Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
This was one of those unique sequels that I believe was better than the first! Loved it, and I appreciated how thoughtful and compassionate Card writes Ender.
The only critique I have is that since Ender is a white man, he can’t escape the white saviour trope no matter how hard he tries. Alas
People that are just starting this series and saw the Ender's Game movie may be a bit confused. There are no kids operating spaceships here, just some foreign speaking alien creatures and some exhausting characters on a random planet. You get to experience a lot of my life is terrible and I don't fit in anywhere inner monolog which is analyzed by another character, just in case you weren't sick of it enough. Then ooo, who are these aliens why are they singing to trees and killing people?! Then back to irritating characters analyzing themselves. It somehow takes hundreds of pages to make much progress with anything but you have to keep going simply because you want to understand how tree people reproduce. That's it.
This is what sci fi is...exploring different possible alien ways of life and how a society would react to it. Exploring future religions and their influence on daily life. So this is just like many other science fiction books written at the time, but because we were already drawn in with Ender here we are reading this. If you aren't expecting it, this is a huge jarring change, and if you are expecting it I don't think there is much that is special or mind blowing about it.
This is what sci fi is...exploring different possible alien ways of life and how a society would react to it. Exploring future religions and their influence on daily life. So this is just like many other science fiction books written at the time, but because we were already drawn in with Ender here we are reading this. If you aren't expecting it, this is a huge jarring change, and if you are expecting it I don't think there is much that is special or mind blowing about it.
Definitely more complex than Ender's game, but the story is even better!
Pretty amused nine of my GoodReads friends have read Ender’s Game, each rating it 3 to 5 stars, but only one has read this book, without leaving a rating.
I remembered quite liking this book. I was not wrong.
I'm guessing this book is why I assumed Card was Catholic for so long too. Also, I wonder if I noticed originally that the majority of the cast was dark/brown skinned. There were a couple lines that spelled it out, but I wonder if I noticed...
So. This book is why there is an Ender's Game. This book is, to me, better than Ender's Game. And most who read Ender probably never make it this far... This book would also make a much better movie than Ender's Game, I think. I'm looking forward to reading the follow-up (Xenocide) again and just realized there was a fourth (Children of the Mind) that I never got around to reading. I think I will read that - I'll make sure to buy a used copy though :P.
Pretty much everything here worked for me. I'm curious about how the psychological aspects of the damaged family look to a trained psychologist - believable or stereotypical cookie-cutter types? Still, Card did what any good sci-fi author has to do: he wrote it like he knew what he was talking about (even if he didn't, duh!), and that at least made me believe it for the course of the story.
If you like sci-fi, you owe it to yourself to read this. This IS a classic. It reminded me a lot of some of the Le Guin stuff that I've been reading recently - sort of like The Word for World is Forest - thematically - but done better.
FOUR AND A QUARTER STARS
Because no matter how much Card annoys me, I can't hate on this book.
I'm guessing this book is why I assumed Card was Catholic for so long too. Also, I wonder if I noticed originally that the majority of the cast was dark/brown skinned. There were a couple lines that spelled it out, but I wonder if I noticed...
So. This book is why there is an Ender's Game. This book is, to me, better than Ender's Game. And most who read Ender probably never make it this far... This book would also make a much better movie than Ender's Game, I think. I'm looking forward to reading the follow-up (Xenocide) again and just realized there was a fourth (Children of the Mind) that I never got around to reading. I think I will read that - I'll make sure to buy a used copy though :P.
Pretty much everything here worked for me. I'm curious about how the psychological aspects of the damaged family look to a trained psychologist - believable or stereotypical cookie-cutter types? Still, Card did what any good sci-fi author has to do: he wrote it like he knew what he was talking about (even if he didn't, duh!), and that at least made me believe it for the course of the story.
If you like sci-fi, you owe it to yourself to read this. This IS a classic. It reminded me a lot of some of the Le Guin stuff that I've been reading recently - sort of like The Word for World is Forest - thematically - but done better.
FOUR AND A QUARTER STARS
Because no matter how much Card annoys me, I can't hate on this book.
Still amazing a second time around
Didn't fully understand the book when I first read it years ago, but I still enjoyed it. Now that I understand better, it's that much more amazing to read.
Didn't fully understand the book when I first read it years ago, but I still enjoyed it. Now that I understand better, it's that much more amazing to read.
The way Card weaves together anthropological, biological, technological, theological, and emotional themes and threads is pure magic. He is a master of balance, constantly weighing the scales with the emotions of his readers. I can't wait to read book 3!
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes