- Library Binding
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1435234995
- ISBN-13: 978-1435234994
- Product Dimensions: 16.8 x 10.4 x 3.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Orson Scott Card's SF career began with Ender's Game, a 1977 story expanded into an acclaimed 1985 novel. Unwittingly responsible for xenocide--destruction of an alien species--while still a boy, Ender expiates his guilt on another world in Speaker for the Dead. This confronts humanity with a deadly alien-built virus whose elimination seems to demand another xenocide. The tense continuing story takes an extraordinary leap into magical metaphysics at the climax of Xenocide, of which Children of the Mind is in effect the second half. Though that virus is now defeated, this isn't believed: the planet-eating doomsday weapon still approaches. Ender's AI friend Jane, who inhabits the galactic net and is the only agency that can move spacecraft faster than light, is being killed by dismantling the net. Ender himself is fading, passing responsibility to strange young avatars of his dead brother and aging sister created from his memories in Xenocide. Even in the shadow of death there are grippingly argued political, philosophical and moral debates--plus bitter family quarrels. A master storyteller with a knack for showing painful human relationships, Card achieves almost unbearable suspense before resolving his complex tangle and finishing Ender's 3000-year story with a touching elegy. One dangling plot line suggests that Card may return again to this universe. Solid, high-quality SF despite some implausible science. --David Langford
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Review
"Card's prose is powerful."--"Publishers Weekly"
"This is a worthy ending to what might be styled a saga of the ethical evolution of humanity, a concept seldom attempted before and never realized with the success Card achieved here."--"Booklist"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"This is a worthy ending to what might be styled a saga of the ethical evolution of humanity, a concept seldom attempted before and never realized with the success Card achieved here."--"Booklist"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
After reading the first three novels of the Ender Saga, this, as as the finale to the range, was rather dissapointing. Unlike the other books of the series, Ender Wiggin hardly features in this book, apart from the first few chapters.
As the back cover explains, Jane--the artificial lifeform--is able to travel "outside" of space-time. At first this was interesting and exciting, but after the Nth time, it merely became annoying. Also, the book has drifted from the philosophical roots of the previous books, and instead this book concentrates more on the "mystical" and spiritual elements which, again, just became tedious.
If you feel obliged to read this novel due to the high quality of the other books in the series, think twice, for it's not essential.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Having waited years for the end of the Ender/Speaker series, this was a let down. I got the impression that Uncle Orson knew he had to finish the series - but didn't really know how to do it. So he throws some completely over the top ideas into the pot and ....
If you've read the rest, you probably need to read this for completion - but don't expect to be wildly impressed. When he's hot OSC is the best - but on this occaision he fluffed it.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I got the feeling OSC tried to string out every detail of the story just so he could fit another x number of pages in. Un-needed and contradictory, parts of the story soon became tedious and over wrought. The characters became unlikeable, whiney and selfish with very few of them knowing their own mind. The parts that were good soon became mired down among all the various over-winded parts of the plot. Trying to tie up the book with references from the prophet of path was just daft. What on earth has he done to the original Ender? - Barmy, take a great character and destroy him with voodoo.
In my opinion a poor book from OSC - having read the tales of Alvin Maker and then the most excellent Enders Game, he has gone from the top of Sci-fi writing to the has-beens in a short space of time. I just wish he would stop trying to preach religion in his books, the references are just getting annoying and he seems to be trying to shoe them in all over the place. Please get back to what your good at Orson.
In my opinion a poor book from OSC - having read the tales of Alvin Maker and then the most excellent Enders Game, he has gone from the top of Sci-fi writing to the has-beens in a short space of time. I just wish he would stop trying to preach religion in his books, the references are just getting annoying and he seems to be trying to shoe them in all over the place. Please get back to what your good at Orson.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
`There is always, always more to learn.'
The Starways Congress is shutting down the net, world by world, and has gathered a fleet to destroy the planet Lusitania. Read more
Published 15 months ago by J. Cameron-Smith
A good end to the series.
This is a very intelligent book taking all the themes from the previous books and expanding on some and clarifying others while adding new ideas. Read more
Published 19 months ago by plot hound
Not up to the standard of the first novel
A little less rambling than the first one, but I would still much prefer the storyline to be tighter rather than giving way to the self indulgent waffling from the author that... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Yvonne N
Reinvigorating my love of Sci Fi
I thoroughly enjoyed this final volume of the Ender Saga. The socio-economic and humanitarian areas covered in this series seemed so much more varied and in depth than other books... Read more
Published 22 months ago by ozdaveuk
It is a great book. A marvelous finale.
I don't really understand why there are so many bad reviews of this book. Yes, Ender is not the protagonist anymore, ok. Read more
Published 24 months ago by Sergio M. Martín Rodríguez
This is the end, Beautiful friend.
Children of the Mind, as you will know by now, is the final instalment of the Ender Saga. The first of the books ENDERS GAME was a top notch space opera adventure tale, a rights... Read more
Published on 29 Jan 2008 by Mr. P. Rigby
Enders Lame
Summary:- Being all really oh so clever and knowing loads about science, the good guys who really are so nice that they are about as believable as Mary Poppins, become almost... Read more
Published on 9 Aug 2005 by Nang
Perfect ending...
A direct segue from Xenocide and one that sustains the pace from the end of that book. The emphasis is mostly shifted away from the leads in the previous novels and onto Ender's... Read more
Published on 5 Jan 2000
Not bad but could be better.
Not as good as the first two books in the series. Its a bit like Xenocide by being to preoccupied with religion and disability. Read more
Published on 18 April 1999
Are you raman or Varelse?
CotM is a great book, and an excellent read, it exceeds Ender's game and even Speaker. I found that the complaints of rambling are justified, but if you don't understand the... Read more
Published on 14 Jan 1998
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
