Children of the Mind

Rating:
Summary: One of the best, from the best
Review: From the best sci-fi author of this time we have the conclusion to one of the best series ever written.If you thought what Andrew "Ender" Wiggin had to go through before was tough, wait until you see what transpires in Children of the mind! New characters help this aging star, and with the problems Lusitania faces they need everything they can get. When the book was finished, I flipped it over and began again

Rating:
Summary: A frank overview of one of the coolest books I've ever read.
Review: I'm lying, actually. I'm not planning on overviewing a darn thing. If you want the synopsis, look up underneath the title. I'm going to give you a frank opinion here, folks, so wander elsewhere if that's not what you want. So there. Pthbbb.

If you've read the previous Ender books (which I'm assuming you have, otherwise why would you want to read this one? If such is the case, go read the first three, good golly, THEN read this one.), you're probably very attached to them and are yearning to read OSC's final entry. Perhaps you felt a bit cut-off at the end of Xenocide and lost sleep wondering what would happen to Ender and the rest. Cripes, I know I did. Children of the Mind does everything and more to make you feel better about yourself and the world around you, not even mentioning the emotions you will experience when you finish it. Finishing it is like being the guy on that milk commercial (y'know, the "Where am I?" one) and finding that the milk was actually there all along, only in the OTHER refrigerator across the room. By the end, you feel so connected to all of the characters and OSC himself. It's very sappy, actually, looking back on how -I- reacted, but geez, it's worth it. Never before have I read a book that touches me like this one did. I really can't stress that enough; it's absolutley fantastic. I'd use better adjectives if I could but, really, words can't express how deeply I dig this book.

But then, I'm one of those crackpots who really start diggin' what they're reading on an unhealthy level. So sue me, I really like Orson Scott Card. (Wow, he's good. Isn't he, though? I mean, he's an incredible writer. My snaps to you, Mr. Card, for being just so dang awesome.) Maybe you're a crackpot who really likes him too, in which case you will most certainly not be disappointed with what my man Orson delivers to you in Children of the Mind. Read it, my friend. A better person will you be.

Erin Tobey, [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Card's Conclusion is Really Not
Review: When I first saw this book in the stores, I was excited at the prospect of another "Ender" book to read. From the beginning of my science fiction interests, Card has always been my absolute favorite.
When I started reading this, however, I found that Card had used the creation of "Young Peter and Valentine" to an end that most of us could not have imagined. At the end of Xenocide, I was left almost flailing at the sudden ending. It seemed like it was unnecessary and a bog to the story. It turned out that Card had something in mind for the two "Children" of Ender's mind. This fourth book focuses on the entire group, all of which are controlled by Ender's aura. This leads to some interesting plot developments.
Needless to say, Card's conclusion to the Ender saga is really not a conclusion in the true sense of the word. Most would expect that all questions would be tied up and finally there would be no loose ends when you turn the last page. But instead, we get just that - loose ends. This series could go on and focus on Ender's family or even Peter and Valentine for that mattter. But instead, it is truly where the series was meant to end - at the death of Ender Wiggin (sorry for the spoiler). Card's story is not an ending, however. It is more like a transition. No longer would Ender Wiggin as the readers know him be able to influence the characters of the series.
All in all, this was an excellent book, probably as good if not better than the original "Ender's Game". The reader is forced to connect things that are happening in this book to the rest of the series. Overall, it is a good read and is recommended to both Card fans and Science Fiction fans in general.
Brian Shapella - [e-mail]


Rating:
Summary: A provocative conclusion to Ender's story.
Review:

Card, in his third Ender book, Xenocide, left us hanging in the same place we started, with the threat of destruction approaching Lusitania. I, for one, wondered why I had bothered to read the volume.

Fortunately for us, Card DID have a conclusion in mind.

Children of the Mind includes not just an end -- a surprising, yet expected end -- to the story of Andrew Wiggin, but also a complete philosophical underpinning for Ender's universe.

This book is well worth the read.

Rating:
Summary: Philosophy and Fiction
Review: This is not Card's best work, but it's one of the finest books that I've read in a very long time. Card writes fiction; yet his work has a finer sense of truth than much 'fact'. I have heard derogatory comments on his concluding note; let me just say that it is Card's intense personal involvement with his stories that make them worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Orson, Orson, Come In Orson
Review: The Ender Saga, which began with two of the greatest novels in all of science fiction literature, wobbles to a close in this anemic volume. As Mr. Card's ego grows (read the embarrassing afterword in which he concludes that he is one of the few great writers in America today) his writing withers. Perhaps he is spending too much time in his virtual "town" on AOL. Certainly the writing has the rushed, abbreviated tone of an e-mail post, and what he passes off as wit in this book sounds less like Wilde or Coward, and more like it came from a chat room.

Rating:
Summary: A new triumph of a great mind
Review: This book, the forth in the Ender series shows why Orson Scott Card is one of the best writers of our time. Every novel in the serie has been as different from the ones before it as books in a serie can be. In this novel Card brings to conclusion the story of Ender Wiggins in a way that is both surprising and highly imaginative. This is a book that no Card fan, and in fact no science fiction fan, can afford to miss.

Rating:
Summary: The ?Conclusion? to the Ender Wiggin cycle
Review:
Children of the Mind is the fourth book in Orson Scott Card's Ender Wiggin books (Ender's Game, Speaker for the Dead, and Xenocide). The book concentrates on exploring the origins of the descolata virus, and on finding a way to save Jane's life.

It's an interesting book, but it is merely building on the story that came before. There is very little here that is new and interesting. Most of these issues were resolved in Xenocide, and most of the story feels drawn out. It's the weakest of the four books.

With all that said, it's still a fun read. The characters we've come to know so well are present and accounted for, and we get a better grasp on exactly who Jane is. And the typical Card empathy is obvioulsy present. Also, there is an interesting possible hint of a future storyline, though I'm not sure if Card is considering this or not. He seems to be focused on his Alvin Maker series (the fourth book of it, Journeyman Alvin, was released last winter).

-Lewis Butler
www.nyx.net/~kreme

Rating:
Summary: Card picks up brilliantly where Xenocide left off.
Review: After reading Xenocide , I was eager to read Children of the Mind. Children of the Mind was a lot better than I thought it would be after reading Xenocide and having been disappointed with Card straying from his roots that made Ender's Game and Speaker of the Dead such good books in the series. What makes Children of the Mind great is not only does it make up for Card pouring his heart's philosophies out in Xenocide, but Children of the Mind does what the last book in a series should do; which is close it out in a proper fashion. The plot, the story, and the amount of philosophy are all just right in Children of the Mind. Readers who are coming off Xenocide will be pleasantly surprised to find the Children of the Mind is nothing like its philosophical other half in Xenocide. In particular, the strengths of Children of the Mind include believable characters such as Grace Drinker, Malu, and Wang-Mu. I've enjoyed the Ender Quarter immensely as I've searched the summer for cures to boredom. With the Ender's Quarter I not only found a way to pass the time but found out some things about the world around me and how Card teaches the reader as well as writing a particularly good storyline.

Rating:
Summary: Picks up where Xenocide left off
Review: "Children of the Mind" is the final book in Orson Scott Card's Ender Quartet. It picks up right where "Xenocide" left off, and is the logical conclusion to Ender's story, wrapping things up in a satisfying enough manner.

Like the books that preceded it, "Children of the Mind" is largely character driven, and this is certainly one of its strengths. Few of the characters are explored in excrutiating detail, but Card gives us just enough of a glimpse into their lives and personalities to give the reader the feeling that we know these people.

While the book is certainly satisfying in that it ties up all the threads woven in the previous books, I feel that it is the weakest of the series. I'm not sure that much would have been lost if it had simply been compressed and included as the final chapters to "Xenocide". That said, if you are a fan of the series, and particularly if you have read "Xenocide", then "Children of the Mind" is a must read.