"Gatefather"/"Ender's Game" Similarity: Things Are Not Always What They Seem To Be -- Review of Orson Scott Card's "Gatefather"

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Reviewer: Forrest Schultz schultz_forrest@yahoo.com 770-583-3258

Blog Address: http://newsciencefictionandfantasyreviews.blogspot.com/

January 11, 2016

Gatefather/Ender’s Game Similarity:

Things Are Not Always What They Seem To Be

A Review of

Orson Scott Card Gatefather (Tor, 2015) 

                                383pp   $25.99   ISBN: 978-0-7653-2659-1

Reviewer:  Forrest W. Schultz

     I highly recommend Osron Scott Card’s book Ender’s Game (but NOT the movie, which is a gross distortion of the book).  The story in the series it launched is not only a good read, but also teaches us that things are not always what they seem:  in this case Ender’s apparent victory was actually Xenocide.  The same principle is found in Card’s latest book Gatefather:  contrary to what seems to be the desideratum (opening the Gate), the Gate actually should be kept shut lest a great evil is set free.

     By the way, I am not giving away the story because the inside book jacket tells us this in its concluding paragraph!  It is surprising that the publisher did not preface this paragraph with a spoiler alert.  But the jacket did not contain the warning to the reader of the inane actions and dialogues of the immature teens with which the book opens, for which reason I ceased reading immediately – I could not take any more of it!   In that respect this story differs from Ender’s Game:  those dummies are not even in the same league with Ender!