Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

This book appeared in our house out of no where. Actually, it was a Christmas present to my oldest son, but I was a little distracted to notice until recently. Since Christmas Caleb has read it about five times, he told me. I thought I better see what makes this such a good book.

It's too bad I waited this long to read Ender's Game. Originally published in 1985, (actually, 1977 as a short story in Analog) it won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards. I can understand why: The whole idea is intriguing. for the majority of the novel we follow the life of Andrew "Ender" Wiggins from six years old to about twelve. During this brief period, Ender is subjected to serious training and psychological pressure to bring out his creative genius as a strategic commander for the armed forces. Earth is at war with the alien "Buggers" and Ender is the last hope of humanity.

The descriptions of the isolation felt by Ender, the mock battles, and the disruption at the school caused by this super genius are carried out well but gets a little repetitive. The society on earth is believable, but only if you remember what the cold war was like back in 1985. The Russians are the potential problem starters while America is the overwhelming force in the "Hegemony," Card's version of the United Nations. As with other older science fiction, some parts just don't age well. Card clearly buys into evolution and his description of religion certainly isn't flattering, but revealing Ender's parents as religious works in the context of the society and how that impacts Ender.

The problem with writing about a genius among geniuses is that everyone else must appear fairly dumb in order to show how brilliant Ender is as a commander. We see how Ender makes such obvious choices and wonder along with him why no one else ever saw things this way before. Everyone at Battle School is supposed to be so bright, but they just aren't. So instead of coming across as a super genius, Ender simply looks as if he has common sense compared with the other children and teachers.

There are two real points where I take issue with Card and his writing. The first is language. I actually liked how the bullies at school called Ender a Third. Since the government limits families to two children, a Third is unwanted, frowned upon, a mark of shame and makes an excellent derogatory nickname. Other epithets are just crude, and there is enough vulgarity for me to wish my eleven year old hadn't read this at all.

The second point is nudity and bathroom humor. Perhaps I could overlook a simple description that the children wear their "sleep uniforms," their "birthday suits" to bed, if that's where it ended. The children are in mixed company, boys and girls, and I just don't think that imagery is proper for young men. As it is, Card isn't overly graphic, but it just seems unnecessary to me.

The same goes for the bathroom humor. There are only a few instances of it but that's enough to warrant a caution from me. It's really nothing worse than what most boys will hear in a middle school locker room during Phys. Ed., but I want better for my children. That's part of why we home school and why I try to know what they read.

Ender's Game is good science fiction, but has some undesirable ingredients mixed in. It's like the old sermon illustration: How much dog poop mixed in to the brownie mix will you accept when all the other ingredients are good?

I certainly can't recommend Ender's Game for young readers. Adults, of course, can make their own choices.