• The Human Division

  • Old Man's War, Book 5
  • By: John Scalzi
  • Narrated by: William Dufris
  • Length: 14 hrs and 53 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (6,265 ratings)

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The Human Division  By  cover art

The Human Division

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

Following the events of The Last Colony, John Scalzi tells the story of the fight to maintain the unity of the human race.

The people of Earth now know that the human Colonial Union has kept them ignorant of the dangerous universe around them. For generations the CU had defended humanity against hostile aliens, deliberately keeping Earth an ignorant backwater and a source of military recruits. Now the CU’s secrets are known to all. Other alien races have come on the scene and formed a new alliance - an alliance against the Colonial Union. And they’ve invited the people of Earth to join them. For a shaken and betrayed Earth, the choice isn't obvious or easy.

Against such possibilities, managing the survival of the Colonial Union won’t be easy, either. It will take diplomatic finesse, political cunning…and a brilliant "B Team", centered on the resourceful Lieutenant Harry Wilson, that can be deployed to deal with the unpredictable and unexpected things the universe throws at you when you’re struggling to preserve the unity of the human race.

©2012 John Scalzi (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

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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 The Human Division

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  • Overall
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    5 out of 5 stars

Episodic format takes a little getting used to.

The chapters/episodes get better the farther into the book you get. Enjoyable and an interesting look at different characters in this universe. Anxious to move on to book 6.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not as good as the original OMW series

As always, Scalzi is very good at wry, cynical dialogue and his space-battle scenes are both exciting and horrific, but he seems to have concentrated more on the novelty of the episodic format here than on a coherent story. I get the feeling (or at least hope) that this book is mostly a transportation step towards an even better story to come.

To my taste, the book has too much politics and conspiracy and too little technobabble. I like my space opera technobabble-heavy.
Still, as usual, a great gallery of well-defined and convincing characters are given extra depth and plausibility by William Dufris great narration.

Worth the listen if you don't expect much from it.

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Not sure how to rate because it's an awesome story

Loved the story and the reader was great. it's just that at one point all the "saids" got really irritating. I feel as though the writer could have been a little more catering to the reader, the book seems like it was written as a script for a movie or something.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Scalzi hits it outta the park... again!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Absolutely... already have.

What did you like best about this story?

The loose connection between all the stories, finally coming together in a most clever and delightful way.

Which character – as performed by William Dufris – was your favorite?

Harry, by far.

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

Laughed out loud a number of times, stifled unsuccessfully.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

excellent!

The human devision is an excellent addition to the old mans war series. John Scalzi continues to impress!

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Great short stories!

If you liked Old Man’s War, you’ll love these short stories about Harry Wilson and his colleagues post-Lost Colony. 👍

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Refreshing and joyable

This audiobook is just great - the author ties it together greatly, and the narrator sounds as he's playing with the book - bringing depth and color to it. it's one of the best I've ever listened to!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

amazing tale

just fast paced well told. the it connects is just right
Love old man's war.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

THE B TEAM

The human division is a change of paste comparing the counter part books, all 4 books are different in my opinion in their own way. That being said I'm glad the focus was on harry Wilson. but also how the story revolves on solving problems in unique ways.

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excellent story well worth it.

a very good book. we'll worth a listen. both serious and funny. check it out if you enjoy sci-fi.

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