• Old Man's War

  • By: John Scalzi
  • Narrated by: William Dufris
  • Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (27,134 ratings)

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Old Man's War  By  cover art

Old Man's War

By: John Scalzi
Narrated by: William Dufris
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Publisher's summary

Perfect for an entry-level sci-fi listener and the ideal addition to a veteran fan’s collection, John Scalzi's Old Man’s War will take audiences on a heart-stopping adventure into the far corners of the universe.

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.

The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce—and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.

Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity's resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don't want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You'll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You'll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you'll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.

John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine—and what he will become is far stranger.

John Scalzi's Old Man's War is a stunning novel of the long war for human survival—in a universe replete with hostility

©2005 John Scalzi (P)2007 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC

Critic reviews

  • Hugo Award nominee, Best Novel, 2006

"Scalzi's imagined interstellar arena is coherently and compellingly delineated." (The Washington Post)

“Though a lot of SF writers are more or less efficiently continuing the tradition of Robert A. Heinlein, Scalzi's astonishingly proficient first novel reads like an original work by the late grand master...This virtuoso debut pays tribute to SF's past while showing that well-worn tropes still can have real zip when they're approached with ingenuity.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Solid…[Scalzi] sidesteps most of the cliches of military science fiction, delivers fast-paced scenes of combat and pays attention to the science underpinning his premise.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“Gripping and surpassingly original. It's Starship Troopers without the lectures. It's The Forever War with better sex. It's funny, it's sad, and it's true.” —Cory Doctorow

Featured Article: The Most Stellar Sci-Fi Authors of All Time


Science fiction is a genre as diverse as you can imagine. There are stories that take place in deep space, often depicting teams exploring or running away from something; stories that focus on life at the most cellular level, such as a pandemic tale; and stories that take place in times that feel similar to our own. Depicting themes of existentialism, philosophy, hubris, and personal and historical trauma, sci-fi has a cadre of topics and moods.

What listeners say about Old Man's War

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He said... He said... He said...

It's an interesting premise and I listeded to the whole thing but at times I wondered why. Seems like it wasn't edited yet.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Interesting early Scalzi

An interesting alternative to Starship Troopers or The Forever War. Not as fun as Scalzi’s later works but certainly worth it.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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A creative way to think about aging

It’s rare to find a new and different idea about a subject. This gentle story is just that. A worthwhile listen for sure.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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First Scalzi book listen

I enjoyed the plot line and narration. I've listened to other outer space Sci Fi warfare type novels but this one had a unique twist to that genre which is nice. I look forward to the 2nd book in this series

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Loved it!!

Scalzi is rapidly becoming my go to author!! The last three books of his have been exceptional!!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not perfect, but a real enjoyable story

First off, William Dufris just kills the narration. He really makes the various characters shine, whatever they paid that dude isn't enough.

The story is good. There are weird internal inconsistencies that make me wonder if this wasn't once a longer book, and certain plot threads just got dropped out of necessity, but it really take me out of the story when a character makes a very big deal about a thing, then acts completely contrary to that the next scene/page. The story in general is imaginative, not overly predictable, plays with some tropes in fun ways, and is generally very good.

TLDR: super enjoyable. I'd recommend it.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Classic Scifi plus romance

This story was awesome. I had some doubts about the second half, but ultimately Scalzi pulled it off. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

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Favorite book

So good everything was amazing I wish I could listen to it again and again

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Love!

I didn’t expect to like this one. I was right. I love it. I’m hooked. I cannot wait for the next book.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Engaging story line, creative, and highly entertaining.

I enjoyed it throughly. I just wish there was a sequel, will definitely look for one.

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