I was slightly disturbed by the use of such young characters in the story and how they were manipulated.
You're supposed to be disturbed. It's the main theme of the book - innocence and age.
tuff wrote:
Any religious overtones went straight over my head although I was speed reading so didn’t really give them chance to grab hold.
Why bother reading it in the first place?
tuff wrote:
One stylistic point annoyed (which may not be the author’s fault); At various points in the book (often at the beginning of chapters) the font was changed to indicate that the adults overseeing the whole thing were now talking. A good author shouldn’t have to resort to such crude methods to indicate a change of scene.
You can thank the publishers for that, earlier editions don't do it.
To answer your questions:
I know the theme of the book - I don't think it came over very well.
Why did I speed read? It wasn't well written enough to spend time reading properly. I have stacks of other stuff to read as well.
I'm not sure whether Tuff doesn't sound a bit of a crosspatch tonight!
The other theme that I picked up on was about 'learned independence' - Ender is put into situations where he realises that he can't (or won't) make connections with people. I suppose it links with the innocence theme, but this is about trust and what happens when we take trust away. * wonders if I am giving too much away *
Like Beads, I thought the way women were portrayed was rather slack, falling into the dull category.
I think there is a better book waiting to get out, that would probably tell us more about how Ender feels about his isolation - it tends to feel like a plot device. The old guy at the end (not to spoil it for Peggy) reminded me of Obi Wan Kenobi.
Sorry, didn't mean to come over as bad tempered. Just running round doing thigns, including trying to eat so I probably didn't give as much time to my comments as I should.
The other theme that I picked up on was about 'learned independence' - Ender is put into situations where he realises that he can't (or won't) make connections with people. I suppose it links with the innocence theme, but this is about trust and what happens when we take trust away.
This is why I didn't think it was anything like harry potter, who is also made to face bad guys as a kid but has his friends to rely on, and is all about the power of love to overcome evil *cue gagging* Ender has allies but ultimately they are not really his friends.
I finished Ender’s Game this weekend. I have to say all in all I enjoyed it. It certainly kept me interested throughout anyway. It was a bit ‘boy’s’/sci fi fiction so I would never normally choose it.
Is it supposed to be teen fiction or adult science fiction by the way?
If I had any criticisms they would be that they could have made certain parts more sinister. Maybe I’m used to reading thrillers/horror but I think I would have been more gripped if they’d made more of Peter and what he got up to and also more of Ender and his ‘murders’.
After the initial shock of his age and what they were doing to the children, I forgot they were kids. I suppose that’s sort of the point though. The ‘fart eater’ etc insults irritated me slightly, as did the name of the enemy.
I liked Ender, and it was his personality that kept me going. I also enjoyed the game/battle parts much more than I thought I would.
I think they rushed through his relationship with Mazer Rackham too. Them sparring with each other had a lot of mileage I think.
When it got to the final test I had guessed that it was actually the real battle. Was I supposed to?
The ending didn't make me want to read the next one, I'm glad I read it though. It's good to broaden your horizons!
I did enjoy reading this far more than the initial prospect "science fiction" offered.
I “got" the "religious" them child send to save the world etc. and guessed the end.
Basic setup up of the "flight and fight" school was good.
The author clearly knows about military and cults than politics - the ease with which the earth bound siblings conquered world politics was truly unbelievable.
The author made a brilliant prediction of the future of computer simulation and the power of the internet - considering how few people had access to computers when the book was written.
Entertaining - but I wont be perusing the series further.
