worm, or less than human or want to die just because you're disabled? OSC needs to read Moving Violations. By having this attitude about the disabled, it doesn't help people. How many parents who kill their autistic children get considered as sympathetic victims rather than the REAL victim? Disability isn't easy, but if we keep viewing disability like this we'll just make it so much harder!

7/18 edit

You ever want to just take a character out of a book, give him or her some cookies and a blanket and tell them to have confidence and love themselves and it will be OK? I feel so bad for Mr. Carpenter. I want to tell him that he's not a worm. That he's not less of a human or a man for being disabled. He's actually quite cool, trying to teach these irritating kids and help them instead of teaching at a college where they would appreciate him. He should not have to feel like this just because he can't walk or speak.

OSC treats being gay the same way. As something that is WRONG with them and they should feel guilty and bad about it, but no one really should. So do not do that!