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billymac1962's review against another edition
5.0
Forget all you've heard about Hubbart's Church of Scientology and its members. This is a big, rollicking, saga of humanity's last chance to gain their freedom and planet back. It's the year 3000 and Earth has been taken over by nine foot tall hairy aliens who have enslaved the surviving population.
This is what escapism is all about! Forget the box office bomb. Read it!
This is what escapism is all about! Forget the box office bomb. Read it!
wdkilpackiii's review against another edition
5.0
Battlefield Earth had an incredible impact on my life, both as a person and a writer. First, I had never read anything before this came out where the Earth had been subjugated to an alien power. I had read plenty where Earth was attacked, we fought back against unbeatable odds, won out as the ultimate underdogs, etc. In Battlefield Earth, we fought, we lost, and we never stood a chance. I remember thinking, "Whoa! The good guys lost!" Enter Johnny Goodboy Tyler, who then takes on that underdog role, enduring excruciating circumstances, to finally avenge humanity. Very well written, a great hero, a great premise, just a great novel! If you have seen the movie and hated it, not to worry. The book and the movie really don't have much to do with each other. Highly recommended!
jonah_bishop's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
spitzig's review against another edition
1.0
If this book is thrown at you, you are better off eating it than reading it. A 1000 page waste of time and paper. Unoriginal plot that takes forever for anything to happen. Characters are so thin that "paper-thin" might be too thick.
nuttkayc's review against another edition
5.0
You never get the feeling that this book is too long while reading it, even though it's huge! Some books (Cough, Wheel of Time, Cough) leave you angsty at the diversions, the hopping around from character to character, never advancing in the time line much, and the extra specially detailed paragraphs that don't do anything for the plot. I guess I was afraid that due to this books girth (digitally speaking) it would be just that sort of book. This book was awesome. Don't know why it took me so long to pick it up.
hellsfire's review against another edition
4.0
I've wanted to read Battlefield Earth for a long time. I've heard of L. Ron Hubbard and I even liked the movie. What's stopped me from reading it has been its massive size. Luckily, on my Kindle, it didn't seem so daunting.
I loved BE up until the halfway point. What amazed me was the fact that the movie is basically half of the book. Suddenly, it switches tones and becomes something else and then switches tones again. Sadly, when it reaches that halfway point, it also loses steam.
It's strange. Because of the movie, I know how it's going to play out even with the differences between the two, yet I didn't care about all that. It was when I didn't know that the book lost me for a bit. It eventually picks back up again but that middle sags. Might be because it ended one climax and starts another.
BE has some things I don't like. First of all, there aren't many women in the book. What women there are there to be the damsel in distress. Because of that, the romance just doesn't seem real. It doesn't help that the women are barely around.
Another thing is sometimes the book got too technical with its explanations. Maybe if those were shortened, the book would have been a whole lot thinner.
The ending also became mired in politics and it seemed to be preaching. It felt like Hubbard's point of view
It's a shame the BE movie wasn't successful. I think if they tried it again and did it right, they could film a trilogy. It'd be wicked good.
I loved BE up until the halfway point. What amazed me was the fact that the movie is basically half of the book. Suddenly, it switches tones and becomes something else and then switches tones again. Sadly, when it reaches that halfway point, it also loses steam.
It's strange. Because of the movie, I know how it's going to play out even with the differences between the two, yet I didn't care about all that. It was when I didn't know that the book lost me for a bit. It eventually picks back up again but that middle sags. Might be because it ended one climax and starts another.
BE has some things I don't like. First of all, there aren't many women in the book. What women there are there to be the damsel in distress. Because of that, the romance just doesn't seem real. It doesn't help that the women are barely around.
Another thing is sometimes the book got too technical with its explanations. Maybe if those were shortened, the book would have been a whole lot thinner.
The ending also became mired in politics and it seemed to be preaching. It felt like Hubbard's point of view
It's a shame the BE movie wasn't successful. I think if they tried it again and did it right, they could film a trilogy. It'd be wicked good.
sir_scott's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of the best books I have ever read!!! I started this book while reading Jurassic Park, which is a very good read, but this book was far and away better-- could not put it down, did not want to sleep or eat. Its that good. Don't overthink the 1st Chapter.
andrew_stumpf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I looked the first 2/3rds of this book but it should have ended there. The last part of the book drags on and is mostly pointless.
cyee44's review against another edition
3.0
The story wasn't bad but didn't resonate with me the way some other sci fi stories do. However, it kept me interested enough to keep listening (I have the audio cd).
cyee44's review against another edition
3.0
The story wasn't bad but didn't resonate with me the way some other sci fi stories do. However, it kept me interested enough to keep listening (I have the audio cd).