Title: Ender’s Game

Author: Orson Scott Card

Genre: Science Fiction

Format: own paperback book

Series: Ender’s Saga (#1)

Star Rating: 3.5 stars

I don’t talk about this a lot but for the longest time, Ender’s Game was one of my all-time favorite books. I have no idea why because I’m not a science fiction girly. Even when I discovered this book in high school, I still wasn’t into science fiction. I read historical fiction and Danielle Steel. But for some reason, I loved this novel. 

But now, since I've reread it to write a proper review, I’ve found I’m not as in love with it as I was all those years ago. I still enjoyed this book quite a bit but I didn’t love it like I expected to. I think my younger self didn’t realize just how rough things were for Ender. I didn’t realize how this book was essentially about propaganda for war. It’s not promoting war per se, but it shows just how far some people are willing to go in war. 

I didn’t realize back then how much psychological torture was done to Ender and his comrades. The adults in his life played him and his comrades like a fiddle with almost no regard for their mental well-being. It was pretty tough to read at times. He started this journey when he was only six years old so he is just a baby essentially. It’s just mind-boggling that no one stepped in and said okay enough is enough. 

Another thing that bothered me was the way everyone talked to each other. So much name-calling and just overall pretty abusive behavior. I have never been in the military so I’m not sure if this is typical in the military or not. But it just made me so uncomfortable to read. The way the adults talk to the children is just as bad too. I felt so uncomfortable but then I realized that was kind of the point. I think Orson Scott Card wanted you to feel uncomfortable because talking about war and being involved in war should make you uncomfortable.  

Overall, this was still a good book despite some of the issues I had with it. It’s certainly not a beginner science fiction book. You’ll want to be pretty seasoned in science fiction before you dive into this series. I will be continuing with this series as I haven’t read past this one. I have read Ender’s Sahdow but according to Goodreads, that’s a whole other series. But I’m excited to continue my Ender’s Game journey.