I think I should premise my remarks with a couple of preliminary statements. First, I'm 27 years old and I've been a huge fan of science fiction since I saw Star Wars when I was four. I've read one previous book by Orson Scott Card: the novelization of James Cameron's The Abyss, which I thought was pretty good. I know Ender's Game is a very well-loved book, and in expressing my opinion, I'm not trying to anger anyone, but am just trying to say what I feel. Here goes...

I really wanted to like Ender's Game, but I just didn't think it was all that great. It wasn't bad, but it just never really involved me the way that a great book does. What bothered me first off was the quality of the writing. I thought it was extremely poor in places, and at best mediocre. Card doesn't even seem to follow the basic conventions of fiction writing. He'll be in a third-person descriptive paragraph and then throw in a first-person thought mid-stream without any set-up. I found this kind of thing distracting. It's not that the rules and conventions of writing shouldn't be challenged and bent (good writers are always doing this) it's just that I felt in this case, it wasn't Card using artistic license, but rather just writing poorly.

Other aspects of the writing itself bothered me. The lack of vivid description was one of them. Except for in the case of some of the better action sequences, I generally felt that I was reading about something that had happened to somebody else instead of feeling like I was there experiencing it myself. That's the first job of any great writer, to be able to paint with words in a nuanced way that makes the reader feel he or she is uniquely experiencing the world of the story in the first person. I never felt that in Ender's Game. Also I felt the language was overly simplistic and at times unceasingly idiotic. What's with all the fart talk? Surely by having them use a certain amount of slang, Card is reminding us that his characters are children. But I really got tired of reading the word "farteater" after a couple dozen times. That one in particular became very grating. Even the adults say it to one another. Coupled with the weak writing, the language choice and crude dialogue just seemed to undermine the integrity of the story-telling.

Now on to character. I just felt these characters weren't very deeply drawn. I wanted to sympathize with Ender, but from the beginning, didn't feel very close to him. He's supposed to be superhuman (either a Christ-like figure or a second coming of Hitler, or maybe a mixture of the two, depending on how you read the character) and I felt this just made me feel extremely distant from him. I could never see myself making any of the choices he makes. There's too much cold calculation in Ender, and not enough genuine human feeling. I felt that Card's attempt to humanize the character through his relationship with his sister Valentine was forced. There's a lot of telling in this book. Card tells us that Ender loves his sister, that Ender is a genius, that Ender is afraid of becoming the killer that his brother Peter is, but there is precious little showing. There was never a quality scene between Ender and his sister that made me feel what they felt for each other. I have a sister that I love very much and I know what that love feels like, but I never felt those kinds of feelings while reading about these characters.

I don't want to be overly critical. There were some good things in this book, too. It was definitely a page-turner. Despite my earlier criticisms about the writing, the story itself is well put-together. Once you get involved, you're compelled to finish it. If you're a somewhat fast reader, you probably won't need to bother with a bookmark for this one. Also, I would say overall it was a pretty fun read. I'll give this book three stars, because I think there's some great potential here that, in my opinion, is just not fulfilled.

I don't mean to slam this book if it's your favorite. I don't like it when some one says this or that is a "bad book" or a "bad movie" period. I don't believe in those kinds of absolute labels. Every reader brings something unique to a work of fiction and experiences it on a special plane that no one else can ever quite know, even if that other person is your twin brother and has read all of the same books you've ever read and seen all the same movies and known all of the same friends. The experience of reading a book is a magic one, a sacred one even. If you loved Ender's Game, I have nothing bad to say about that. In fact, I think books are a great thing to be passionate about. This one just didn't do it for me. My favorite science fiction book is hands-down Hyperion by Dan Simmons. That whole series, in my opinion, is some of the best written, most thought-provoking, emotionally-involving storytelling out there. Thanks for your time. Here's to good reading....


Enjoyable and Ingenious   November 20, 1999
 321 out of 353 found this review helpful

Whenever I talk about this book, it's hard not to make it sound like I am a science fiction junkie. I love and defend sci-fi, but I am not limited to the genre. Neither, I think, is this magnificent book. To label it simply a sci-fi classic would be like labeling "Moby Dick" a great book about boats. All great books, regardless of the genre, say something truly profound about the human condition.

"Ender's Game" not only manages to have a strong message, but it is also a joy to read. The plot is enthralling, the characters are complex and realistic, and the descriptions of the battleroom fill your head with fantastic images that make you wish your school had been like this, without the burden of saving humanity. The subplot involving Valentine and Peter is superb and cannot fail to inflame every reader's megalomaniacal side. Though the book is about children, it never condescends and gives kids the credit for the intelligent creatures they are (a big plus for teenage readers). The characters are exceptionally bright, but they are still identified as five- to twelve-year olds, not as mini-adults. It's no wonder that so many gifted young readers have made the statement, "I am Ender." I hope "Ender's Game" is able to make the rare crossover from lowly sci-fi to recognized, so-called "legitimate" literature.

Not only will you not be able to put the book down, you won't be able to read this book just once.


The Author Says a Few Words About Style   September 7, 1999
 75 out of 76 found this review helpful

First, I'm embarrassed, as the author, that I have to give a rating in "stars" in order to comment here. But since I do have to do so, I'm not about to bring down the average by rating my own book any less than five .

For those who didn't believe the storyline, I can't offer much help. It IS fiction, but people have different levels of tolerance for extravagant variations from their experience in everyday life. As Johnny Carson used to say, "Buy the premise, buy the bit."

For those who have commented that the reason the book is awful is because I don't describe, or my language is so very direct and plain, I must point out that there are several stylistic traditions available to a writer. I, for one, have little patience with writers who show off and try to dazzle readers with their language. The style I choose to use has been called "The American Plain Style," in which the author tries to become as invisible as possible, bringing the reader to see things as if experiencing them along with the character, instead of having a writer constantly commenting and interrupting the flow of the story. Moreover, ever since my days as a playwright I have preferred the bare stage to a realistic set: I found that the less I put on the stage, the more the audience would imagine a much more compelling set than I could ever build. Likewise, in my fiction I describe only as much as is asbsolutely necessary in order to understand what is going on; the rest, the readers create in their own imagination, if they're willing to use it. I try never to describe anything that the point-of-view character would not notice, because such extraneous descriptions take you out of the story. However, when I find it necessary I do describe, and when it is useful (especially at moments of denouement or release) I use more evocative language; some of my story endings (though not Ender's Game) are written as blank verse, though of course I run the lines together so as not to distract the reader. I am also constantly aware of the sound and rhythm of the language, so that it flows and remains pronounceable, since at an unconscious level readers all "read aloud" even if their lips don't move - the written word is inexorably tied to the spoken.

In short, there are many aspects to style, and while those who complain about the style of Ender's Game are entitled to their preferences, it's rather parochial to condemn a book because the author is following a stylistic tradition with which they are unfamiliar. Of course, they are hardly to be blamed for this, since so many literature teachers in American colleges and universities teach as if there were only one way to write well, and one kind of story worth telling.

Of course, those who approached Ender's Game skeptically or because they were "forced" to read it can hardly imagine their response is valid for those who read it as volunteers or with belief: No book, however good, can survive a hostile reading.

In the end, a storyteller tells the tale that he believes in and cares about, and the natural audience consists of those readers who are also willing to believe in and care about that tale. Naturally, I would like to engage as many readers as possible with each story I write; just as naturally, every story ever written pleases some and offends others. I do think, though, that it is possible to detest a book without attacking people who loved it, and I do wish that those who disliked Ender's Game would not personally disparage the readers for whom the story had some particular importance. Such judgments as "best I ever read" or "complete waste of time" are so utterly subjective that in my opinion, at least, one should only report one's own response, not condemn others for having a different one.

I thank those of you who have given your hearts to my story of Ender Wiggin; I also thank those who, while you did not like the book, wrote your negative views with dignity and with reasonable respect for others - including, I might add, the author, who, while he might have written a bad book, did not thereby commit a crime or unnatural act. If America can forgive Bill Clinton, surely there's room for a bit of forgiveness for the imperfections of a few bad writers now and then.

- Orson Scott Card


Enderys Game: Possibly the Best Book Ever Written?   March 26, 2000
 51 out of 63 found this review helpful

Ender's Game was written by Orson Scott Card in 1977. Since I was born, I have never read such a compelling, gripping, and intense story such as this one. Ender's Game is truly a masterpiece; it completely blows away any competition it might have had since its publication. I would absolutely, positively, without a doubt, recommend this book to every single person on this planet, and perhaps beyond.

Ender Wiggin, the main character of Ender's Game, is one of the most developed characters to ever be portrayed in all of literature. The reader encounters immense amounts of information regarding him. However, it is never in the form of direct statements of fact. Instead, Card reveals Ender through his various actions and dialogues. For example, at the beginning of the book, Ender is being physically tormented by another kid named Bernard. Ender waits patiently for Bernard to punch him once more. Then, Ender is able to catch Bernard's punch and throw him to the opposite wall. Instead of Card explaining how intelligent and patient Ender is, Card shows these qualities solely through Ender's actions. This alone suggests that Orson Scott Card is an outstanding writer. However, as one continues to read Ender's Game, Card's skill as an author is clearly evident by the beautiful construction, as well as the story line, of the novel.

The science-fiction aspect of this novel serves only as the setting. Ender's Game really has little to do with science-fiction, aliens, and other planets. Instead, it is a passionate tale of strength and weakness, courage and fear, love and hatred, and ignorance and knowledge. Ender is a tool which Card masterfully uses in order to convey these intense emotions. In addition, Card expertly creates feelings of suspense, anticipation, and trepidation. All of these emotions combine to produce one of the best books ever written.

As one reads Ender's Game, he or she will become completely absorbed in it. The book will become impossible to put down, and the reader will devour pages by the hundreds. Time will seem to stop for the reader, and he or she will become so engrossed in the novel that finishing it will become a top priority in the reader's life.

Ender's Game is certainly one of the best books ever written. I would adamantly urge everyone to read it


A wretched novel   July 17, 2000
 37 out of 77 found this review helpful

I bought this book wanting to like it. Given the awards it has won, I fully expected to like it. But I was completely disappointed. The reason for the book's popularity is clear: it panders to a very common personality flaw among young, intellectual males: a belief in one's own intellectual superiority, the notion that one is rejected simply because one is so much "smarter" than others of the same age. The way the characters talk about their own "smartness" is totally juvenile and ridiculous. This theme of the intellectually superior adolescent is also hackneyed beyond belief. It turns up over and over again, especially in science fiction; and no doubt this happens at least partly because the author knows it will sell to the cadres of geeks who imagine themselves geniuses. For a mature person, this sort of stuff is simply tiresome.