1. Room by Emma Donohue
2. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama
4. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
5. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
6. A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin
7. A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin
8. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
9. The Shack by William Young
10.The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides
11. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
12. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
13. Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
14. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Okay so this book doesn't actually have children fighting to the death. But it did sort of remind me of The Hunger Games. And not just because it has the word "game" in the title. Let me explain.
Ender's Game is about a futuristic world in which an alien species known as "buggers" have already attacked twice and nearly decimated the human population. Earth is preparing for an inevitable "third invasion" by training the world's smartest children (assuming the invasion won't come until they are grown) in an orbiting "Battle School" where they learn combat techniques.
So the premise centers around the idea that the fate of the world falls on these children who must grow up fast and think like soldiers to succeed. That's basically where the Hunger Games comparisons end.
Ender Wiggin is the best of the best. He is chosen for Battle School after his older brother Peter (too violent) and his older sister Valentine (not violent enough) are both rejected. He shows promise and they believe he will not only be a great soldier but he could be the commander they are looking for to command their entire spaceship fleet.
Ender is a genius at strategy, and though he is small he is smart enough to physically compete with enemies much larger than him. When he is forced to harm bullies at school to protect himself, he confronts his greatest fear- that deep down he is as malicious as his older brother and enjoys hurting people.
I don't personally read a ton of sci-fi, but this one was pretty easy to follow and doesn't delve too deeply into physics-nerd territory. Ender is a likable and interesting character and the story moves pretty quickly.
SPOILERS BELOW!
By far my favorite part of the book was the end, where Ender finally comes to understand the buggers. He realizes they have been communicating with him telepathically all this time- he was more special than anyone could have guessed. He speaks to the last bugger queen when he discovers her, and she makes him realize that they are very like humans, and they made the same tragic errors of judgement.
Just as humans assumed that creatures who did not speak or write had no intelligence, so did the buggers assume that creatures who could not read each other's thoughts were not intelligent. The phrase that stuck with me was, "...never did we dream that thought could arise from the lonely animals who cannot dream each other's dreams.”
How different would our world be if we could understand each other on such a cellular level?
I know several people for whom this is one of their favorites, and maybe it could become the same for you. For me, the first 300 pages were enjoyable if somewhat forgettable, leading to a dramatic conclusion that made the lead-up worth the read.
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