BOOK REVIEW: Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

BOOK REVIEW: Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Ender Wiggin is a Third, a rare third child born to families on earth. The government asked his parents to have a third child since they were geniuses. They test all children for the military when they are very young. Ender's older brother, Peter, failed only because he was too cruel. Ender's older sister, Valentine, failed because she was too kind. But they think Ender is a perfect mix of both and at the age of six is accepted into the military academy. He is ostracized and set apart from the beginning so that he has to excel in order to make friends. You feel his pain and loneliness. You feel him growing and learning and overcoming the obstacles in front of him. You want to play with him in the zero-gravity training rooms, with their guns and body suits that freeze when shot. You want to shout at those who pick on him because you know how good and pure his heart is.

In the end, after the leaders play a dirty trick on him at 12-years old, you want to weep with him and heal his broken heart.

Card writes from the perspective of the all-knowing narrator, so you know the thoughts of the main characters. The bad thing with it is you're not fully drawn into the character's mind. I think it would be more powerful that way, but even so I found myself sniggering and tearing up here and there. 324 pages of sheer entertainment. Rated PG-13 (though some might argue for PG) for crude language (not BAD language, just a lot of usage of the word fart, etc) and a few graphic fight scenes. 4.7 stars.