Old Man's War
Ratings615
Average rating4.1
This was a very quick read and a very novel concept for a universe to be set in. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
It is very rare that I read a book quickly, choosing instead to take my time and be thoughtful with it. I dipped this one in butter and devoured it. This is all-time, top-5 level quality. It hits on subjects and themes that I love: sci-fi, military, heroic/flawed/”human” protagonist. One scene was so strong for me personally, that I was able to reflect and answer a question I've been pondering about myself for years. The writing style is wonderful and engaging; I was hooked after a few paragraphs. I highly recommend this to anyone with even the slightest predilection for sci-fi. If you enjoy sci-fi plus character relationships, you should love this.
A good war book. I don't like war books. They all fell the same to me. The sci-fi twist is strong, but far from enough.
Abusive drill sergeant? Check. Intense military training? Check. Many fights with enemy armies? Check. Realization of how cruel and unfair war is and how that makes you feel like a monster? Check.
The first part of the book tells the story of John Perry, a 75 years old man who decides to join this space army, from which no one knows anything about except that they are very scientifically advanced. People sign up for this army because they assume that if they need old people to fight a war, they must have found a way to make them younger again.
So, John makes some other elderly friends in this journey, and at last, they do have a way to make them fit for fighting a war. This first part ends in space, where all the recruits are testing their new abilities and becoming accustomed to their new bodies.
The second part is your usual military story. Humanity is not alone in the universe, and we must fight to expand if we are to keep relevant in the universe. There is many battles with unusual alien species, very well described. There is this race of one inch tall creatures, mold people and some other warmongering monstrous races.
In a future where Earth is at war with neighboring aliens on the widening frontier of mankind, recruits are no longer the young. Now the elderly enlist, with the promise of youth and longer life. The first book in the series was solid on its own, although the ending was more rushed than I expected. I probably won't listen to the next 5 in the series.
If you are looking for an exciting and entertaining science fiction adventure with a touch of satire and romance, you might enjoy Old Man's War by John Scalzi.
As far as good summer reads go - this one hit the spot. Not the least bit challenging, but the character development was good (John is a compelling protagonist), and the main conceit was entertaining. As I was reading I got the feeling that this was “lite” space-opera, but that's fine. No need for pretense. This just wasn't as out there (for me, at least) as, for example, Iain Banks' work is.
I guess the measure of how much I liked this is to consider how likely I'll dip into books 2 and 3. The answer to which is “yes”.
Simple, entertaining read. I was never sure where the story was going and in a sense it didn't go anywhere as there was no ‘quest' element to it.
I don't know if it was written as an introduction to a universe but if it was it does it well.
I feel like this is not a particularly positive review, but it is: this was the sitcom rather than a hard-hitting drama. The drama's good to get your teeth into, but sometimes you want to relax and laugh
You can find a more detailed review of this over on sffbookreview
When I read this, I enjoyed every page and would not put the book down. However, there was one thing that bothered me while reading and bothers me even more now, a while after I've read this.
The side characters, in fact the entire group of “Old Farts” are cardboard cutouts only there to explain things to our protagonist and maybe die to show us how brutal this war can be. I didn't have time to get attached to them, I couldn't even really tell them apart.
Scalzi may be a great writer who know's how to keep my attention and make me want to read more, but this story? Very bad on the character side (and that's what I value the most).
Plot, story-telling and world-building: Absolutely brilliant.
An absolutely storming book with a brilliant mix of sci-fi and story to make it extremely readable. A good story and interesting concepts combined with a fast pace make this a perfect book for people looking to get into sci-fi.
No character development to speak of, and a lot of fascinating quandries get brushed aside (the mind/body problem most criminally but also issues of mortality, memory, and age). But still good, mindless fun
This was excellent. I definitely want to read more of this author. His writing is very Heinlein like but without the sexism in the stories.
Loved it! Turns out your can out-drill-sergeant the Full Metal Jacket drill sergeant — slow clap for Scalzi here for accomplishing this feat. Also, some on point (and hilarious) observations on Siri-like voice-controlled interfaces. In 2005!
Good book with an interesting premise but seems to be only an open chapter of many so not very conclusive.
Very similar to Starship Troopers.
I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought that I would initially. Maybe it was the ominous monolith that is the name SCALZI that permeates the world of sci-fi right now or the fact that the title and concept of a book about elderly people fighting sounded hilariously unappealing. Either of those, really.
It turned out to be a fun, quick read that sets up a pretty interesting future for humanity. There were minor grievances with the plotting but overall it was a fun book and definitely deserves the praise that it has received. I'm an idiot for not reading it sooner.
Scalzi's books flow with wit, good dialogue, some interesting ideas. I'm pretty sure i will be tapping into the rest of the series
This was a very fun introduction to the universe John Scalzi built. I am glad I listened to this, however, there was just bits of immaturity throughout the book that I thought probably could have been left out. Glad to see this is a series...
This was a lot of fun to listen to (I audiobooked it). The writing is packed full of humour, and the imagination of different species and technologies is vast. I'm sure that if I continue with this series, there will be no end to the humour and imagination.
But I tend to lean towards books that make me think a little more; where the unique ideas aren't simply creative ideas about possible alien species, but ideas about new ways of thinking. Also, it was altogether too rah-rah military for my liking. The lightheartedness made that bearable, because it felt like a sort of spoof on Starship Troopers, but in the end, the military ideals and action focus that I'm not too big on was prevalent.
I was looking for something to listen to which would fill the void in my life in all the months between James S A Corey's Expanse novels, but this fell a little short for me. The moral complexities, character development, and level of detail in the Expanse are far superior to what this story offers. Though I enjoyed the style of the writing, I just didn't care too much about the story itself.
Just reread OMW (because it was the January 2013 Sword and Laser group pick). It was perhaps even better the second time through.
Military Science Fiction with a surprising amount of heart and emotion. Brilliantly written!
This was a highly entertaining and fast-faced look at what war may be like in the future. The history of characters connected me to the individuals and I was upset when they were gone.
I can't wait to read the next book in the series.