Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I first read Ender's Game back in 2003. I feel like I read a lot of foundational books for the first time in 2003. It was the first year in a long time that I didn't have the spectre of homework or at least the creeping feeling that I was supposed to be doing something else at all hours of the day.

2003 was also well before I knew anything abou Orson Scott Card's religious or political affiliations. I've discarded the possibility of buying any more things by or from the author, but I did read Ender's Game, along with all of the follow-ups that existed at the time.

Ender's Game is a very good illustration that the art can absolutely be separated from the artist, because while Card and his beliefs are repugnant to me, I absolutely love Ender's Game, and it for sure holds up on a re-read.

I will say that I remember it being a subtler book than what I recently read - Ender's isolation, his ostracism, is like a brick to the face even before they come out and say it, but that's the only note that feels even a little bit false. Alongside Ender's journey and the friendships he makes, the games, the lessons, they are creatively designed and masterfully described with stakes that never feel lower than the author intends.

I wish that Card wasn't the kind of guy he is, or I wish that Ender's Game had been written by someone else. I can't recommend that you buy this book, but if you can find a way to acquire it without putting money in Card's pocket, it is definitely worth the read.

Definitely the best Sci-Fi that I've read.