Tag: Orson Scott Card

Redemption

James HoganLeave a comment

Quick update this Wednesday morn! Firstly, a few of my latest book logs…I just cannot keep up lately for some reason. My latest three:

35. Shadow Puppets by Orson Scott Card. As said a few entries ago, I sort of read the Bean series out of order. So this is the last one I read, even though it really should have come earlier. Not going to go into plot details, but yet another gripping adventure with amazing characters – I really do love Bean, Petra, Peter et. al. so much!! I think(since it’s been a few weeks since I’ve read this so I’m already forgetting) that this is also the book that Peter’s parents (and Ender & Valentine’s…but they’re not in this book) play a much larger role. They are simply hilarious and I love them much as well. Finally they get to be a bit more than just “the parents”. Fun times. And the ending to this book. I cannot talk about it without spoiling, but to this day I can remember the stunned exhilaration I had when I first realized what had happened near the end of this book. Orson Scott Card is one of my favourite authors for a reason. Speaking of…

36. Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card. The OSC train continues! This is technically the sequel to Ender’s Game but it is a very very different book to that. I was trying to explain the plot of this book to John the other night and…it was a bit difficult. It’s set some 3000 years after the first book. Ender is basically grown up now? He comes to a planet where a Portuguese Catholic colony has been founded and made first contact with an alien species(the pequeninos…) and he meets a very messed up family and there’s also a deadly virus that’s trying to kill everything and I am really going to stop talking about this plot because it’s impossible to summarize for someone who isn’t going to read the book. But it is truly a remarkable book. It starts the trend of each book in the Ender series being more philosophical and “talky” than the last. It starts to get a bit wearing by the final book, but here…this book…masterpiece. And apart from the mystery that must be solved(why did the pequeninos brutally massacre the human scientists? What’s their secret??), the thing that I remember the most about this book is the thrilling human relationships and interactions that OSC describes. Again, OSC is a master at talking about interpersonal relationships and painting vivid characters. So the main family in this book…they have six children right? A lot of times when a lot of characters are described, they all run together and you don’t really remember who’s who. Not this book. I can tell you the name of each character and describe them to you in detail. (Miro, Ela, Quim/Estavao, Olhado, Quara, Grego…) So reading this book – it’s more than just a science fiction novel (although it is that). It’s reading about a family and their problems and their pain and their fears…and what shall be their hope? If you can’t tell, I much enjoyed this one.

37. Xenocide by Orson Scott Card. Next book in the series. Actually just finished this one last night! Shan’t write long about this as I’m very much running out of time. This book is slightly more difficult to read, firstly because of the slightly overwrought philosophical discussions. Secondly because the story of Qing-Jao and the “gods of Path” (actually just an overly aggressive and tragic form of OCD) is definitely not always fun to read. The mental illness aspect is uncomfortable in and of itself. And although OSC is a religious man (his Mormon tendencies do come out at times, as much as I wish they wouldn’t), he does love to play with the idea of religion just being a way for humanity to explain the universe…and in this book in particular, he likes to explore the idea of a character (Qing-Jao) being able to explain any situation or circumstance (whether good or bad) as just being the will of the gods expressed in the disguise of explainable human action. I know what OSC actually believes, so I respect him for having the intellectual honesty to approach this question rigorously…and for these novels, in and of themselves, to take the humanist/agnostic perspective! Nonetheless, it still is slightly irritating, for I do believe in a real God that works in this world. And I believe God is sovereign over all. Of course, Qing-Jao’s dogmatism and unshakable faith in the cruel gods of path is something that I cringe at. Yet I am aware that some others in this world would cringe at my own faith in a God whom many would see as cruel and unloving. Somehow I really did still enjoy this book though. And thinking of things in a religious light, I do long that all in this world would come to know and understand the true God of this universe, a most perfect, just, loving and sovereign God. A God whom we may call Father – if we would only believe in Him. Thus is my heart.

Now I really am running out of time. A few more words and then I shall fly. Last night got to go to a Rockets game with James – Rockets v Blazers! Firstly, the Rockets are…not great right now. So they got destroyed. They’re 1-5 now I think? 1-6? But apart from that! Was an awesome night. Me and James – great talks as always…good to catch up, especially since he is no longer part of Cameron…sad and tragic but great for him so I am happy. And apart from the good chat and good food (classic Rockets meal for me = buffalo chicken strips and fries!), it was an extra-special game night, as James met up with his ticket rep beforehand…and because of…er…how terrible the Rockets are now?…we were offered free seat upgrades to lower level (bonus!) and even more exciting, we got to stand court-side for warm-ups! Sadly the Blazers were warming up on our end, but it was still pretty cool watching the players warm up. I realized I am very small. And just standing on the actual Rockets court – so incredibly amazing for a basketball nerd like me!! And the very best part…? The Rockets starters always get announced after the lights dim, intro video plays…right? And they run onto the court when their name is called, right? Anyways – a few of us who were court-side got to make a little tunnel and high five the Rockets starters as they were announced. So yes, I got to high-five Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, PJ Tucker, Clint Capela & Eric Gordon. Pretty sick. It was pretty amazing to be standing feet from them pre-announcements and watch them get psyched up for the game…Paul is so incredibly focused and intense, stretching, swaying back and forth…game face. No wonder he’s as good as he is. But seriously now…standing right next to these men, you do realize (even though you know this!) that they are regular humans. I may see them on TV and read about them online…but they’re as human as you or me. They are not titans (although they are very tall). They are but men. Severely flawed ones, to be sure. As am I. And so although too often our adulation and praise for sports stars can veer towards the idolatrous, let us remember that our worship belongs to only One. Our Lord, our God. And on that note…let me share a couple verses from a song that encouraged my soul this morning as I drove to work…

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art

High King of Heaven, my victory won
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heav’n’s Sun
Heart of my own heart, whate’er befall
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all

Apple Pie

James HoganLeave a comment

It’s a Friday, at long last! And though I didn’t write yesterday, let me it be known that on October 11th in the year of our Lord 2018…it finally actually felt like fall for the first time all year. Temperatures in the 60s when I walked outside? I was very – most pleasantly – surprised! And today is the same. Fall is here, y’all. FINALLY. Last night, I went to EQ to get some reading time in…and I found out that everyone else had apparently also realised fall had arrived since the porch was full of far too many people and I had trouble finding a spot! Thankfully I did. Had a nice chat with Lea on phone…then eventually Fran and Haley and John showed up and we had good times hanging out in the cool autumnal air. Now, I need to start work momentarily, but as I’m far behind on my book logging…(sorry, I just keep forgetting!), I’ll jot down my last few reads:

31. Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card. Yup, I am fully in OSC re-read mode. No apologies. This book is an interesting parallel companion novel to Ender’s Game. It is definitely interesting to see most of the events from Ender’s Game from a slightly different angle! Probably not quite as good as Ender’s game, but it has some poignant moments that make it totally worth it. Following Bean – a character that definitely grows on you – this was a book that I always forget how much I love. The ending especially is incredibly emotional and a line from the end of this book is currently the front-runner for the title of my next mix CD. So there you go.

32. Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card. The second book in the Shadow series – or the Bean series, as I like to think of it. Honestly, I usually think of Ender’s Shadow as a a book on its own – since it’s set in space! – and the following 3 books as their own trilogy. Because these next books are all set on Earth and deal mostly with the geopolitics of the world following the conclusion of the Formic Wars. Fascinating stuff. I like it because…well, it’s science fiction and set several hundred years in future…but it’s also dealing with recognizable nations and cultures. So you have weary and decrepit America, aggressive Russia, expansionist India, arrogant China…and soon(but not quite in this book), the Caliphate stretching across Africa through the Middle East (and Europe I guess, with Turkey…). I love international relations and so it’s incredibly fascinating seeing Card’s simulated future! Complete with genius children leading them to war! Anyway, this book mainly deals with most of the children getting captured and Bean having to figure out how to rescue them. Finally we get to see much more of Petra, which I love because she’s an amazingly awesome character. And of course Peter Wiggin begins to emerge onto the scene. This is a fantastic book…in my humble opinion.

33. Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card. So…er…yes, this is the fourth book of the series, not the third. Why did I read this one next? Well I was in Chicago this past weekend with John and Daniel. And obviously I brought a travel book – Shadow of the Hegemon. Picked up Shadow of the Giant in a used bookstore in Chicago, because it was the one book I didn’t own and figured I’d read it when I got home. I underestimated my reading speed however, and finished my travel book a few days into trip…so obviously had to read this book since I didn’t bring a backup book. Tragedy. So yes, I’m reading this series out of order. Oops? Anyway! This book is a fitting end to this series…I won’t spoiler it, but I will say I didn’t quite remember how it ended but once I finished it…definitely satisfied. One thing interesting about this book (I suppose I could go into depth, but I will refrain) is you definitely even more so get a feel for Orson Scott’s Card worldview. His Mormon beliefs very obviously inform the themes of this book(and looking back on it, the whole series) – and most obviously, the thought that having children and a family is our main purpose on this earth. By marrying a wife and having children, you “become a part of the human race” and find true meaning. Some of this echoes with my soul – i.e., I do think God designs us with a longing in our hearts for finding a partner and having children (a legacy – as cold and hard as that word sounds). But is that the true meaning of life? I would say not. And I would say it is easy to idolize family above all else, which Card gets dangerously close to. Still – it is rare to see books these days praise marriage and families at all, so I will enjoy these aspects and yet remain wary of seeing perfect fulfillment and happiness in this earthly life. Anyway!! I do go on. This book was fantastic, and once again, I found myself emotional as I finished it.

34. Rubicon by Tom Holland. I sadly do not have time to fully describe this book. A marvelous historical narrative of the last hundred years or so (really the last fifty in greater detail) of the Roman Republic. I know many of the names and bare facts of the Republic, but reading this gave me so much more knowledge of the actual people that lived during this time!! Villainous Sulla and greedy Crassus and proud Pompey and arrogant Caesar and noble Cato and fearful Cicero and enigmatic Caesar Augustus(nee Octavian)…so many tragic moments and so much bloodshed and oh so much fierce politicking and oh the depths of depravity of humanity how we never change. I simply loved this book. The fall of the Republic is something that was bemoaned even while it was happening yet…man is evil and cruel and so the events fell out as could only be expected – in total war, chaos, fear and shell-shocked resignation. There is so much in this book I could talk about, but I much enjoyed reading this history and discovering more about the Republic that was Rome.

The Reading Goes Ever On and On

James HoganLeave a comment

29. They Were Found Wanting by Miklós Bánffy. Book number 2 of the Transylvanian Trilogy (or the Hungarian trilogy – as I call it to my friends!) has been conquered. This one took me a little while to complete, but I did truly want to enjoy it…so not attempting to rush through it. I wrote a pretty decent summary of this trilogy when I talked about book 1, so shan’t repeat that. But this book(as I guess middle books of trilogies are wont to do?) got even more depressing…and the characters are not exactly in the best of places. Will things get better? I’m slightly worried that they may not, especially as the Great War looms even closer now. There was definitely a lot more focus on the European political atmosphere in this book…oh so tragic with hindsight. Oh so blind were oh so many. I am hoping that the characters somehow get to a better place in the third book though. We shall see? Balint, Adrienne, Laszlo…surely things can’t get much worse. But I could most definitely be wrong. After I closed this book on a wonderfully emotional note, I wrote in my little notebook (for I knew I wouldn’t log this for a few days, so wanted to jot my thoughts down while they were hot) the following: “What a wistful, melancholy end. Beautiful. Yet oh so sad.” And there you go. Book 3 awaits. I may not read it for a bit though – want to savour this trilogy. I can only read a book for the first time once.

30. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. Ok so yes. This is definitely a re-read. I first Ender’s Game…freshman year of high school, I believe? I had to pick a book for a English I reading project and I grabbed this off the shelf in the media center. It was a most fortuitous choice, for it began my love affair with OSC’s work. All through high school and beyond, I named him as one of my all-time favourite authors. I don’t know if he would rank quite as highly now (simply because I’ve read many more authors since that time!). But I still own multiple of his books (10 or so?) and after reading this, I remembered why I loved him so much. His characters are just amazingly well realized. Almost no author does better in writing full, breathing characters than Card. And it gets even better with the next book in this series – “Speaker for the Dead”. But anyway – I’m talking about Ender’s Game! I’ve read this a few times before, so the plot is a known quantity. But I did forget how imaginative it is. It’s good solid sci-fi…with fun innovations and incredibly cool concepts. And the drama flows hot and heavy. I first read this in high school, so I guess this escaped me then, but I did forget how crude and crass some of the dialog is. I guess kids talk that way sometimes? So I didn’t enjoy those parts quite as much, but once I got past that…I really just fell in love with the book and with Card all over again. This book is quite philosophically sophisticated as well…it’s not just a “good humans defeat evil aliens!” sci-fi novel. Oh no, there’s so much more to it than that…I don’t really want to write out the whole plot here, but I will say that as I finished the book last night – sitting in EQ – I was incredibly satisfied. The whole sequence at the end…with Ender visiting the land of his dreams on a far-away planet…and his subsequent communion with the queen of the race that he destroyed…beautiful and tragic. As the queen communicated to Ender, “They didn’t forgive us – we shall surely die,” my heart nearly broke. And on that note, I’ll end this overly long review. But any book that summons forth such emotions surely deserves my praise.

Now…back to sipping on my coffee here at Starbucks. This Saturday rolls ever on.