Ender Saga: Ender’s Game | Orson Scott Card
Hundreds of years in the future, aliens attacked Earth twice. Now, eighty years after the Second Invasion, the government has created population bans and is working to breed human geniuses to save humanity from a Third Invasion. Ender Wiggin is one of those geniuses. He is also a Third, a third child in a world where it is illegal to have more than two children. Because he is one of the geniuses, the government monitors him through a device in his neck. This makes him a target for bullies at his school, and at home his brother is violent as well. Soon, a government official comes to ask Ender, who is six years old, if he wants to join Battle School, where he will be trained to fight the aliens. Battle School is in a space station orbiting Earth. Ender joins Battle School, and quickly ascends through the ranks to lead an Army of his own. In Battle School, Armies have battles in zero gravity, where they shoot each other with lasers that immobilize the other army’s space suits. Ender wins every battle he commands. Soon he is transferred to Command School, after a brief time on Earth, where he reconsiders his choice to continue military training. His sister, Valentine, encourages him to continue, and, skipping the additional education that most trainees received, Ender goes to Command School. At Command School, he meets Mazer Rackham, who begins to teach him. He is joined by his old friends from Battle School, but things are not as they seem. Every day, or twice a day there is a simulation battle and Ender is exhausted. Why is there so many battles? Is it all just part of the training? Is the International Federation hiding anything?
Overall, I enjoyed Ender’s Game. While some intense scenes may not be appropriate for younger readers, it has an interesting plot that raises some fascinating ethical questions.
Genre: Science Fiction, Fiction
Age Group: 12+
Rating Out of Five Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Series: Yes – one out of six in the Ender Saga. Companion series is the Shadow series.
Fiction or Nonfiction: Fiction
Ooh this is such a good book. I also really liked Ender's Shadow, which is essentially the same story, but from Bean's perspective, which is really cool! 😁