Ender's Game

I understand why many parents are saying this book is for older teens, given the themes and violence involved. But one of my fondest memories as a child was reading this book cover to cover the day after I got it for Christmas when I was 9. I had no idea a book could be that good, or that I was even capable of reading an adult length novel. It entirely changed how I approached reading, and I owe so much of my late elementary and junior high reading experiences to it that I hate to see parents or kids shy away from it only because of the theming. There is extreme violence and bad language, but the violence is necessary to explain the morally complex story presented, and the main character grapples with his discomfort with what is going on. I think in the same way that Judy Blume demonstrated that younger readers than we might expect can deal with challenging topics like death and sexuality, Card demonstrates that the same can be true of violence and political strategy. I would not shy away from offering this book to a reasonably mature child with a love of stories about sci fi and fantasy battles; he or she may well be better off directly grappling with the moral complexity of war than reading yet another fantasy story about a battle of good guys versus evil monsters, where the bright lines between good and evil allow the author to unquestioningly glorify battle.

For others to say that this book provides positive role models is a very twisted perspective. The book is written about 6-8 year olds (innocent children) acting like puberty hit at age 3 and testosterone levels were over the top from the womb. As I have read many of the reviews written by children, I note that a number of them state explicitly that they kept forgetting that the main characters were little children. Maybe that is due to the fact that other than Card telling us in a line or two that they are, everything else in the book from dialogue to social interactions between the characters is obviously beyond even teenage expression. After having read several Card books, I have concluded that he has a number of personality defects that come out in his books... exhibitionism, contempt for even proper authority, and the need to insert sexuality into all of his books that were presumably written for children... well, let's just say that I would never hire him to babysit my children. I was shocked to learn that Card is a Mormon. I had always thought that Mormons were known and even stereotyped for their high, even extreme morals... not Card! For an adult book, the plot and story line were fine as long as you could forget that it was a kindergartener who was speaking and acting like a Navy SEAL. In many ways, the books real social or literary "value" is all stolen from Lord of the Flies, and better exploited in The Hunger Games. Not much new to offer, and not very thought provoking. (Although it did leave me pondering if my personal experience with six year olds has been too limited. I'll have to sit down with one, over a cigar and coffee, in a nightclub and have a conversation with one.)