Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card01/01/2009 11:05:01 PMA while ago, there was an interesting conversation among the people I follow on Twitter. They were discussing books, and several people commented that one of the best books they had read was Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card. A book in the science fiction genre, that had quite a following, I found. I put it on my list of books to find at the library. About a month went by, as I had other books that needed to be read and reviewed. But with a holiday season coming up, I thought that it would be nice to have some "recreational reading." I checked out Ender's Game from the library on December 30 and finished it on January 1. I would have finished it earlier, but I needed to sleep and attend work, family, and New Year's Eve activities.
Somewhere in the future, children are bred to defend Earth against a hostile alien's next attack. By law, families can have only two children. The parents give up rights to the children for a while, as they are tested for their fitness to defend Earth. Part of the testing is to discover if a particular child can lead armies and have the fortitude to make hard decisions concerning the future of the human race. However, if the government decides that the parents have a good genetic base, they may authorize a third child, as the first two show excellent results, but not quite "perfect." The problem with this is that the family must absorb burdens placed on it by society. And the child is referred to as "Third," a term of derogation, noncompliance. The Wiggin family has a Third, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, who is six when the story begins. Ender, the government hopes, will strike a balance between his older brother, Peter, who is dangerous, given to fits of anger and destruction, and his sister, Valentine, who is empathetic. All three, however, are extremely smart. It is with Ender that the government pins their hopes of victory over the aliens.
The copy of Ender's Game that I borrowed from the library is a part of the "Gift Edition," which includes a new introduction by Orson Scott Card. While I usually enjoy these new introductions, Card, I felt, explained too much about Ender, his writing style, and how this book has affected the readers. I think that his publisher should have included Card's thoughts, but as an Afterword. It would have had more impact. Now that I have that out of the way, I need to tell you that this is, simply, one of the best books I have ever read. The hero is gifted, but alone. His intelligence makes him an outcast at school. Because of this, he doesn't really relate to any of the children in his class. The government builds on his isolation, so that he can make hard decisions with little thought to the feelings of others or to change his thinking due to friendships. But there is a humanity to Ender that endears him to the reader. The adults in the novel may think that they have control over him, but they are allowed to believe that, if it serves Ender's goals or objectives. I used to read a lot of science fiction, but have moved to other genres; this book has restored my interest. While Ender is six, Card never patronizes the reader or his characters. Ender is a well crafted character; intelligent, warm, and, when the situation warrants, tough. Your preconceived notions of children, and gifted children, will be tested. But the payoff is that you may realize that you have read one of the best science fiction books. Not only is worth your time, it is a book to share with your children.
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Comment posted by Charles Robinson01/02/2009 10:00:22 AM
Homepage: http://www.cubert.net
Ender's Game is my favorite book ever. I dig out my battered copy from 1987 once a year and re-read it, and usually end up going through the entire series.
If you are interested in the rest of the story, there are several books in this open-ended cycle. The next by publication date would be Speaker For The Dead, but the next by storyline is the most recently released, Enter In Exile. I would recommend reading them in storyline order rather than publication because the story gets pretty convoluted in places, and the side stories are very much worth reading.
Comment posted by Neil01/03/2009 05:11:40 PM
Homepage: http://www.ngower.me.uk
I love this book, I read it every couple of years, Orson Scott Card is one of my favorite authors, he has done some brilliant short stories, including Fat Farm, on of the all time best short stories.
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