Interesting, entertaining, and surprisingly enough not Ender's Game.
I've put off reading this book for a couple of years. I felt I had enough OSC (Orson Scott Card) preachiness after reading the Ender's Game series from Ender's Game to Children of the Mind.
I was surprised to find this story goes back to Ender's Game. Not quite a re-telling of the same story, but rather a new perspective on the events and outcome of Ender's Game.
Bean, was a minor character in Ender's Game. However, here, Bean receives full billing. We get to know Bean. How he earned his name. his special talents. How he lands in battle school. And his relationship to Ender Wiggins.
Seeing through Bean's eyes added new depth and understanding to Ender's Game. The cast of characters is more complete with the additional perspective of Bean from Enders'.
On it's own, the story is good, if not fantastic. There is enough original story to be considered separate from Ender's tale. The beauty is in how the author wove it in seamlessly to Ender's Game.
Bean is a homeless child living in hellish conditions in the streets of Rotterdam. He escapes his circumstance by gaining notice from Sister Carlotta. He is tested and discovered to have an incredible mind and super increased intelligence; traits the battle school is looking for in recruits for the impending war against the Buggers (The Formics).
While in battle school Bean meets Ender and eventually develops an uneasy, if not distant relationship. At first, Ender doesn't seem to recognize Bean's abilities, but time shows that Ender was grooming Bean as his tactical support.
The main theme rests on Bean's struggle with the battle school administration; tyring to uderstand the reasoning for their actions, their treatment of Ender, what they may have in store for him. Amongst all of this, Bean has to contend with the reappearance of someone (Achilles) from his time in the streets of Rotterdam.
My rating: ★★★★☆ (4 out of 5 stars) - I really liked it.
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