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Ender’s Game (Ender's Saga, #1)

Orson Scott Card

Start date: January 1, 2013

Finish date: January 31, 2013

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Hugo Winner 1985
Nebula Awa…more
[close] Group disucssion January 2013 Classic
Group discussion February 2013 Short Story
Hugo Winner 1985
Nebula Award Winner 1985
#3 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#2 on Locus Magazines Best SciFi novels of the 20th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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Nov 07, 2010 EA Solinas rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Ender Wiggin is a very unusual boy -- he's a brilliant tactician, a genius, and a despised "third" in a future that only allows two children. He's also six years old.

And despite the fact that Orson Scott Card's sci-fi classic is about a little boy learning how to be a warrior, "Ender's Game" is a pretty gripping and sometimes grim adventure story. The descriptions of children being taught out how to be cold-blooded warriors is pretty creepy, but the well-developed future world that Card comes up Ender Wiggin is a very unusual boy -- he's a brilliant tactician, a genius, and a despised "third" in a future that only allows two children. He's also six years old.

And despite the fact that Orson Scott Card's sci-fi classic is about a little boy learning how to be a warrior, "Ender's Game" is a pretty gripping and sometimes grim adventure story. The descriptions of children being taught out how to be cold-blooded warriors is pretty creepy, but the well-developed future world that Card comes up with is pretty awesome.

After a fight with a gang of bullies, Ender Wiggin is approached by an army officer who wants him to join the elite Battleschool, where kid geniuses become soldiers -- basically because aliens are about to attack Earth AGAIN and may end up wiping out the human race. His brother Peter is too wild and cruel, and his beloved sister Valentine is too mild-mannered.

Ender accepts, and quickly finds himself in a dog-eat-dog space school where he soon becomes loathed for the special treatment the teachers occasionally give him -- when they aren't observing his every move. And it soon becomes obvious that Ender has a natural ability that exceeds that of most of the Battleschool recruits: he instinctively knows how to outmaneuver his opponents and protect himself in a fight, even if he annoys some of the "army" commanders who don't like being outshone.

Back on Earth, his brother and sister try to alter the increasingly unstable politics of Earth by subtle manipulation of the public, a situation that may bring the ruthless Peter into greater power. And as Ender reaches the end of his training, he faces both the buggers and the knowledge of what he is capable of.

"Ender's Game" is kind of an unusual space opera, because the actual war between humans and buggers is not front-and-center until the last act of the story. Up until then, it's about following Ender and his equally unusual siblings as they develop prematurely into adulthood -- these are genius kids who can reshape entire worlds, but you're not really sure that they SHOULD.

Card writes in a detailed but brisk style, with pretty realistic dialogue and some ugly dark spots (the description of Peter flaying a squirrel... for no reason). Ender's time at Battle School and Command School feel rather slow at times, only for things to blossom in the final laps of the novel -- Card suddenly turns all our feelings and expectations on their heads. The tragedy of children turned into soldiers becomes even more tragic as we discover what the war is actually all about.

As you'd expect from Fascist Hogwarts In Space, there are a lot of kids at Battle School who are developed to certain degrees. But the center of the story is Ender himself -- and despite being a tactical genius with loads of natural ability, Ender never seems like a Wesley Crusher. Like a boy destined to be a Spartan warrior, his inborn skills are what will keep him from ever finding peace. His childhood is sacrificed for war.

The other part of the story rests on Peter and Valentine -- Valentine is too nice, while Peter is gradually revealed to be a ruthless genius who works anything and anyone for his goals, which may or may not be self-serving. It's oddly fun to see the growing influence of "Demosthenes" and "Locke" on the cruel government.

"Ender's Game" is an intelligent, gripping space opera with an undercurrent of intense tragedy -- it's kind of slow at times, but the strong writing and intriguing main trio keep it afloat.
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May 08, 2011 Jeannette rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science-fiction, favorites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I cannot believe it took me so long to read this book. A friend recommended to me back in college and I tacked it on the end of my to read list (which at that time wasn't so neat as Goodreads lets me keep it now). I absolutely loved it, though.

Within the first 25 pages, I would say that I was completely engrossed in the story. I found it interesting that I felt both extremely protective of Ender and completely certain that he could take care of himself all at once. The snippets of conversation a I cannot believe it took me so long to read this book. A friend recommended to me back in college and I tacked it on the end of my to read list (which at that time wasn't so neat as Goodreads lets me keep it now). I absolutely loved it, though.

Within the first 25 pages, I would say that I was completely engrossed in the story. I found it interesting that I felt both extremely protective of Ender and completely certain that he could take care of himself all at once. The snippets of conversation at the beginning of each chapter did make me worry. Would he have the energy or strength left to take on the next obstacle? Then I would think, of course he would!

I've read some reviews about difficulty with keeping Ender's age in mind while reading. I actually didn't have too much of a problem keeping Ender at the right age, but for some reason, I had trouble not seeing the other children as much older boys, or even grown men. Ender's perspective, however, was much easier for me to keep - to the point that when he burned out after graduating from Battle School, I felt exhausted. I could barely move on Friday as I read. It also helped me feel about as much surprise at the end as Ender did. I think I may have realized what Mazer was about to say only about a paragraph before he said it. I was just so involved with Ender's view of the world.

Speaking of perspectives, I found the Valentine and Peter subplot a very interesting and slightly frightening addition to the story. It was a nice parallel to see how both the IF and the Wiggin children manipulate information to shape the perspectives of others (I was absolutely stunned when I discovered what Ender had actually done to Stilson and Bonzo and that IF had suppressed it). What made it so much more frightening from Valentine and Peter was the ease in which they were able to control popular opinion without any trouble at all - and they were children. Genius children, perhaps, but all the children depicted with any detail in this book were geniuses, and many of them still showed a fluctuating maturity level. Add Peter's obviously sociopathic mentality, and you get a very scary picture. And who's to say that this isn't possible in reality? All the necessary ingredients exist: global communications, anonymity, and insane people. All my Communication Major red flags and alarms went off while reading those chapters, and I was extremely relieved when Valentine left Earth at the end of the novel.

I'm dying to read the rest of the series now and it makes me so sad that I know school and work will get in the way. As it was, I would have finished this book days earlier if it hadn't been for responsibility! Great read! ...more

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