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)

The recommendations are right

All the recommendations of Ender’s Game as one of the best science fiction books of all time are right.

This book was so sad, but at the same time, triumphant. Or the other way around. It tells the story of Andrew (Ender) Wiggin, a little boy (he is six at the beginning of the story) who is thought to be the one who can save Earth from the invasion of the space aliens they call the Buggers.

But time is running out. The military authorities in charge of the war have only a short time to turn a nice, if brilliant, boy into the person who will destroy an entire civilization. It is fascinating to watch how the trainers go about their work, first teaching their students (Ender isn’t the only one; they take in new classes of six-year-olds every year) to become competent fighters, and then honing their skills at mastering strategy. And all this is done by means of games, especially the combat games.

The first thing they do to Ender is to separate him from anybody who might be his friend – ever. He does earn the respect of many of the best students, and over the long run, these become his most trusted lieutenants. And he even earns the love of a few of them, although the rigors of the training make sure that isn’t allowed to last. But he also acquires a few enemies, although not intentionally. These enemies keep pushing until he has to take strong measures to eliminate them. Because, despite all the pushing, Ender doesn’t become a monster (how he manages this, I don’t know), he is depressed by the repeated need to eliminate his enemies.

The entire last part of the book is a surprise. Things are not as they seem. And, as Ender finds out, they haven’t been as they had seemed since long before he was born.

There is also a kind of scary side plot involving Ender’s siblings. His vicious older brother, Peter, tormented Ender for the entirety of the time he was living at home, while his sister, Valentine, protected him and reassured him that he wasn’t like Peter. Becoming like Peter was Ender’s greatest fear while he was in school, a fear reinforced by the fact that that is almost exactly what his training was intended to make of him. But once Ender is no longer at home, Peter decides he wants to take over the world. He plans to do this, not with his native cruelty, but with a kind of deceptive diplomacy. And he pushes Valentine into joining him in his plot.

This is an anniversary edition. It contains not one but two commentaries by the author at the end.

Interesting twist on sci-fi

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

While certain parts were extremely descriptive, the story moved at a quicker pace than initially anticipated. Very unique story with an interesting mix of characters.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Ender's Game?

The battles plot twist near the end took me by complete surprise.

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Different voices for each of the main characters was a refreshing change from most standard monotone readings.

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

There were certain moments when you forget that the characters are so young. When you recall their age during certain moments and conversations there tends to be an eeriness that creeps unto you.

Any additional comments?

Interesting story that resulted in focusing more on the characters and their development versus the adventure itself.

I lost 7lbs with this book

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

No kidding. I got the audiobook and couldn't stop listening. So I put on the headphones and just walked and walked. Everything about this book was enjoyable. The story line the narrator.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Ender's Game?

Finding out what was Ender's Game.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

Everything.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!

great book

inspires me to write some books! author does a great job story telling without it being predictable.

Awesome

Very hard to put down. Ends with a fun twist . Over all I loved the book.

Great Book

I watched the movie a few years ago and I thought it was alright, nothing spectacular. So fast forward to 5 years later, I thought I would give the book a try. That's been kind of my thing, to read books that inspired SciFi movies, and I have to admit, this book is incredible. The movie did not do it justice (not many book adaptations ever do). Real life drama aside, Orson Scott Card gave us a classic.

Entertaining story

Interesting story. I didn't care for the narration. Especially the woman; affected, breathy, and pretentious. I was tempted to skip her parts at times.

Outstanding

One of the best sci-fi novels I’ve read. The narration is fantastic as well.

one of my all time favorite

a deep look into societies inner workings. it is getting harder to discern science fiction from science fact

A must listen to!

This story is so good, I am so glad I decided to listen to it. I have seen the movie but was recommend to try the book and I am glad I did. It has so much more and give you an amazing insight to the characters and there growth through the story. I just picked up the second book of The Ender's Game series in the 2-1 deal. I hope it will live up to this book. #Addiction #SiFi #Goodread #NextPlease #EndersGame #Tagsgiving #Sweepstakes