Hey All, I have read allthe books in the neders series and all the books in the shadow series. I am about to read the Alvin maker series and I was wondering the difference between that series and Card's other two series I mentioned. Could someone please give me an idea of what the lavin maker tales are about and stuff like that. I'd really appreciate that. Thanks, bye... Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Differences?
Hmm. . . well, one is about a kid in space, the other's about a spaced-out kid. . .
One has red aliens, the other has alienating Reds. . . (Okay, I know the buggers weren't TECHNICALLY red. . .)
Read the series. You'll love it.
Posted by VenomsValentine (Member # 5359) on :
I think the Alvin Maker series is supposed to be the Joseph Smith story
Posted by EnderWiggin2004 (Member # 5366) on :
What is the Joseph Smith story? Thanks
Posted by Heather Laurae (Member # 3796) on :
Crap, this is Geoff; Heather was signed in already I'll go log out ...
[ July 05, 2003, 04:13 AM: Message edited by: Heather Laurae ]
Posted by Geoffrey Card (Member # 1062) on :
Okay, now, under my REAL name ...
The Alvin Maker series is very LOOSELY based on the key points and ideals of the life of Joseph Smith, the foudner of Mormonism. If you've never heard of him, it won't impact your reading in the slightest.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
<grin> I didn't know that it was based on Joseph Smith's life until a little over a year ago.
And if you are worried about religion in the book, don't, because the story line may be similar to Joseph Smith's life, but there is no God involved, he is not contacted by The Lord and there is only as much mention of Him as there is in any other book set in the early 1800s.
Hobbes Posted by Mialith2713 (Member # 5246) on :
Completely different genres. Apples and oranges.
Posted by Papa Moose (Member # 1992) on :
The Alvin series has cooler characters. Or it will, at any rate. Posted by Geoffrey Card (Member # 1062) on :
Ender, Papa Moose is just proud because he won an Orson Scott Card trivia contest that Orson Scott Card himself couldn't have won, and as a prize, got characters named after himself and his wife in the next Alvin book
So, anyway. While the Speaker and Shadow series are both science fiction, the Alvin Maker books are set in a fantasy alternate reality. They take place in a frontier America where folk magic works, and has changed the course of human history. You won't see any spaceships or high-tech stuff. Otherwise, though, it's got all the common Card themes. Spectacular children outdoing adult expectations, the building of utopian communities, smart people mouthing off to powerful people and getting their way, etc. If you like Card in general, you should like Alvin just as much.
Posted by Mialith2713 (Member # 5246) on :
I like a lot of the characters in AM series because they often are real people, and seeing new twists on history was very interesting, and not something a lot of people would have the guts to go and to, let alone do correctly. Many I know history professors thoroughly enjoyed the books.
p.s. I'm still trying to figure out what the kanji in COTM are. Anyone know?
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