“Speaker for the Dead” by Orson Scott Card
I went to school to study engineering. From my time at school I had this impression of science fiction as a brainless act of mental masturbation. This wasn’t from reading the material but from listening to my fellow geeks talk about one inane story plot or another. I am guilty of of a superiority complex, this is a sin I try not to be guilty of it.
Speaker for the Dead
Orson Scott Card
Read by David Birney, Stefan Rudnicki, and more
August 1994
I have read a few sci-fi books but typically couldn’t finish it because of how dumb it treated the reader. Perhaps most of the books in this genre deserve this classification but only on reading the book can this judgment be made. I think this book is an exemption to my rule. This was a good book, at times I found it difficult to turn off my iPod. The voice acting was top notch with only one criticism, there were too many actors reading the story. The book was read by 6 different readers both male and female with no real roles for the different voices, at random times a new voice would start reading the book which was a bit confusing. Not that I mean each voice reading a different charter in the book (which would have been interesting) but I’m thinking roles that are more like plot situations. It was something to get used to and once I did it wasn’t an issue. For a science fiction book there were a few moments that tugged on the heart strings, there was a point in the story that made me very emotional and that was a first for me. I haven’t read any other books in this series and will probably pick one up soon.
