Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
21/03/10 18:38 Filed in: Sci-Fi
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
The first in Card’s series, after this book the series splits into two separate paths for the reader to choose between; but I fully believe you can read just this one without moving on either path and be satisfied with the ending you get.
The story begins with the reader following Andrew Wiggin (Ender). Without giving away too much in the way of spoilers, at a very young age Ender goes to Battle School (in space) and there he meets people (specifically another young boy named Bean), hones his military commanding skills, and commands an army all before the age of 11. Bean is an important mention because one path of Card’s series follows
Bean while the other follows Ender.
In Card’s universe children aren’t merely society’s best hope for a bright future, they are in fact Earth society’s only hope for a future. Each child born on Earth is monitored and tested from an early age to see if they have the intelligence, attitude, and personality traits that would make them a good commander. Ender passed every test and was soon on his way to orbit for Battle School and his life is of course forever changed.
As far as science fiction novels go this one was pretty great. The science explained in it is not so intense that a layman would be unable to understand; and if there is a term that is not in the typical vocabulary, Card explains it through the context of the novel.
There is of course the typical symbolism and higher meaning representational of where society is headed, but even if you ignore all of the higher order of thinking substance, just the story is definitely worth a read for anyone who enjoys good Sci-Fi or anyone who wants to dip their toe into the proverbial water.
The first in Card’s series, after this book the series splits into two separate paths for the reader to choose between; but I fully believe you can read just this one without moving on either path and be satisfied with the ending you get.
The story begins with the reader following Andrew Wiggin (Ender). Without giving away too much in the way of spoilers, at a very young age Ender goes to Battle School (in space) and there he meets people (specifically another young boy named Bean), hones his military commanding skills, and commands an army all before the age of 11. Bean is an important mention because one path of Card’s series follows
Bean while the other follows Ender.
In Card’s universe children aren’t merely society’s best hope for a bright future, they are in fact Earth society’s only hope for a future. Each child born on Earth is monitored and tested from an early age to see if they have the intelligence, attitude, and personality traits that would make them a good commander. Ender passed every test and was soon on his way to orbit for Battle School and his life is of course forever changed.
As far as science fiction novels go this one was pretty great. The science explained in it is not so intense that a layman would be unable to understand; and if there is a term that is not in the typical vocabulary, Card explains it through the context of the novel.
There is of course the typical symbolism and higher meaning representational of where society is headed, but even if you ignore all of the higher order of thinking substance, just the story is definitely worth a read for anyone who enjoys good Sci-Fi or anyone who wants to dip their toe into the proverbial water.