For years people have been telling me to read Ender's Game. So I'm finally doing it and I'm half way through the book and I got to ask... why did people tell me I got to read this? It's not bad, but I don't think it's that good either.

I think the ending increases people's opinion of it.

 

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It's one of my favorite books. But I was a lot younger the first time I read it. Maybe that has something to do with it.

 

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I thought it was a great book but I have trouble getting over how ridiculous it is for children of that age to be as affluent as he portrays them.

Not to mention ANYONE, let alone children, becoming politically relevant through what is essentially the internet is a farce on a such a level you can't even claim 'science fiction'.

Remove everything about Ender's brother and sister and the book is instantly 50% better.

 

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Yeah, those two points are what is really gnawing at me. I understand these are the brightest children, but still, they are way too advanced, too mature, too perfect, makes them feel unrealistic. I'd probably have a slightly easier time with it if they were at least teenagers.

I think 6 year old Ender might be more intelligent than I was at 21.

And everything Jaws did was impossible too, but it's still a classic. We're talking about a book set in the future in which the characters are the genetically proven smartest people on the planet and a war was accidentally started because weird aliens didn't know we were alive when they started to kill us. And the worst thing you could come up with is that the kids are too mature?

One other thing I would like to point out is that when this book was written kids were vastly more mature due to getting their asses whupped not being illegal.

I must confess I can believe in giant killer sharks before I can believe in a 6 year old with more maturity and intelligence than most adults.

PS. I just think he's overdone it a bit with the children. And it's really not the only thing that's bugging me. And I don't hate the book as I said from the very beginning. It's okay, I was just expecting something more I guess.

I can deal with Ender and the kids around him even though I think Card over-plays it but the brother and sister are just too ridiculous.

 

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It bugs me that Valentine would even agree to go along with Peter's idea. And worst of all, that she agrees to play the bad guy role in this. I'm just half way through, so not sure where it's going yet. But I get the feeling that when they get exposed, Peter is going to throw Valentine under the bus.

Comparing the books 'internet' to what the actual internet is like today just shouldn't be done. Ender's Game was published in 1985 and based off of short stories Card wrote in the late 70's... What were computers and the internet like back in the late 70's and early 80's?

Also somebody becoming politically relevant through the internet isn't that far fetched.

But I can agree Ender's Game isn't for everybody.

 

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