Old Man's War

By: John Scalzi

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins

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

A Fine Space Opera

Well worth the “read” but not quite an Enders Game or an Asimov Foundation novel. Those are very high bars and take nothing away from this fine work. Good SF makes you stretch into a new reality and this novel did that. I’ll be back soon to listen to the next chapter.

Great Heinliebeques space military

Lot of fun. Heinleinesque but it's on creation. inventive well paced well narrated action political adventure with plenty of real life emotion.

Good, but not Great

Would you consider the audio edition of Old Man's War to be better than the print version?

No

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Interesting premise, but it never really transcends being a gimmick.

Have you listened to any of William Dufris’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to a Dufris reading before- It takes a little getting used to, but his character voices do add to the story once you get into the flow.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not really.

Any additional comments?

As big of a deal as Scalzi is, I expected a little more than Starship Troopers warmed over, and although it was a fun listen, ultimately this is pretty formula stuff. Good for what it is, though.

Great fun and a unique premise

John Scalzi is quickly becoming a favorite sci fi author for me. Old Man's War has a ton of humor and heart, and the audio is perfectly narrated by William Dufris. I can't wait to continue the series.

Fantastic!

Loved it! A fantastic sci-fi book. The world that Scalzi creates is full of life and depth. the narrator did a wonderful job!

I like it.

I love this book. I've read it at least a dozen times and I'll likely read it again this year. The narrator did a good job bringing the characters to life. At first I didn't enjoy his narration at all but as I continued to listen I began to appreciate him. As it stands now I'll likely keep an eye for his name. All in all a very good experience. 😁

Good book, mediocre performance

The narrator is good in general, but when voicing women he makes them sound week and fragile, even if they are bad asses. this is very annoying.

they should have added a female co-narrator.

also, the overall voice acting is a bit casual and a bit comical. not enough gravity in my opinion.

I recommend reading the books in this series instead of listening to them.

An excellent book. Very

Very enjoyable. it portrayed the mode of life for the military. Recommend it if this is your genre.

A Must READ!

Would you consider the audio edition of Old Man's War to be better than the print version?

I will always love the real hard copy book more than the audio book. I have a strong bias toward the hard copy. It was one of the first books that I bought with my own money. That book has been to many foreign countries.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Old Man's War ?

John Perry's first battle! I don't want to give anything way.

What about William Dufris’s performance did you like?

He could work on this sad/distressed voice but otherwise it was great. He utilized a verity of voices making it easy to distinguish between characters.

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

If I was stuck on a plane I most certainly would!

Any additional comments?

This book is action pack and extremely funny. be prepare that you will not be able to put this book down. If you are new to Sci-fi this is a great place to start. I think they should make a movie out of this book.

Way different than expected

This was a very pleasant surprise. I was expecting hard core Sci fi but this was humorous, not overly tactical, two day listen!