Camouflage (Ace Science Fiction)
by Joe Haldeman
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 169)
I read this book while working through a nasty case of stomach flu in one sitting (or, actually, laying). It is a nice story whose character is a shape-shifting alien on Earth in present day. The only other alien in the book happens to be its nemesis. It is immaginitive and well-written, but my only beef with it is that, after all the build up, the protagonist was able to despatch its antagonist with such ease. After all that build up I had hoped for more of a convincing struggle. But, in t...more
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Read in September, 2007
A quick read. Interesting premise follows two extraterrestrials with two different ways of surviving among humans, a chameleon and shapechanger, through the course of human history and meeting during a modern-day scientific exploration. It wasn't much of a surprise when the identity of the shapechanger was revealed. I would have liked it to be longer with more details, but the chameleon's character was well developed. It was a different look at human psychology as seen by non-humans. Don't ...more
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Read in February, 2008
I read the Nebula anthology for 2007 and the first two or three chapters of this book were included, which was really annoying because I had to drop everything and go to the bookstore to buy the book to finish it. This reads like an intelligent old-school sci-fi yarn. It really took me back to my childhood readings of the sci-fi greats(Asimov and the gang). The ending was a bit pat (and abrupt) but overall this was very clever fun and I can see why it won the Nebula.
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Read in January, 2008
I've never read anything by Haldeman before, and after this book I'd like to give him another try. Camouflage was somewhat predictable, somewhat meandering, and the ending was very abrupt. Despite all that, I really enjoyed reading it due to the straightforward writing style and alien perspectives (and the sex scenes, of course). But I might try something more popular, like The Forever War, next time I pick up a Haldeman book.
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Read in April, 2008
This book was an all around fun read in my opinion. I thought the ending was a bit typical, nothing really inspiring added than I've seen or read about in other sci-fi genres. I wasn't as bothered by the sex scenes I guess...I just played along with it as the learning process an alien might go through to figure out human nature. Overall, it was entertaining enough to read, but not inspiring or interesting enough to read again.
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Read in August, 2006
recommends it for:
Fans of good old-fashioned, well-crafted SF
Winner of the 2005 Nebula Award for Best Novel, Camouflage is a gritty new-future thriller that's as lean and as taut as a marathon-runner. It's the third time Haldeman has taken the Nebula, equalling Ursul K. Le Guin's record; two more different authors would be hard to imagine.
You can read a full review at Suite101
You can read a full review at Suite101
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Read in March, 2008
"Stranger in a Strange Land" is by far the superior work this book is trying to emulate. Not enough exploration of the home planet issue, and I pretty much felt all of the characters were archetypal. I figured out chameleon on the page he/she was introduced. Meh. It was a fun read for a lazy Sunday, but not the genre revolutionizing work it was touted to be. I'm glad I read it, but won't read it again.
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It was a quick and decent read. My complaint is that some of it - and I realize it was science fiction - was a little ridiculous. That fact that the creature could mimic large anatomic features was fine, but to do some of the things mentioned, it would need to mimic things at a cecular level, and it didn't make sense with how it performed the mimicry.
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Read in March, 2008
recommends it for:
sci fi fans
Fast read which kept me involved, but I was sort of ashamed of the fact that I was involved by it. It is not awful, but not a particularly good book. The characters are, as others have noted, archetypal. And the ending is tacked on.
And the sex scenes border on the ridiculous...
I would read it once, but I'm not proud to own it.
And the sex scenes border on the ridiculous...
I would read it once, but I'm not proud to own it.
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A book that demands suspension of disbelief & does nothing to encourage it. Laughable, misogynistic sci-fi clap-trap with an ending (hurried, ridiculous, a tail pinned to an ass) that seems to betray disgust in Haldeman for having written so abyssmal a book.
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Read in January, 2005
With so many sci-fi authors trying to earn a living by stretching their storylines into multiple volumes, it's refreshing to find a book that is stands alone. The ending seems a little contrived, but it was fun anyway.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in July, 2008
Great opening. It's "Sphere" but with actual aliens (and science). Unfortunately the book almost feels like a summary of itself - not a whole lot of detail, and the pace goes almost too quickly.
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For science fiction fans it's a great read. The characters are almost 3 dimensional! I am going through all his books; now reading Guardian. It's more like a historical novel.
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
fans of space aliens
A different twist on extraterrestrial contact and quite a page turner. The moral is kind of common but I enjoyed the whole thing.
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Read in January, 2008
Ech. Don't bother. It goes down easy, but it's pretty bad. I thought it would be dope because it won the Nebula award, but nope.
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Really remarkably lame for a Nebula award winner. I think there was probably some kind of screw-up.
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Read in May, 2008
This wasn't my favorite from the author, but none of his books have disappointed me either.
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Read in November, 2006
A nice light sci-fi read, which explores a some interesting concepts.
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Read in September, 2007
I thought it ended too abruptly. but it was very well done.
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Read in October, 2005
Not as strong as his other books, but still good.
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