July 8, 2008 at 9:43 am · Filed under Book Reviews, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror
94. The Ships of Earth by Orson Scott Card (Science fiction) 351 p.
This is the third book in the Homecoming series, following The Memory of Earth and The Call of Earth. In it, Card continues the story of Nafai and his family as they start their journey across the desert, following the call of the Oversoul to the place where they will embark on the trip to Earth.
Card, who is himself a Mormon, uses stories from the Book of Mormon as the basis for this series. It’s one of the most interesting things about the books, but it’s also one of the things that makes the series less enjoyable to read–for me, at least. I have no experience with the Book of Mormon, but the story feels Biblical, both in the themes underlying the story and in the behaviour of the characters.
Simply put, most of the characters in Homecoming are seriously unpleasant. Their behaviour is disgusting and their thoughts are repellent, and in a way that makes me assume that Card is being faithful to the original source. This works for me on one level, since it makes the story seem more religious and significant. On the other hand, I hate reading about nasty people. I’d rather read about characters who are more straightforwardly evil than the kind of petty, grinding selfishness and ambition that drives most of the Homecoming characters. Card does a great job of making them believable as real people, but that doesn’t make them any more attractive.
There are a few characters that I like in this series (Luet, Zdorab, and possibly Hushidh are the only ones I have no reservations about, but Nafai, Isseb, and Shedemei are okay, too), and there were a few goods scenes I really enjoyed reading, but by and large the story was driven by conflict between the characters, which is why I had to take a two-month break in the middle.
As always, Card’s writing is awesome, even when I don’t love the people he’s writing about. I have reservations about the way he treats gender relations and homosexuality in this book, but for the most part I’m willing to accept that the characters would believe the things they do and behave the way they do, even those things with which I vehemently disagree. There are a few statements made about homosexuality that were strange even in the context of the story, but since I knew going in that Card and I have quite different views on the issue, they didn’t impede the flow the story for me.
There were a few other annoyances, mostly things that happened to be pet peeves, but as usual, Card’s skill as an author kept me reading and enjoying the story, even when I didn’t like the direction it was taking. All in all, this was a very good book that happens not to be to my personal taste.
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pages read:27,590
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2008, Cardathon Challenge Redux, Homecoming, Orson Scott Card
April 30, 2008 at 3:16 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror
68. The Call of Earth by Orson Scott Card (Science fiction) 332 p.
This is the second volume of Card’s Homecoming, and it takes up right where The Memory of Earth leaves off. Wetchik and his sons are still in the desert, but another dream sent from the Oversoul sends them back to the city for something else they need: women. Specifically, wives for each of them. Meanwhile, the general of a great empire is eyeing Basilica, and it may not be possible to stop his plans for the city.
I liked this book better than its prequel, mostly because the main protagonist, Nafai, started to grow up and develop as a character, and so became far more likable. Luet and her sister also became more prominent, and they, along with Nafai and Isseb, are my favourite characters.
I’m always impressed at how Card, even when he’s telling a story that carries a message, never reduces it to a mere vehicle for that message. His characters may be prophets, maybe be moral failures or moral heroes, but they’re always human beings first. My absolute favourite scene in the book is the wedding night, because whatever else Nafai is, he’s still a fourteen-year-old virgin. One with a good sense of humour.
I’m glad I bought the first three volumes of the series at once, and now I only wish I had all five!
Pages read: 19,635
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2008, A ~ Z Reading Challenge, Cardathon Challenge Redux, Homecoming, Orson Scott Card
April 30, 2008 at 3:02 pm · Filed under Book Reviews, Favourite Books, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror
67. The Memory of Earth by Orson Scott Card (Science fiction) 330 p.
After falling in love with the Ender series this year, I decided to get to know some of Card’s other series. I had never read a review of the Homecoming series, but I knew from reading his open letter (addressing concerns about plagiarism in The Memory of Earth) that it’s based on the story of the Book of Mormon. I was interested to see what Card would do with a sacred story from his own religion, in giving it a science fiction setting and thus opening it to a wider audience.
For forty million years, the world of Harmony has been a world without large-scale conflict. The Oversoul, an artificial intelligence satellite system revered as a god, has suppressed any thoughts that would lead to such conflicts. While some technologies have flourished, mechanical transportation and anything large than hand weapons have not been invented. Now a crisis has come: the Oversoul, designed by humans fleeing the destruction of Earth, has far outlasted its intended lifespan, but humanity has not yet learned how to live in peace. Despite its best efforts, the Oversoul is breaking down.
How closely the story of The Memory of Earth follows the Book of Mormon is impossible for me to tell, since I’m totally unfamiliar with the latter. I do know that Card, as usual, tells a brilliant and engaging tale, one which left me thoughtful and eager for the next in the series.
I had some of the same problems with this book that I had with Xenocide, namely that I found many of the characters annoying and unsympathetic. The fact that Card clearly intends them to be so didn’t stop them from diminishing my enjoyment of the book somewhat, but I wouldn’t say that the story itself suffers for their presence. Quite the contrary, since they all have a role to play in its moral framework.
And that’s important, because Homecoming, even more than the Ender saga, has a point to make, and it isn’t really possibly to evaluate the books individually, except as entertainment. In that context, The Memory of Earth is a success: I couldn’t put it down.
Pages read: 19,303
Tags: 50 Book Challenge 2008, A ~ Z Reading Challenge, Cardathon Challenge Redux, Homecoming, Orson Scott Card
