Songmaster

SONGMASTER is a wonderful audio book. Card revisits some familiar themes, including the morality of indoctrinating children to do terrible things, and the high cost of power. He creates an empire of a hundred thousand worlds, but focuses on the intertwined lives of a few individuals. The focus is on a young singer named Ansset. He is a gifted child, blessed and coveted by all who hear him sing. He is an innocent tossed into a royal court seething with Byzantine intrigue. The book constantly returns to the idea that all there is a price to be paid for any gift, whether it is one given by nature or by another human being. Card?s story sucks you into a world that seems too idealistic to be true, but is nonetheless compelling. The psychological dimensions of the novel suggest that Card may be in desperate need of therapy, or that his books are a cathartic release that unflinchingly looks at what innocence means and how love and intent determine how an action should be judged. Only Card knows for sure, and maybe he is still sorting it out. He creates characters you care about and the narrative tension comes from the threat that seems to loom over every decent person in his books. We get to watch his characters grow and change. Most of the characters evolve from one-note beings into people with demons and angels lurking in the deepest recesses of their minds. The pleasure in the book is watching the interplay of these opposing forces and seeing the consequences of the character?s actions. Definitely worth the time and a credit.

There is violence love and various adult situations, but is beautiful, and as most of us know there is good and evil in this world, it's just how we deal with it. This story takes in a life time of one remarkable individual who changes many lives by his existence. If you are turned off by homosexuality in even the slightest form don't get this book. However the story is about strength and overcoming barriers life puts in front of us.
I truly enjoyed this book, even though I have read several of OSC's books, I loved "Enders Game" and "Enchantment" I have read several others and really didn't care much for them. This is the third OSC book I can say I truly loved.

At the finish of the audio book I was shocked to learn this book was written 30 years ago. I feel this is a testament to the authors ability to write compelling stories that are not dated to the times he/she wrote them. Enjoyable work, as I have found all his work I've encountered so far to have been. Worth the time and the credits..

It is unfortunate that those who are objecting to the one consensual gay love scene (NON Graphic) miss the whole point of the scene altogether! Card doesn't explore gay sex as much as he explores violent hatred of gay men. There is another scene where a man who is doing a body search leaves Ansett feeling a bit violated - however the description is only offensive to the extent that pedophilia is offensive.

The greater social and moral statements of this story are far more memorable than these two short scenes in a 12+ hour book. Card has never been afraid of showing us how society shapes us. In the case of songmaster, we explore several different situations where Ansset is changed by the prevailing cultural themes.

It is a powerful and moving book that does not disappoint in any way. It is classic Card - young boy, thrown into a situation where he impacts the world or universe and how those pressures weigh on that boy as he grows up. I loved it!

He spent to much time describing physical acts and seemed to spend a lot of focus trying to make the reader uncomfortable than making the story interesting.

yes, great book..for adults.
I wasnt shocked by the Gay sex parts, but that makes it an 18+ years old book.
good intrigues
Even though, the story unfold in an inter-stellar empire...it's still subtly a fantasy book

We did not need to "explore" gay sex in this otherwise great story.