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Do you ever get tired of it, Mr. Card? Strange wannabe writers, wannabe sci-fi buffs, strange people in general, people you don't know, giving you praise? No, I don't suppose you do. I don't think I would either. But I don't plan on becoming a writer anymore.
Nope, A Lawyer, that's the life for me!
But, that's besides the point. I remember reading your introduction to Ender's game, where you commented on getting a few ideas (or notions, or whatever) from Isaac Asimov (whom I hear you're heralded to replace.) In any case, realizing that you took ideas from him, I decided to read his Foundation series. It wasn't until I read Foundation's Edge however, that I saw a similarity (well, a direct one, in any case), that reminded me of your novels.
It was of course, Hari Seldon threatening to destroy Nemarti's larynx, indicating that doing so would remove his vocal privileges permanently.
I then remembered reading Memory of Earth (or it's sequel, I only read four of them though), in which Nefai's sister (forgot their names, sorry.) threatened and accomplished the same punch to the larynx indicated by Asimov. I thought maybe that was on of the ideas you got from him.
Silly me though, I forgot to find the dates and check them against publishing to see who published it first.
Silly me even more though, because I just realized (or really, at the start of my post) that I'm sure it was just coincidence, you just both got the idea from somewhere.
But, I just wanted to praise you anyway Card, because I still think the things you've written are pretty icy. Oh, Icy is a word for nice.
But, that's just me.
SotG was pretty cool, ya know. Makes you wonder what happens to Bean. I'm sure you underlined what happens to him or are planning to do so, and said so in aprevious post, but I'm lazy to read everything. Anyway, take care Mr. Card.
Posts: 19 | Registered: Apr 2005
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Nobody can replace Isaac Asimov. Though I would certainly love to be able to match him for clarity of prose and decency of spirit.
I don't know that I took any particular ideas from him beyond the obvious resemblance (deliberate) between Capitol and Trantor.
I did read Foundation's Edge before writing any of the Homecoming novels, but there was no conscious influence. Punching people in the larynx has been used by many an action writer.
As for praise: To tell the truth, not all praise is created equal. I do love hearing that something I tried to accomplish, which was hard, worked for a particular reader. But I'm mildly horrified when some well-meaning readers approach me with statements like "You are God!" Besides the fact that I find that usage a little offensive (though I take into account that it is usually well-meant), I simply have no idea what one should even say to that. "Thank you" seems ... I don't know, but inadequate and immodest.
Best praise for an author to hear: What a book meant in a reader's life. But I don't actually want you or expect you to admire ME. It's my characters I hope you like, just as, when I direct a play, the goal is for you to think the actors are wonderful and never even notice that I was there.
Well, not EXACTLY like that. After all, we do put my name in very large type on the cover.
Posts: 2005 | Registered: Jul 1999
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Several years ago I taught in a school where I was allowed to choose what books to read with my classes. I taught Ender's Game two years in a row to my honors 8th graders and for most of them it was the longest and most difficult book they had ever read. Those kids have all graduated high school now and have gone on (surely) to read other great work but when they see me, every one of them reminds me that Ender's Game is still their favorite. I know my passion for the book makes it a fun one to teach but it is the story itself that makes it a favorite. Even now, I highly recommend it to my gifted 7th grade students and I have to replace my own personal copies every year since mine ALWAYS walk off (which only happens with the best books). Harry Potter is great for getting lower level non-readers interested in reading but Ender's Game is what I give to the kids who think they are great readers. It is often the bridge from YA to "adult" fiction. At that age, some of them have such egos about their abilities in language and that book gives them a new sense of awe and enthusiasm to explore other challenging authors. There is no other book that has this effect on my students so thanks!
Posts: 1319 | Registered: Jul 2005
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"Several years ago I taught in a school where I was allowed to choose what books to read with my classes. I taught Ender's Game two years in a row to my honors 8th graders and for most of them it was the longest and most difficult book they had ever read. Those kids have all graduated high school now and have gone on (surely) to read other great work but when they see me, every one of them reminds me that Ender's Game is still their favorite. I know my passion for the book makes it a fun one to teach but it is the story itself that makes it a favorite. Even now, I highly recommend it to my gifted 7th grade students and I have to replace my own personal copies every year since mine ALWAYS walk off (which only happens with the best books). Harry Potter is great for getting lower level non-readers interested in reading but Ender's Game is what I give to the kids who think they are great readers. It is often the bridge from YA to "adult" fiction. At that age, some of them have such egos about their abilities in language and that book gives them a new sense of awe and enthusiasm to explore other challenging authors. There is no other book that has this effect on my students so thanks!" THat is quite a nice complement, but I don't quite agree with all of it. Most difficult book they had ever read? I didn't and have never seen Ender's Game as a difficult read. I acknowleadge the fact that it is "adult" fiction, but thats one of the things i personally love about EG. Its not the litery terms and grammar that make it great, its the story. I can't think of an easier read than Ender's Game
Note: Im not trying to insult anyone here, and im not sure if being told one of your books is an easy read is a good thing or a bad thing.
Posts: 332 | Registered: Apr 2005
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I am not saying that Ender's Game is a difficult book for seasoned readers but for kids who have been reading nothing heavier than Harry Potter, it certainly is. It is the level of the kids I was referring to, not the level of the book. Did that make a little more sense?
Posts: 1319 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Oh good grief! I was just giving some well deserved praise! Why does it have to be picked apart?
Posts: 1319 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Mr Card I know of few other books that have influenced me more or better then Ender's Game the other books were "fun" and the speaker trilogy was "fascinating" but EG was just... Awe, Admiration and brilliance personified.
Posts: 1567 | Registered: Oct 2004
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I've read EG three times now and have enjoyed it more each time. Whenever someone asks me for a recommendation for an SF book, EG is always in the top 5.
I haven't yet read the most recent novels in the series, but I look forward to it, because I can never get enough of Ender and his adventures.
So thank you for the hours of happy reading, Mr. Card.
Posts: 68 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I've read Ender's Game 37 times and I've read Ender's Shadow 43 times. Not because I can't remember anything, on the contrary I almost know it word for word, but because I just love reading them.
Posts: 27 | Registered: Jul 2005
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The first of your books to blow me away, Mr. Card, was Speaker For the Dead. That book is STILL my favorite of your books.
I read Ender's Game first, but, while I liked the concept of Battle school and the 'game', I didn't really care for young Ender. Still, I wanted to know what happened next...so I read 'Speaker For the Dead'.
SftD is just such a great novel. I think what really makes it stand out for me is the family and older Ender in the book. Yes, the aliens on the planet are interesting and what happens with them is interesting, but whenever I think of Speaker For the Dead, I think of the family and Ender. Those kids and how Ender essentially become their father is just..so...wow. Just perfect, imo. And older Ender is a ton better then young Ender (of course, I admit, without the experiences that he had in Ender's Game, Ender wouldn't be the same. so thanks for Ender's Game too).
My next favorite novel is Xenocide. This, to me, seemed like two books in one, but both books were fastinating. The storyline on Path and the storyline with Ender are both really good.
After that, I enjoy the Bean books and your Alvin books quiete a bit too. Bean and Alvin are great characters,imo. I enjoy all the Bean and Alvin books so much. I can't wait to read Master Alvin and of course Shadows in Flight (even though Bean prob won't be in that).
Oh and another book I really loved: Pastwatch: The Redemtion of Christopher Columbus. What a novel! It might even be after Xenocide for me! It just blew me away and it made me really intersted in that part of history. I really need to get a book on Columbus someday and find out what really happened (aside: well, of course, I know some of what happened, being American but what I mean is I want to know more in detail what happened).
Oh and while its not one of my favorites, I did enjoy Magic Street and it had a great ending (prob one of my favorite endings in fact. not a favorite book, but maybe the ending is one of my favorits. Pastwatch, Shadow of the Giant, and Magic Street are my fav endings so far most likely).
I'm looking forward to whatever you write next.
You are definitly my favorite writer right now!
DF2506 " Hasn't read Enchantment yet. But I'm going to get it soon."
Posts: 128 | Registered: Sep 2004
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The thing that I like/dislike most about your books is that I end up really caring about the characters. I usually finish your books in less than 48 hours because I want to know what's going to happen to even the most despicable person. Even when I've really HATED the book this desire forces me to finish the book. (I really disliked the first book of the Homecoming series and new I hated it 3 chapters in, but had to finish it.)
Ender's Game was the first novel I read in Japanese. I love it because I love all those flawed people making tough decisions, like the rest of us.
Posts: 79 | Registered: Nov 2000
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Let's see. I read Ender's Game for the first time when I was 11 or 12 (can't remember) and I'm almost 23 now. I've been periodically rereading for the last...oh wow, 12-13 years. My parents were the ones who gave me the book to read, and I'm eternally grateful to them for doing so. I was a "gifted" child, in the advanced programs at school and whatnot, and Ender spoke to me like no other book ever had.
Right now I'm trying to convince my book club to read it -- they all scorn "sci-fi" as a genre and I'm using Ender's Game and the Speaker series to coax them over the edge. It's fun!
Posts: 6 | Registered: Jul 2005
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MandyM, you're absolutely right. I wish I could teach EG to my 7th graders but it's reserved at the 10th grade level in my district. I settle for recommending it like crazy.
EG is a totally new kind of book for most readers that age, and as such it's a challenge -- but one they are eager to meet.
quote: I've read Ender's Game 37 times and I've read Ender's Shadow 43 times.
That's amazing. I don't think I've even read my favorite book that many times. I'm curious: how do you keep track? I mean, do you put hashmarks or something on the title page? I always write the date in a line down the page, because I'm curious how long I go between readings. I can't say for sure, but I think the most I've re-read any book is (maybe?) 10.
(Sorry if this reads as sarcastic, because it's not meant to be; I really am curious.)
Posts: 68 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I tallymark my books on the inside cover. I must admit, my highest read count award goes to Harry Potter #3--I read it fanatically throughout elementary and middle school, and still read it when I feel like it. It only takes about three hours, so it's not like it's a major time-drain on me.
Current total is, gosh, sixty-five...average that out...five years since I got it...that's 13 reads per year, or once every four weeks. Of course, in my maniacal Potterphile days, it was more like once every two weeks... I feel like an obsessive fanatic (which I am, of course).
I would be reaching that total on Speaker, which is my favorite book right now, but I'm reading a new book of Mr. Card's practically every week, so it'll be a while if/when I decide to start serious rereadings.
Posts: 973 | Registered: Apr 2005
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To MandyM: I took your words as they were intended. In fact, however, people often miss the fact that Ender's Game is a complicated and difficult book. I didn't write it for kids; i made NO compromises in vocabulary, moral reasoning, etc., for younger readers. It puts a lot on their plate. So when a kid reads Ender's Game it generally shows him for the first time that he's capable of reading harder stuff. It only SEEMS easy to those who are so excited by the story they don't let the difficulties stand in their way.
As for multiple readings - there aren't many books I go back and reread. In the last ten years, my re-reads have been limited to Pride and Prejudice, LOTR, Foundation Trilogy, and ... if there's another, I've forgotten what it was. Oh, wait! I did read Peter and the Starcatchers and then immediately turned around and read it aloud to my family - but that's two very different purposes ... does it count? <grin>
Posts: 2005 | Registered: Jul 1999
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I haven't ever had a chance to say that Speaker for the Dead taught me that I could love everyone, even the most despicable. I found myself loving Novinha, and when that happened, I found myself loving my worst enemy at the time. This bit of revelation is slowly but surely changing me into a better person. Posts: 1903 | Registered: Sep 2003
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