Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

12 reviews

bones_jackson's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Um dos melhores livros de ficção científica já escritos, com o mundo e seus problemas bem estabelecidos e os conflitos bem desenvolvidos 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Child abuse, Torture, Blood, War, Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Bullying, Child death, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

kwichris's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

It took me too many years to finally read this wonderfully written science-fiction epic. For anyone who has seen the movie, please read this book, as it contains so much missing content that really demonstrates the breadth of this world Card has envisioned. The way in which he weaves topics of religion, abuse, isolation, and grief together in a futuristic world where humanity 'cannot' afford to deal with these concepts in fear of an alien 'threat' is nothing short of masterful. I do wish some concepts were given a little more time, like the subplot with Valentine/Peter Wiggin influencing public opinion on Earth while Ender trains for the fight of his life or the subtle importance of religion on how the society currently functions and how it resurfaces at the end of the novel so suddenly. Overall, a must-read for fans of this genre, and a good choice for young readers wishing to engage with material than will challenge them, make them think, and help them develop mental imagery skills thanks to the clear pictures Card has written.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Child abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Death, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Emotional abuse, Bullying, and Xenophobia

Minor: Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, and Blood

ktdakotareads's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Violence, Sexism, Torture, Bullying, War, Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Blood, Body shaming, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail

shinsreading's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

have reread this book countless of times now, it’s just so good. every time i’m sad or feeling lonely, i find myself gravitating towards Ender’s Game to ground myself

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Bullying

fi_reads_books's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Sexism, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

saskiahill's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

Brilliant audiobook, really well performed. The book is clever, engaging and surprising - I'm listening for the first time as I near 30 and it's still relatable and brilliant, by no means just a kids book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Abandonment, Child death, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Colonisation, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Violence, War, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Gore, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Antisemitism

jstarshine16's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Genocide, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, War, and Bullying

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Cursing, Child abuse, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Classism, Misogyny, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

cmccoy13's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really really love this book, it’s definitely one of my favorites. But it’s low score is due to the anti-semitism, misogyny and so on. But otherwise, it’s a beautiful book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Animal death, Child abuse, Medical trauma, War, Ableism, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Torture

stylo_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It's striking that for someone with repellent and destructive beliefs in the real world, Card was able to write a novel so deeply concerned with the question of empathy in darkness. Ender's Game I first read as a child, taken with the verisimilitude of its depiction of children's mentalities and concerns, even if the characters' speech patterns and invulnerability to emotion strains credibility. As Card's introduction in the revised edition points out, adults often criticize the work for its "unrealistic" depiction of childhood, whereas children have the exact opposite reaction, appreciating the work's refusal to dumb down their internal dialogues and concerns for the sake of appeasing adult egos and perceptions. Yes, children are in fact concerned about war; they do think about the meaning of life; they do wonder at the cruelty of their peers and humanity; they do wonder how to atone for their sins. They are whipsmart and know more than you think.

The prose is sparse and utilitarian, the plot straightforward and fast-moving, but all in service of the themes: why are human beings so vicious towards the other? Why is empathy so hard to exercise? What is the point of war, and what does it do to us? And what does redemption look like? Intense cruelty towards the characters only sharpens the point on which these examinations take place. (During one pivotal reveal towards the end of the novel, I pictured Ender's face as none other than Aleksei Kravchenko's in Come and See, the greatest and most tragic war movie ever made.)

The young-adult nature of the book does mean that themes, while mentioned, are not fully explored. Exploration of the themes rests in the realm of allusion; there's an impressionistic character, the way so much is communicated through Ender's dreams, through the fantasy game he plays on the computer, and the all-too-brief conclusion which I still find thrilling and evocative. I look forward to seeing if these themes are expounded on in Speaker for the Dead. 

As a 30-something, this remains a striking, sad, and unique work.

(Caveats: There is some casual sexism in the book, and Card fumbles the ball on racial sensitivity with some of his characterizations - see for example the slang language used by the kids.) 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, and War

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Xenophobia

katiieecat's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Fatphobia, Genocide, Grief, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Violence, War, and Xenophobia