Before reading Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, I thought I hated all science fiction. This opinion was dramatically changed when I was introduced to Ender, a six-year old genius who has been chosen to command the entire army in a war against the alien buggers. The story continues through his training in space at the Battle School and then the Commander School. Throughout his training his teachers separate him from the other children in these schools. The teachers try to make his training as hard as it could possibly be, not only by isolation, but also by putting all the odds against him in the battle games that are used to teach strategy and a variety of skills that will be needed if the children make it into the army. During this period of grueling training, Ender is struggling to keep his own true identity of who he wants to be instead of what the teachers are pushing him to be, which is a killer. Ender begins to feel more and more like his brother Peter, whom he despises and feels is a “murderer at heart.” Ender’s sister, Valentine, even says to him, “…Peter has mellowed, but you, they’ve made you into a killer.”

This unusual plot caught my attention from the very first page and held it up to the last chapter. In my opinion, the last chapter is the only bad part of the book. It has several random new ideas squeezed in at the last moment to create a rather confusing and vague ending. Despite the last chapter, I extremely enjoyed the book. I would recommend it to anyone who likes fiction, even if they do not usually enjoy science fiction.