The Forever War by Joe Haldeman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Forever War
Book Review: A new classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Bought this as a gift for my husband, an avid scifi reader who prefers much older books to the modern. Here's what he had to say: "Ranks with the classics of science fiction literature; thought-provoking, well-written, difficult to put down. Deserves all the awards that it won."Book Review: A remarkable, inventive science fiction war novel
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Forever War" is a brilliantly constructed tale illustrating the pointless brutality of war. William Mandella begins his interstellar tour of duty in the late 20th Century and, due to the relativistic effects of sub-light speed, finds himself in a war that will seemingly last "forever." The book details all of the gory violence of war while at the same time illustrating the friends and relationships that are gained through shared tragedy. Fighting against an enemy that nobody has even tried to communicate with or understand, "The Forever War" is an obvious allegory to the Vietnam War, still prominent in people's minds when the book was written in 1975. And while some of the treatment of cultural issues in the book seem a bit anachronistic now, such as Haldeman's treatment of homosexuality, the book's theme still manages to be powerful, with a suspenseful plot and climax as well. "The Forever War" is a heartily recommended science fiction classic and a must read for even non-science fiction fans.Book Review: A spark of hope in a very bleak future
Summary: 5 Stars
This is great science fiction, time dilation giving us glimpses of humanity every few hundred years as our race battles against the competing issues of the drive to procreate and the limited resources available to a growing population.
In many ways the war just seems like something to throw money at to keep the economy stable. It's based on a lack of communication. For both of those reasons it seems to resonate with our current political climate.
The Forever War asks many questions. One of the biggest: Will there be war as long as there are differences? And the corollary: Are these differences worth holding on to? The only real answer that we get is that love still manages to find a place in all the insanity, even when both love and the very concept of individuality border on extinction.
Book Review: Absolute classic
Summary: 5 Stars
It's already been said, so I'll keep it short. This is a classic sci-fi war story with a totally different perspective than most war novels. It is an absolute must read!Book Review: All Time Favorite
Summary: 5 Stars
This is my favorite book, period. I first got interested in this author through a short story called "Timepiece", which has a very similar setting to this book, but is in only a few pages. I have probably purchased 6 different paperbacks of different editions, lent them out to many friends, and eventually they found themselves in someone else's book collection. Personally I have read this book 15+ times.
The basic story line is about a young Physicist who is drafted into a elite army (UNEF) to fight an alien force called the Taurans. The protagonist, William, is a reluctant soldier, who quickly travels through the ranks due to a high casualty rate, and as he describes it, "a talent for being missed".
The scene the author sets is both familiar and exotic. He describes the army in "olive drab colored glasses", that any person going through basic training in the present day would recognize. At the same time the soldiers fight in powered battle armor that is both fantastic and lethal (sometimes to the wearer), often on planets that are at cryogenic temperatures. Haldeman's scenes of these "portal planets" are both scientifically accurate, and nightmarish - highlighting the general feeling of the book.
Even more interesting is the effect of relativity on the soldiers. As they go out on missions they travel near the speed of light, which causes them to age months, while decades to centuries pass back home. The effect of culture shock is even more alien to the soldiers than being in the army.
Haldeman brings his characters alive with a combination of both empathy and dry wit. The ending is great will probably to bring tears to your eyes, but I won't say why!
There are only two disappointments I have with this book.
The first is that story is a little dated. The main character was born in 1975, and black hole jumps were discovered in the 1990's. You can add 100 years in your mind and get away with this. More difficult to handle was the fact the characters parents were hippies, and there is an overtone of weed and free love that is difficult to shake. For this reason, purists might want to picture this as an "alternate reality" science fiction.
The second disappointment is that it is a "one hit wonder". I have read everything Haldeman I could get my hands on. While they have been enjoyable reads, nothing comes even close to touching this book. This was the book he was meant to write.