Ender’s Game (Ender’s Saga #1)
Author: Orson Scott Card
Published: 1985
On Goodreads
My Rating: 
17/25
“I’ve watched through his eyes. I’ve listened through his ears, and I tell you, he’s the one. Or at least as close as we’re going to get.”
Andrew “Ender Wiggin, a Third, is chosen to go to Battle School for the I.F., the international fleet at the ripe age of six. What he believes are just games that he’s engaged in with other kids is actually much bigger than he knows. He hasn’t met a soldier he can’t mold or a battle he can’t win. Originally a part of a grand experiment that’ll save Earth, he becomes the top soldier in his class, advancing quicker than anybody else in history.
Ender being a part of an experiment to create soldiers and fleet generals isn’t all of it. The buggers have been attacking the Earth since long before Ender was born. If not stopped, the next attack made on the planet will end it altogether.
This book marks 17 out of 25 authors, from my New Year’s resolution, that I’ve never read from before. I’ve heard about the movie and that the book was a genius and conqueror in the Sci-Fi genre.
This blew my mind! Nuclear. BOOM. Orson is a master storyteller and this is only book one of a saga. So much happened and he did a splendid job of spanning it over years. It was a journey that was trying and it chipped away at not only Ender, but his sister, Valentine, and his brother, Peter. All three of them had a large part to play, proving that age doesn’t really matter when it comes to power. Rising up to their has shown both heroism and jealousy. They show that Ender isn’t the only brilliant one, but emphasize how scary it is. It was mind-blowing to see children rise up in power and scary.
Ender had so much pressing down on his shoulders. For a six-year-old, Ender was such an incredible character. So many times, he was ready to give up, but he had so many by his side. Petra and Dink guided Ender to become a better shooter. Alai and Dwarf became his closest friends in a place where friends seem impossible because everybody is against him. This isn’t just some game though. It’s more. Bigger.
I became intrigued with Ender’s name the further I got in the book. He became responsible for hurting people and dominating in Battle School. I never thought to question the nickname until I was well over halfway through. Ender and how it relates to his actions and determination. He ends every simulation, battle, and fight on top, winning. Realizing this was chilling.
The writing and style was amazing. Engrossing and not a detail amiss. Orson really captured a whole new frontier in this novel. It reached deep into a place that pulled at one’s humanity. He really grabbed at emotions, rocking them, and getting them to feel the pressure that Ender felt. Just captivating. And I really liked the dialogue at the beginning of each chapter from the head of the I.F. and how it gave accounts of progress with their war against the buggers. They knew what they were doing and it was great, haunting foreshadowing.
Overall
This book was engaging from page one and so entertaining. So in-depth. I was so sucked in that I felt like I was in the book. And that ending! I teared up big time. I really just want to cradle Ender in my arms after everything he went through. A phenomenal book that surprised me. The writing swept me away into this galactic world with many disguises. Everything was just perfect. I loved this. I hope to read the rest someday.
Quotables:
“The battleroom is ready. Petra’s hands are steady. The enemy is deadly.” (Petra, p. 82)
“We aren’t just ordinary children, are we? None of us.” (Valentine, p. 240)
“I’ll tell you something. If you try and lose then it isn’t your fault. But if you don’t try and we lose, then it’s all your fault. You killed us all.” (Valentine, p. 241)
More to come soon…
-K.
P.S. Song today? Titanium by Sia.
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The Scarlet Reader 
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