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Ender's Game

Ender's Game

List Price: $6.99
Your Price: $6.29
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: What an Ingenious Book!
Review: I totally loved this book from start to finish. Anyone who is a fan of the Playstation/Nintendo genre will love it too. Future Earth is at war with a race of aliens. The only hope in defeating the aliens lies in have "computer game simulation" like skills. Children are trained in a military academy using all kinds of virtual war games. The training is inspired by the skills of a great leader who was able to rout the aliens in one of the few decisive battles that the Earth had ever won against the alien.

Endor, an outcast in society is thrust into the training academy where he proceeds to become possibly one of the greatest virtual game generals to ever train.

The book also brings into play the idea of "forced" population control. In order to have a child, you must be approved by the government. Though apparently not a big issue with regard to the rest of the book it is interesting anyway.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Enders Game is Great
Review: Ender's Game
By: Orson Scott Card
Reviewed by: R. Itchon
p. 3

Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is sent away at six-years old and has to go to battle school. He is sent away with other young kids that are very brilliant at such a young age.
Ender does not know what to do and he is by himself. Ender has to learn different battle skills and fight in many real-life simulations in battle situations with the Martians. As he grows up, he will both get smarter and have to go through hardships but yet succeed in all that he does.
I like how the book is so futuristic. In all their battle simulations the Martians are just like they are in real battles. They could feel there texture. You could tell how futuristic this book is by the way that the commander always says, "Take the transporter to the Martian's planet." That is what I liked about this book.
I also disliked some of the book. I disliked how all the cadets and commanders gave no respect Ender and treat him unfairly. Even in the book it says, "Ender was succeeding in all the simulations, but still kept him on a low level and never promoted him to a higher level." Nobody gave Ender any respect and nobody was friendly with him because he was better than all of them.
There is a part in Ender's Game that I liked the most though. My favorite part in this book is when they are going to embrace in battle with the Martians but have a little bit of time to train. When they are in one of there simulations they have to attack the queen just like in real battle and Ender succeeds and at the end he finds out that it was the real war and that Ender just won the battle for the earth against the Martians. This is my favorite part because he always tried his hardest in all of the simulations and it finally paid off by him winning the war for them.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Contemporary Sci Fi at its Best!
Review: As a high school English teacher, I am constantly looking for books that will entice young readers. Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card, does that and much more!

Set in the science fiction future, with most of the action occurring at a governmental Battle School in space, Ender's Game centers on a small boy named Ender Wiggin. Six-year-old Ender is plucked from his earthly home when he is selected to be trained by the government as a battle commander in the anticipated 3rd invasion of the alien buggers. This time it is all or nothing. If the aliens prevail, the human race will be extinguished and earth will be destroyed. An exemplary six-year-old who thinks and reasons far beyond his years, Ender is considered earth's last real hope. This story follows Ender through his training and unusual young life. Card masterfully details and describes the futuristic settings and battles, as well as Ender's personal conflict between his genetic killer instinct and his emotional desire not to hurt, maim, or kill.

I think Ender's Game is a well-written and engaging book. It is easy to get into and has wonderful descriptions and details! I recommend this 'stay-up-late-since-you-MUST-know-what-happens' book often to my students, and I would recommend it to any adult, as well!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best books that I've read
Review: This book is a must read for all science fiction fans. The story is interesting and compelling, and the characters are very well written.

The book is very well written and the plot is straightfoward so it doesn't ever get bogged down, yet there is enough depth to the characters and the story to be an extremely interesting read.

The evolution of Ender from a picked-on outcast to a proven leader is very compelling.

Even if you don't like science fiction, this is an excellent book. This is one of the few books that I've ever re-read (after reading Ender's Shadow), and it was just as good the second time.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An excellent experience
Review: I'm not going to give a plot summary since about every other review serves to do that. All I can say is after about the third chapter I could not put this book down. This is saying a lot, considering that the chapters are short, as Card does an excellent job introducing his characters quickly and effectively. Kids will like this book because of the games that the children play in the book. However, the deeper meaning behind this book is what makes it so interesting. Card does not simply infuse his commentary on politics, war, emotion, and reason. Rather, he depicts a character that embodies much of the human struggle, and allows the reader to sympathize. Without giving too much away, Card makes us question if it is possible to acheive greatness while remaining innocent. On a side note, I must admit that my favorite part of the book had nothing to do with Ender or the games. I loved those parts too, but the most interesting thing to me was how his siblings gathered power as political writers on internet boards.

One thing a more perceptive reader of this book will pick up on is that there is no inherently evil character. All the so-called "bad" characters are antagonists merely because they overemphasize one aspect of human nature or because of misunderstandings. I wanted to keep this short and that I will do, only saying that this book raises many questions without too much emphasis on answering them. A good read with great questions, I definately recommend it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: It's Amazing!
Review: Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, a boy genius, is Earth's last resort to save themselves from the Buggers. The Buggers are an alien lifeform that live light-years away. Through lack of communication, they start a war with the humans. It's destroy or be destroyed and lossing is not an option. The human race needs a leader; they need someone to get inside the bugger heads and defeat them, once and for all. It's full of twists and unexpected turns. It's a very exciting and well written book.I loved the twist. Read it and you'll see what it is. I was very shocked and that hardly ever happens because usually I can predict these types of things but not in this book. There's not much I didn't like about this book but if I had to mention anything, I didn't like the nudity. That's partly why I'd rate this book PG-13. It's not like adult nudity though. These are 6-12 year old children and their in the military so it's less shocking but it's still nudity. Also the language. There are a few fowl words but it just make the book seem more real. In my opinion anyway. This honestly is the best science fiction novel I have ever read. Read it for yourself.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Science Fiction's Best: A Review of Ender's Game
Review: I have always enjoyed science fiction, but rarely do these books get placed on my favorites list. There are a few notable exceptions, and of these exceptions, Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card is my favorite. I have read it over and over again and explored all the sequels. Even if you are not a science fiction fan, the rich characterization, the action and the depth of this book will draw you in.
Set on Earth sometime in the future, the book's main character is or Andrew Wiggin, or Ender as he liked to be called. Ender is a "third," a child his parents were only allowed to have because the International Fleet, or IF, is looking for brilliant children with the right temperament to train as military leaders. Ender's older brother, Peter, was too violent and malicious. His older sister, Valentine, to whom he is very close, was too passive to be trained. That leaves Ender. Ender chooses to go to Battle School when he is just 6 years old. He leaves his family and begins life as a Launchie, the youngest of the ranks at Battle School. The Battle School orbits Earth, and the children are in armies. They fight in zero-gravity to learn strategy and command.
The IF needs soldiers for the time when the buggers will return. They have already tried to invade Earth twice, and exactly how they were beaten is a mystery. The IF is in search of a commander who will be able to defeat the buggers in a third invasion.
Ender's stay at battle school is fraught with challenges and loneliness. He is deliberately ostracized from the other students and is given challenges that break all the established rules. His fight to stay alive and to be the best is interesting and entertaining.
Meanwhile, his two equally brilliant siblings are down on Earth influencing political policies through the internet, when they are just 10 and 12 years old.
Card does not treat his characters like children, but instead gives them the autonomy and intelligence to act for themselves. He treats them as children would want to be treated, which is part of the appeal of the books. In fact, readers will forget that the characters are children. In the introduction to the book, Card quotes a young reader who wrote to tell him about the impact the book had on her group of very smart peers. She says, "...we are the enders of today. Almost everything written in Ender's Game...applied to each one of us on a very, very personal level."
Ender's Game is full of fast paced adventure. Each step in Ender's journey, the reader cannot help but root for him to win. The way he copes with playing the battles and with winning the respect of the other students is fascinating.
This is a book with many levels. It can be read merely as a fun science fiction book, but it is much deeper than that. There are themes like "manipulation is acceptable when the end justifies it" and "the qualities of a good leader are the ability to see the whole picture and earning the trust of his or her followers." It also addresses the issues of becoming what we fear we will become and if murder is ever an acceptable option. Military strategy is also a large part of this book, but it is never dry and unreadable.
Card's book, which was the winner of both the Hugo award and the Nebula award, is the best kind of science fiction. It combines adventure, well-developed characters, an interesting premise and many different themes.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Even for non science-fiction fans
Review: Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is a Third, which makes him very special. So special, in fact, that he is chosen to go off to military training school to learn how to fight Earth's enemies, the Buggers. Ender becomes a wunderkind, far surpassing anyone's hopes of his abilities. He is promoted quickly, years before most kids would be advanced.

But life is not happy for Ender. His only friends are his competitors, and he is losing those fast, due to the ministrations of his leaders, who want him to be under constant duress, thinking it will make him a better soldier. Whether their deceits and connivances will have the expected result is up to Ender. Or so he thinks.

Ender is someone anyone (child or adult) who has been ostracized for being too smart or too talented can identify with. Which is probably why it has caught on so well with the computer crowd. Plus, it is simply a well-told story done in a science-fiction setting. I was stunned by the quality of the writing. No wonder it won both the Hugo and Nebula awards when it was released.

My first result upon reading Ender's Game was that it was "Harry Potter in space." Continuing reading led me to realize that it is much more. Author Orson Scott Card has created entirely believable characters that you will care about. So much so that I couldn't wait to dig into the next entries in this fascinating series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: awesome sci fi
Review: This book rocked. I don't feel like getting into an indepth review, but i'll put it this way. If you liked Dune, or Star Wars, or Lord of the Flies, or even Startship Troopers (the book),then you'll love this book. It's very well written, with engaging characters and great environlment, loads of battle scenes and quick pacing. So read it, okay.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: More Fantasy than Sci-fi
Review: It's not really science fiction, but it doesn't matter. The greatest thing about this book is that it appeals to so many different age groups. That is truly rare.


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