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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
okay i'll be completely transparent with this rating : i loved this book. this was the first sci-fi book i read on my own and was something that helped me come to terms with who i was as an individual at a very young age.
that being said, fuck Orson Scott Card
that being said, fuck Orson Scott Card
Was not for me. I almost put it down but instead I just skipped pages half way through just to finish. I do think the kids were way too young not only to be fighting a “war” but talking the way they were like they were way older. Don’t recommend.
I listened to this with my girlfriend over the festive and just loved it so much. The first time I read it, it was my first Audible purchase actually, was a lifetime ago, I was 24 or so, and it blew me away then. I am so glad that the book has barely aged at all, and even the luke warm movie didn't detract form it.
Very good. It *is* a little funny that his name is Ender but so it goes. I think that it really missed an opportunity with
Spoiler
Ender's reconciliation with Peter. In particular, for as important as Peter was to Ender, it felt like it was left a little underexplored.
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There’s so much to like, commend, and feel disgust over with this reread. I originally read this for an 8th grade ELA class. Now I’m teaching it to my own. Oh how the Hero’s Journey spirals. I went on to read just about everything in the Ender Universe in the following 3-4 years, but I never went back to reread anything until now. On the one hand, I really see some apt reads on how children behave (let me be clear: NOT on how they talk. Good Lord, is that ever hilarious). But Card really nails how empathetic, petty, conniving, and good natured children are in so many different instances. And to his playwright credit, so many scenes are just so gripping. Great, unbefitting dialogue that characterizes and propels relationships and plot forward all at once. It’s just really compelling. Especially for the ELA teacher reread: this book has so many great quotes to parse and explore.
Card also unfortunately nails how the Internet would play into our daily lives. While I wouldn’t go as far as he does in this plotline, the notion of strangers routinely molding and shaping public perception through ongoing conversations/comments given nearly anonymously over the Internet is apt. That feels like it’s happening at every junction. I know I’m not alone in vaulting over what my friends and family have to say about an issue to immediately see what Twitter or Tumblr says first. Again, he takes it to an impossible place, I mean what are the odds that some podcastor would actually carry political—
The religious components are interesting, to say the least. It feels the most dated compared to everything else in this book given how dead wrong it is. Western religions still aren’t this antiquated source of embarrassment or shame for the vast majority of people, especially in American contexts. I think he really drops the ball when he tries to draw a similarity between how Muslims and Jews are viewed/treated versus Mormons and Christians. He just doesn’t even try to use a reasonable comparison; one side feels way more offensive and an actual example of bigotry while the other just feels like someone teased you the wrong way.
Lastly, this book is so fundamentally mistaught, and I’m going to do my damndest to teach it in a way that feels just and accurate for me. The way that I was taught this book, and the way I remembered this book are so fundamentally different from how I read this book now. Here’s a book teaching the slow burns of radicalization, of widespread propaganda, of dehumanization language. And I only remembered it as the book where David conquers Goliath.
adventurous
reflective
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:
Complicated
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I first watched the movie thanks to Anna. I then became obsessed with a free pdf I found online. The storyline with his siblings had me hooked beyond belief (in late elementary school/middle school). Watching the movie really helped with visualizing the novel.
This is just delicious. The ending had me in tears. I was in a bit of a reading slump (if you couldn't tell, I've only been reading manhwas recently), but I devoured this. I already have Ender's Shadow checked out, which I haven't ever read, so I'm really looking forward to it. It's unfortunate that I was so obsessed with this as a kid that I was never able to forget the plot points from start to finish (unlike any other book I've read as a kid except maybe Harry Potter).
Honestly my experience this time was closer to a 4.75, but I have to rate it a 5 due to its legacy in my memories. It was nice to hear the author's note at the end in the author's voice. I don't recall if it was included in whatever pdf I was reading way back when, but I had a sense of deja vu.
This is just delicious. The ending had me in tears. I was in a bit of a reading slump (if you couldn't tell, I've only been reading manhwas recently), but I devoured this. I already have Ender's Shadow checked out, which I haven't ever read, so I'm really looking forward to it. It's unfortunate that I was so obsessed with this as a kid that I was never able to forget the plot points from start to finish (unlike any other book I've read as a kid except maybe Harry Potter).
Honestly my experience this time was closer to a 4.75, but I have to rate it a 5 due to its legacy in my memories. It was nice to hear the author's note at the end in the author's voice. I don't recall if it was included in whatever pdf I was reading way back when, but I had a sense of deja vu.
medium-paced