Questions for a Soldier

Old Man's War #1.5

by John Scalzi, Bob Eggleton (Illustrator)

A tale set in the world of his debut novel, OLD MAN'S WAR. Published as a signed limited edition chapbook.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Short Stories, Space Opera, Space, Military Science Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

30 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2005

About the author

John Scalzi, having declared his absolute boredom with biographies, disappeared in a puff of glitter and lilac scent.

(If you want to contact John, using the mail function here is a really bad way to do it. Go to his site and use the contact information you find there.)

Reviews

[Raquel Estebaran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relato breve con un formato de transcripción de entrevista que sigue a John Perry, protagonista de la primera novela, mientras responde preguntas durante una gira de relaciones públicas para la CDF.

Agradable de leer, aunque no aporta mucho a la serie.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writing: 4
Story/Plot: 4
Depth/Detail: 3
Enjoyment: 4

This is a quick, down-and-dirty little short story/novella from John Scalzi, in the rather unique format of an interview transcript. It follows the main character of The Old Man's War, John Perry, as he answers questions on one of the CDF colonies. It's short but to the point, and gives a little bit of accessory stories to chew on between books. It's not groundbreaking, and it is just a nibble at best, but it's well-written and interesting, has some of the world political rhetoric in it, and was an entertaining enough 15-20 minute read. I would have loved for it to be 2-3x as long, at the very least, but it was good for what it was.

[Vagner Stefanello · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review in Portuguese from Desbravando Livros:

Questions for a Soldier é um livrinho curtinho (menos de 30 páginas) que se passa alguns meses após os acontecimentos de Guerra do Velho. John Perry mostrou ser um excelente combatente e subiu rapidamente nas fileiras do exército das Forças Coloniais de Defesa. Agora uma de suas missões é fazer tours por alguns dos planetas já colonizados e explicar o papel da União Colonial nisso tudo.

A leitura é bem rapidinha, com John Perry sendo apresentado por um entrevistador e algumas das pessoas na plateia fazendo perguntas a ele sobre assuntos dos mais variados interesses, como o que é ser um soldado das FCD, o que foi feito com seu corpo para ele voltar a ser jovem novamente, o que John Perry pensa a respeito das guerras contras as raças alienígenas, entre outras coisas.

Nosso protagonista também conta a respeito de alguns perrengues que passou durante uma de suas missões, quando foi atacado por vermes gigantes (que me lembraram muito do cenário de Duna, série do autor Frank Herbert) capazes de alterar facilmente todo o equilíbrio de um ecossistema.

Importante perceber que alguns colonistas não estão exatamente felizes com o modo de vida nos seus novos planetas. Como já mencionado em Guerra do Velho, os habitantes são provenientes dos países considerados de terceiro mundo lá na Terra, principalmente das regiões do Oriente Médio e África, enquanto os combatentes das FCD são predominantemente americanos, o que acaba gerando certo desconforto em alguns momentos. Nada que a língua afiada e o bom humor do nosso John Perry não resolvam ao responder as perguntas feitas pelo público presente, mesmo ao ser confrontado com acusações de que a estrutura das FCD é extremamente racista e totalitarista.

Questions for a Soldier é aquele tipo de livro que todo leitor que deseja saber ainda mais sobre uma série que gosta deveria ler, pois contém informações úteis e que complementam as já apresentadas no livro #1 da saga, Guerra do Velho. Fã que é fã nunca está satisfeito e sempre quer mais. ;)

[Choco Con Churros · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un pequeño relato entre el número uno y el dos de la saga "La vieja guardia" en la que unos colonizadores humanos le hacen una serie de preguntas al protagonista en plan encuesta. Entretenido, aunque no me pareció que aportara nada. Adll (Ciencia ficción)

[Tudor Vlad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a transcript of a Q&A session that John Perry had as part of a PR tour for the CDF. As far as plot goes, this short story won’t advance anything in the Old Man’s War universe, but it was really enjoyable and fun.

[Arnis · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://poseidons99.wordpress.com/201...

[G.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Divertente racconto ambientato nell’universo delle CU. Un bel capitolo per comprendere un po’ della vita non raccontata di John Perry.

[César Bustíos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm about to finish The Last Colony. I should have read this one before but what the hell, there are a couple of stories from Captain Perry here that are worth the reading. You also get the chance to meet Savitri for the first time.

That worm-infested planet felt very Frank Herbert:

[Mehrnoosh · Rating 3 out of 5]

یه کتاب، البته اگه بهش کتاب بگیم، داستان یک جلسه‌ی مطبوعاتی یکی از سفر های جان پری به یک مستعمرست که البته بعد بازنشستگی همونجا زندگی میکنه. خوندنش در حد ۱۰ دقیقه زمان برد :))

[Emerson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Conto bem curtinho e divertido que se passa alguns meses após o final de A Guerra do Velho. Neste conto John Perry está sento apresentado a uma platéia e responde perguntas de alguns coloniais que não estão muito felizes com o modo de vida de seus novos planetas.
O conto é bem curtinho e complementa algumas informações apresentadas no primeiro livro da série, e nos faz gostar mais do nosso protagonista de língua afiada.

[Kaethe · Rating 5 out of 5]

2012 May 15

Having just come off a very thick and marvelous novel, I felt like something short and light. I love Scalzi. Even in this little throwaway story he manages to make some very earnest points.

personal copy

[Unai · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breve, pero curioso. John Perry en una colonia, en una charla informal con los colonos respondiendo a sus preguntas sobre las CDF y compartiendo un par de historias sobre otros planetas, otras especies y comiendo tarta.

[Ben Vogensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good for what it is.

[Lucille · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sigh…. I wish it were longer, that’s my problem with short stories, once you’re immersed the story is over. And I want to know so much more.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 4 out of 5]

332 - 2015

Masih strong...

Transkrip ini intermission sebelum aku baca buku kedua seri John Perry, The Ghost Brigade.

Tapi supaya bisa mencicipi buku2 John Scalzi pelan-pelan, aku kudu melipir ke buku2 genre lain dulu...

[PAR · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars! Great little short story. Thoroughly enjoyed!
Read: 3/28/21

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mini itervju glavnog lika iz knjiga. Simpaticno ali totalno nepotrebno sem kao zabava.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

I enjoyed Old Man's War and I am now awaiting book 2 from the library, so I thought I would check out the 1.5 book listed here on Goodreads. This was just a short story and while interesting, doesn't really have that much use outside the core franchise. It's probably worth checking out if you are invested in the franchise like myself but if you are only interested in stories, you might find this lacking.
The story is just a Q&A transcript that dives into some of the questions left unanswered by the first book. This is the part I found to be interesting, it has that novelty factor that long time fans will crave and others won't even know exist. It is very short and you will find doesn't take up much of your time if you enjoyed the first book of the series by John Scalzi.
Why the 3.5?
I can't give you too much information with giving away the entire Q&A short story. All I will say is I wouldn't have purchased this if I knew what it was. I was slightly disappointed to learn it was a Q&A but on the other hand I learnt a little more about the universe John Scalzi has created and having a book like this will make some of the lingering questions and answers easier to digest.

My next kindle phone book is The Eight Tower by John A. Keel. I was hoping to read more about the Mothman Prophecies but found this book was cheaper at the time of purchase. Unsure what I'm in for but I'll share my thoughts when I've finished.

[Kaustubh Dudhane · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Making peace is often a simple thing, but simple isn’t the same thing as easy."

I missed John Perry a lot after finishing Old Man's War and now I feel good. The novella has a unique interview transcript format. The content is just like chakna while you are enjoying the whiskey of other Old Man's War novels.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short story the is structured as an Q&A session with one of the main characters in the first book of this series. There wasn't much to it except to give a larger perspective on the society and governing body of the series as a whole. It seems to have been written as much to get the reader to thinking about the nature of the political and ethical interactions among countries here on earth as to further the larger story arcs of the series.

[Sherill Ellis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story. Less than 30 minutes to read. Nice to see John Perry again. Well written with clever humor.

Not critical to the continuity of the series. Nice to have.

I read the Kindle version. Actual paper versions ran from $37 to $550!

[Khari · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not sure how something can be short and pedantic at the same time but this story manages it. Scalzi's novels are way better than his short stories if this is any indication.

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

This gives a nice answer to the question of "What has John Perry been up to since the end of Book 1?" but generally isn't that exciting.

[Dartharagorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a fun short story. A filler between books.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah, so this is the origin of Huckleberry and Savitri. Fascinating.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick, enjoyable Scalzi.

[Terje · Rating 4 out of 5]

[4.0/5.0]
A nice little short story that brings me right back to the Old Man’s War universe. I’m ready to start reading novel number 2 now!

[Maduck831 · Rating 3 out of 5]

***SHOULD NOT COUNT TOWARDS 50 BOOK GOAL*** Despite the three stars I recommend this. If I could I'd give it three and a half stars. Centers around Perry and questions asked to him by colonists. I really liked the idea behind this story and some of the ideas explored (objective of CDF re: imperalism, etc). Like to how Perry's answers tie into the choices made in The Last Colony. If anything I wish there was more! Reason for the three stars is like with After the Coup (and granted these are short stories) it felt kind of rushed/unfinished. I wasn't looking for a novel or even a novella but as a short story I didn't feel there was any type of conclusion and as noted, there could've been more depth in Perry's answer (i.e. to the level explored in for example the Ghost Brigades). However, overall worth the read (it was like 99 cents) if you are a fan of this universe. As I read this after the Last Colony it makes me nostalgic towards Perry and the fact Scalzi may not write about him again (as noted at the end of the Last Colony by Scalzi), howoever hoping that won't be the case!

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting Novella delivered in the form of a transcript of an after dinner style presentation by John Perry.
Basically he has random questions hurled at him some hostile and he answers them , probably a lot more honestly than the Colonial Defence forces would be happy about.
Interesting to see a few of the characters who become more central in Last Colony in a brief cameo here.
Some interesting ideas on perception from different backgrounds .

[Mark Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice little addition to the CDF universe of John Perry.

As others have said, this is not really a story, more a Q & A session, Perry on a whistle stop tour of the colonies, a propaganda piece, like those scenes in Starship Troopers, remember them?

Still it is well written and expands the universe just a little, which is good enough for me.