Songmaster

Rating:
Summary: For once, a story of Humanity that is actually Human!
Review: Some people have been trying to compare this with Ender's Game. I think my best explanation of the differences is this: while Ender's Game thrilled me to the marrow of my bone, Songmaster touched the deepest reaches of my heart. Music has always been a part of my life, and I identified with the boy who had the greatest song ever only to lose it when the joy went out of its life. Orson Scott Card just has an amazing way of actually making you care about the characters, unlike so much of science fiction that is written today. It has been a long time since a book made me cry. Songmaster is just that beautiful

Rating:
Summary: A True Masterpiece
Review: Never having read any of the works of Mr. Card, and not even associating him with the whole "Ender's" phenomenon, I went into this book without any preconceptions or expectations. I found this to be one of the most insightful and unique stories written in the latter half of this century. The concept of a collective who communicates primarily through song is a twist on the norm, and Orson Scott pulls it off with utter brilliance in his prose and form. At one point I had to actually mark my place, put the book down and regain my composure, lest I surely lose my ability to see through the tears. These were not tears of sorrow, mind you, rather tears of joy. This story grabbed my attention and emotions and slung them around like only an E-ticket ride at the Magic Kingdom can do. I have since read anything and everything I can get my hands on by Mr. Card, and not once have I been disappointed. Although some of his works are better known and more popular, "Songmaster" remains my favorite. Find this book and purchase it immediately. On my honor, you will not be disappointed.

Bryon T. Smedley - [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Sing, Ansset, Sing!
Review: "I will never hurt you.
I will always help you.
If you are hungry
I'll give you my food.
If you are frightened
I am your friend.
I love you now
And love does not end."

It is very rare for an author to make himself as vulnerable as Card has in his marvelous book, Songmaster. One of his first books, Songmaster reveals the author's intense preoccupation with beauty and pleasure -- and how a person might go about satisfying his desire for such things.

Ansset is described as the type of boy that men (and, to a lesser degree, women) love to look at. Can you be any more blunt than that, Orson? At one level, this book is a sensitive portrayal of so-called "pedophilic" love -- in an emotional, physical and spiritual, but not a sexual, sense.

Card's greatest virtue is his greatest vice. He is always and everywhere trying to UNDERSTAND the experience of the individual. This makes the reader have to guess at Card's moral and political opinions.

Card paints a picture of reality brilliantly, just like his protagonist, Ansset. But we never get to see the real and authentic song of Orson Scott Card, behind all the masks he wears.

Card is a brutally honest man. He is a storyteller. He is a poet. He is Ender. He is Ansset. He is a singer of songs.

But when will we hear his own song, I wonder?

Rating:
Summary: Stunning
Review: I had never read any Orson Scott Card before Songmaster, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Fortunatly, I wasn't the least bit disapointed.

The characters in this story are delightful, completely unpredictable, and actually *interesting* (I find that so few Fantasy characters posess that certain trait!) My favorite was, perhaps Kyaren, because her purpose was a mystery until the plot unraveled.

The writing style was fabulous as well. The novel was supposed to be about music, but ended up being just as lyrical by itself.

The only fault I can think of, is that the ending seemed to change pace abruptly. I would have liked to see it expanded further, but perhaps, I would have enjoyed it less then. It's difficult to tell.

Rating:
Summary: Somewhat thin but enjoyable read
Review: In this book, Card keeps his theme of emotionally/physically abused genius kids who change the world. The main story is quite good, but the subplots (love affairs of various sorts, mainly) are not sufficiently interesting or integrated to the rest of the story. Card's exploration of the imits and consequences of free will and emotional and physical manipulation is illuminating, as always. Overall, a very good read, but up to the level of, say, "Xenocide."

Rating:
Summary: A True Masterpiece
Review: Never having read any of the works of Mr. Card, and not even associating him with the whole "Ender's" phenomenon, I went into this book without any preconceptions or expectations. I found this to be one of the most insightful and unique stories written in the latter half of this century. The concept of a collective who communicates primarily through song is a twist on the norm, and Orson Scott pulls it off with utter brilliance in his prose and form. At one point I had to actually mark my place, put the book down and regain my composure, lest I surely lose my ability to see through the tears. These were not tears of sorrow, mind you, rather tears of joy. This story grabbed my attention and emotions and slung them around like only an E-ticket ride at the Magic Kingdom can do. I have since read anything and everything I can get my hands on by Mr. Card, and not once have I been disappointed. Although some of his works are better known and more popular, "Songmaster" remains my favorite. Find this book and purchase it immediately. On my honor, you will not be disappointed.

Bryon T. Smedley - [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: This book was great, in its own way.
Review: OSC has one of the wildest imaginations I have ever experienced. This twisting plot was a bit mind boggling, I mean you never knew what card was going to throw at you in the next sentence! I think that was the greatest part about it. If I had to take an I.Q. test on what was going to happen next I would probably fail it. (Get it? It's impossible to fail an I.Q. test.) Scientists say that average people with average imaginations dream in black and white, people with vivid imaginations dream in color. OSC must dream in 3-D! I read some of the other reviews, and they said that "Ender's Game" was better than "Songmaster," but how can you compare the two? They are both about the trials of a young boy, but one is a personal story, the other is a story of acceptance. Both books are on a level of supreamacy above all others, and I don't think it's fair to try to compare them. I thought both stories were beautiful, but "Songmaster" was a life story, and completely on a different level, yet not higher or lower, but different in every way it could be. It's a great, different, story for anyone.

Rating:
Summary: Beautifully written, but unsure...
Review: I did enjoy the book, and agree with someone else in that the book depicts characters that love singing and music but the book itself is lyrical. However I did find the parts related to sexual relations with children to be rather disturbing, because it was considered "normal". I'm surprised that nobody else has really mentioned it (unless I missed such a review). I've given the book 3 stars because I do think it is beautifully written, and I'm not sure about the children-relations aspect (maybe I missed something in the book that said this was sick and wrong because I did skim paragraphs here and there). Sorry, but to me it seemed like it was saying paedophilia is okay and cosy but I could be completely wrong.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, lyric, and full of unanswered questions
Review: I have never read a Card novel before this one. I've heard much of his Ender saga, but never got around to reading him until I saw Songmaster in a local bookstore. As a music student, I'm delighted when I have the rare opportunity of finding a fantasy/SF novel in which music plays a central roll.

Songmaster's premise as a novel well written is undeniable. Card's prose is stark, full of shocking realism and moments of real beauty that seem to transcend the plot into a spiritual dimension. As I read on, I found myself caring about what happened to Ansset more than any character I've cared about in a while. His predicaments and trials are unfathomable for me to think any man or woman surviving, much less a little child!

Yet the moral struggles Ansset faced (his failed homosexual relationship to Josef being a major one) move through the story
unanswered. At the end of the novel, when old Ansset reflects upon his life, the questions remain unanswered; no clear lines of right and wrong are drawn. However, when the story is approached as Card probably intended,(as a myth)one can see the consequences of the choices made by the characters, especially in the tragic figure of Josef, for example. Josef's love for Kyaren came into conflict with his homosexual desire for Ansset. He knew in his heart he could not have both -that he was at the crossroads of a moral choice, no matter what others told him. His end was tragic, his death an act of hopelessness, giving great anxiety and guilt to all those that loved him. It brings up the question of what is true, and transcendant love all about? If his love was true and transcendant and not based on lust, would his life have ended that way?

Anyway, I loved the book. Though Card is a Mormon, you can sense it only slightly in the book. The themes are broad and universal, and I especially liked his descriptions of the power of music. Ansset's struggle to find his own voice was extremely moving. I wouldn't recommend children to read this novel even though the main character is one. Most would find it too above their heads anyhow. But there are many moments of gruesome violence, gore, and adult situations that may confuse and down-right freak out a child with a vivid imagination...unless he or she can relate to Ansset's experiences. I would love to meet a child like that!

Rating:
Summary: A younger, rougher Card
Review: Orson Scott Card's stories and novels always carry a moral message. In his more recent, in-print publications, the moral message is often very clear and up front, and while he's hardly someone who uses a formula to write his books, he does have a very strong method and set ideas about what he wants from literature. But back when he wrote Songmaster, he was still finding his way. As with most of his early work, his characters here face far more immediate violence, pain, and hardship than in his later books, and while their responses can be somewhat uneven, the result is, from my perspective at least, a far more moving read than the smooth, knowing Card of today. This younger, rougher, less morally bound Card is worth checking out.

There's no denying the similarities between this book and Ender's Game. Yes, the main character is a male prodigy who struggles to learn and grow in emotional isolation. But all four of Card's major series begin with such a character (Ender, Bean, Alvin, and Nafai), and it's when he's writing about these remarkable children that Card does his best work. They're far more interesting than his adult characters because they genuinely don't know what to do when facing a problem -- every important decision they make is based on the information they have at hand, not any prior set of beliefs. This, plus their genius, makes them remarkably unpredictable and allows us to re-evaluate out own beliefs. Ansset, the "hero" of Songmaster, is no exception.

Card explores homosexuality in this novel, a topic he hasn't really braved since then, and an interesting choice given his Mormonism. The results may initally seem ambiguous -- after all, bisexual Josef suffers tremendously and commits suicide as a result of his failed encounter with Ansset. However, looking past that, you can see that Card is strikingly liberal in his treatment of love between men. After all, Ansset quite righteously makes the men who hurt Josef suffer in return. Josef's wife doesn't object to his love for Ansset, and like her, Ansset sees only the love that Josef sought to express. It's society at large that deems homosexuality wrong, not the heroes, and that (unfortunately) reflects the world we live in, an important function of science fiction and something that Card does very well.

Card is liberal and forward-thinking in many other ways in this book, but what's most important is his as-ever wonderful and full characterization. Genuine people populate this novel, and as they rejoice, grieve, and raise the next generation, you will love them because you understand them, just as Card does.