Ender's Game

Special 20th Anniversary Edition

By: Orson Scott Card

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison, Gabrielle de Cuir

Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards

In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut - young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training.

Ender's skills make him a leader in school and respected in the Battle Room, where children play at mock battles in zero gravity. Yet growing up in an artificial community of young soldiers Ender suffers greatly from isolation, rivalry from his peers, pressure from the adult teachers, and an unsettling fear of the alien invaders. His psychological battles include loneliness, fear that he is becoming like the cruel brother he remembers, and fanning the flames of devotion to his beloved sister. Is Ender the general Earth needs?

But Ender is not the only result of the genetic experiments. The war with the Buggers has been raging for a hundred years, and the quest for the perfect general has been underway for almost as long. Ender's two older siblings are every bit as unusual as he is, but in very different ways. Between the three of them lie the abilities to remake a world. If, that is, the world survives.

Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game is the winner of the 1985 Nebula Award for Best Novel and the 1986 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

Browse more titles in the Ender Wiggin series.

©1977, 1985, 1991 Orson Scott Card (P)2002 Fantastic Audio, an imprint of Audio Literature

Critic reviews

• Nebula Award Winner, Best Novel, 1985

• Hugo Award Winner, Best Novel, 1986

"'Intense' is the word for Ender's Game." (The New York Times)

6 titles in the series so far

Ender's Game is one of the best sci-fi books written.
However, I'm mainly writing this review to make others
aware that there are actually 6 books (so far) in the
series:

Ender's Game
Speaker for the Dead
Xenocide
Children of the Mind

Ender's Shadow
Shadow of the Hegemon

The last two books don't actually feature Ender at all -
they're about the character of Bean and the story of
what happened on Earth after Ender's Game.

All 6 books are fantastic. I've bought them all on
audiobook, but for some reason I can only seem to
find 4 of these titles using Audible's search engine
(and "Shadow of the Hegemon" seems to have been
renamed for some reason?).

A Classic

What made the experience of listening to Ender's Game the most enjoyable?

Stefan Rudnicki - Nuff said! Of course the story was great also.

What did you like best about this story?

OSC did a masterful job and you really come to care about Ender. The relationship building (and strains) were spectacular.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The ending was perfect. I didn't see it coming and it did not disappoint.

Any additional comments?

I was amazed at the technology foreshadowing and how spot-on he was. Original written in 1977 as a short and then expended into a novel in 1985, it is cool reading about the "net" and the "desks" which of course sound a lot like the Internet and iPads. The Internet didn't really become anywhere mainstream until around 1994.

In general the story was great. I can't believe I never read it back in the 80's - I would have been in High School. But now I did and it was great. I highly recommend this audio version. Stefan Rudnicki did a great job as always! Harlan Ellison did as well and towards the end they even did some parts together with her as Valentine and him as Ender.

Now I can't wait for the movie!

Excellent Edition

I found this to be a very enjoyable and engaging story, read by a team that did a great job. (One of the minor characters is read by Orson Scott Card.)

I have seen some of the reviews that suggest that the narration detracted from the enjoyment of this audio book. However, on the contrary, I found that the narration team did a wonderful job. It was as if each of the various readers really understood and empathized with their characters.

Ender's Game is a classic SiFi story that is well worth your time. Card creates characters that you love, and characters that you hate, in a world that is believable.

You will also enjoy the author's comments following the story.

I give it two thumbs up.

Mom & Son Approved

I initially struggled with the narrators voice quality, and then came to absolutely love it. Im ready to download books I have no interest in - so long as Stefan Rudnicki is reading. Great narrator! Very natural and easy, not controlled and overly poised like many other narrators.

And the story. Good themes such as earned loyalty, courage in the face of fear, perseverance. Its hard not to want to hug Ender Wiggen. But he takes care of himself. When the music comes up at the end, I was not ready for it to be over. Mainly because my iPod indicated that there was still 45 minutes of audio left! Orson Scott Card talks about the book and its conception to fill the last portion of audio and that part rates a big "whatever!"...

Im always on the look-out for audiobooks that I can listen to with my 11 year old son, stories that will interest both of us on our 45 minute commute home. He loved this book.

Must-read for sci-fi fans

Smart, clear, action-packed, tension, drama : all good words to describe this book. It really is a *must read* for any Science Fiction fan.

thoroughly enjoyed it

I enjoyed listening to this one on all levels. The main plot was interesting, there were unexpected twists that added dimension, and the ending left me wanting to hear/read more. Most books leave me feeling like I missed something, but this one was fulfilling all the way through. Would recommend it to anyone.

outstanding!!!

a winning combination - both the narrators (and there are a few) and the book - an unexpected pleasure all around ... i say unspected because i did not have anything from this author before but i will most definitely purchase the rest of the series ...

Great imagination

If you could sum up Ender's Game in three words, what would they be?

creative, emotional, thought-provoking

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I like the main narrator and how he portrays Ender. Some of the other narrators weren't as strong, but overall a good performance by all.

Any additional comments?

This is one of those books that makes you think about the universe and what else could be out there, as well as how we, as a race, would react to such contact from the inhabitants of other worlds. The way the book is portrayed, through Ender's experiences rather than detailing a lot of sci fi info is well done also, and you really feel his range of emotions.

You dont know what your missing.

This is a wonderfull series of books. I was so sad when it ended

One of the greatest Sci-fi novels of all time

I can't remember when I first read this book. Middle school or high school? Anyway I've read and listened to it a dozen times over the past 20 years and it has held up great to the ravages of time. This is a must read for anyone interested in science fiction.