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Old Man's War (Old Man's War #1)

by John Scalzi (Goodreads Author)

4.23 · Rating Details · 97,308 Ratings · 6,211 Reviews

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.

The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-- and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate ...more

Mass Market Paperback, 362 pages

Published January 15th 2007 by Tor Books (first published December 27th 2005)

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Jan 03, 2014 The Holy Terror rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, borrowed, aliens, color-blue, space-opera, military, forgot-to-drink-the-kool-aid, supportive, 2011

There wasn't anything horribly wrong with this book, but I found myself unattached to any of the characters. And even for a science fiction novel I thought a lot of the plot was just unbelievable; the main character seems to excel at and have the answer to everything while his fellow soldiers get killed left and right. The people he meets are little more than cannon fodder and you don't really get a chance to like them so it's not that big a deal when they bite it. Scalzi chooses to barely descr There wasn't anything horribly wrong with this book, but I found myself unattached to any of the characters. And even for a science fiction novel I thought a lot of the plot was just unbelievable; the main character seems to excel at and have the answer to everything while his fellow soldiers get killed left and right. The people he meets are little more than cannon fodder and you don't really get a chance to like them so it's not that big a deal when they bite it. Scalzi chooses to barely describe the various characters, and when they get their "upgrades," they all are young and beautiful and even harder to tell apart. It also doesn't help that every single character has the same snarky voice; even the women.

Almost a full half of the novel is spent on setup and getting the soldiers ready for battle. A lot of the technology was interesting and also easy to understand, but I felt like too much time was spent on leading up to the main story. And then, when the characters finally enter into battle and start fighting for humanity's right to colonize, each chapter reads like: "this girl died, then that guy died, then this girl got eaten, then that guy got vaporized, now let's go kill some aliens and act like complete dickwads because if we don't kill them first, humanity is DOOMED." I was continuously bored because I didn’t even care if the humans won or if the main character lived to see another day.

The first and last chapters did make me a little teary eyed, and this was mostly due to the relationship the main character had with his wife. Scalzi's focus is never on characterization though, so these brief interludes add only a small amount of charm to an otherwise emotionally bereft story.

I'm hoping that this was just a case of "first book syndrome" since this is the beginning of a series. I've heard it gets better, although I've read his newest book, Fuzzy Nation, and I really think I'll continue to have the same problem. Namely, I feel like he enjoys creating a worst case scenario and devising the cleverest way for them to escape it, and it all ends up feeling too neat and methodical. It's just too bad that I don't really care about his characters, because then these books would be a lot more enjoyable.
...more

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Jan 01, 2014 mark monday rated it liked it

Shelves: futuristik

sometimes a first novel gets everything right. writing that is clean, clear, and fluid. characterization that is simple, straightforward, and real. a narrative that hurtles forward but does not feel rushed or incomplete. ideas that feel new and that are conveyed with enthusiasm and a brisk, unpretentious freshness. such is Old Man's War.

this is a military science fiction novel and the first of a series. that probably brings up a whole host of automatic preconceptions about what will be happening sometimes a first novel gets everything right. writing that is clean, clear, and fluid. characterization that is simple, straightforward, and real. a narrative that hurtles forward but does not feel rushed or incomplete. ideas that feel new and that are conveyed with enthusiasm and a brisk, unpretentious freshness. such is Old Man's War.

this is a military science fiction novel and the first of a series. that probably brings up a whole host of automatic preconceptions about what will be happening and how the protagonist - a recruit in the interstellar wars of the future - will be quickly introduced to his new life... initial bonding with his fellow soldiers... training with a tough drill master... the first battle... the first kill... the death of comrades... cynicism... more battles, and the promise of more to come... and somewhere in there, perhaps, a bit of unlikely romance. the template has been around for a while, Starship Troopers et al, and Old Man's War doesn't stray from the tried-and-true.

but as anyone even slightly familiar with the novel's premise knows, this traditional narrative gets a shot of adrenalin by having the hero be a 75-year old man who finds not just a new life, but a new body by joining up with humanity's defenders. actually, "adrenalin" is the exact opposite of the word that should be used. because of new soldier John Perry's past life, the novel has actually been injected with a massive dose of wry introspection and not a little melancholy. and so many of those traditional stops on the military scifi journey are likewise transformed into something different. even the inevitable 'unlikely romance' has become a rather original new thing.

oh how i enjoyed the opening chapter! rather than a youngster fit to jump into conflict and other forms of excitement, we get the calm and thoughtful musings of an old man looking back with fondness and sadness on his rich but quite regular life, and getting ready to start that life anew. a contemplation colored with all of the amused and slightly cantankerous distance that a gentle grandfatherly type would have. and much later in the novel, as John Perry spends time with the unusually intriguing romantic interest, we get another warm and often unsentimental portrait of this past life. all quite moving. i did not expect to be so moved by Old Man's War.

despite everything i've mentioned so far, this is still a tough-minded book that is rooted in classic military tropes. there are a lot of fascinatingly exotic and often horrible aliens. there are battles on the ground and up in space. there is blood and guts and a huge body count. and yet the word that comes to mind after reading the novel is... lovely. ...more

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Oct 22, 2016 Mark Lawrence rated it really liked it

I really enjoyed Old Man's War and think you should read it. For me it was a 5* first half and a 3* second half (I liked the 2nd half but it wasn't 5* 'amazing'). Scalzi can write! He opens with excellent characterization, touching and real. This skill at bringing the POV character to life, at catching the vibe of a vital individual grown old and isolated, combines with a great plot hook. It's vivid modern almost literary writing unfolding a fascinating take on future earth.

The second half felt ...more

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May 19, 2014 Megan Baxter rated it really liked it

I'm about to say something I wasn't sure I'd ever say about a science fiction novel about interstellar war - this book is warmly humanist in its approach. From the first time I sat down to read it, I felt invited and welcomed into the world Scalzi was creating. I enjoyed meeting and spending time with the characters he creates, who are mostly interesting and intelligent people that you'd want to know. I loved the digressions about the morality of following orders, and war as the easy way to deal ...more

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Feb 25, 2011 Dan Schwent rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sf, 2010, christmas-2010, favorites, the-scalz

John Perry enlists in the Colonial Defense Force on his 75th birthday and gets whisked off to war in a new and improved body, defending Earth's colonies against alien races. Will John be one of the few that survives his first year?

John Scalzi's blog is one of the few I've followed in 2010 and I'm pleased to say that if Old Man's War is any judge, his novels are just as entertaining as his blog.

I've been pretty omnivorous in my reading tastes the last couple of years and I think that's why I like ...more

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Jan 31, 2016 Lyn rated it really liked it

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi has been described as an exciting new take on the work of Robert A. Heinlein.

Scalzi himself acknowledges being inspired by the late grandmaster. Much of the tone and style of the book does seem to not only imitate RAH, but somehow channel his genius into a new voice for a younger generation. Most evident is that Scalzi has recreated Heinlein’s corny but endearing dialogue, espousing an approachable and likable optimism.

A Heinlein fan will compare this most readily t ...more

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Dec 25, 2013 Carol. rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: fans of soft sci-fi

Shelves: action, sci-fi, male-lead, classic

Definitely an enjoyable read. A nice mix of philosophical and humorous observations, especially in the beginning, manage to capture the tone of an older person looking back on a long life.

The beginning starts with John, the main character, entering a recruiter's office to review and sign his enlistment contract. It is a marvelous device, allowing John's internal commentary and reactions to provide needed background to the current political and technological setting. Scalzi's straightforward writ Definitely an enjoyable read. A nice mix of philosophical and humorous observations, especially in the beginning, manage to capture the tone of an older person looking back on a long life.

The beginning starts with John, the main character, entering a recruiter's office to review and sign his enlistment contract. It is a marvelous device, allowing John's internal commentary and reactions to provide needed background to the current political and technological setting. Scalzi's straightforward writing structure dovetails nicely with the factual tone the narrator originally takes in describing the journey on the recruit ship and the interactions with his shipmates. After undergoing his transformation, John loses a little of his emotional distance, gaining excitement with his new abilities. Scalzi's pseudo-informational promotional material regarding the BrainPal captures the humor of corporate-speak, but it's his scenes with the Master Sergeant that had me laughing out loud. His final words of praise: "Don't let it go to your head, Private. You are still a dipshit. Just not a very big one."

I found the introduction to new races to contain most of what I enjoy in space-roving books. I enjoyed the training segments and initial skirmishes and only wished they could be more fully described. It's always a challenge depicting a character's transformational process; while training can be repetitive, it's hard to believe the transformation into elite status unless details are shown. I felt the one awkwardness in the book was the section with the invasion of the Whaidians and Bender's efforts at diplomacy. Scalzi raises interesting philosophical issues that are somewhat at odds with the rest of the book, and are never really able to be resolved. Why isn't diplomacy pursued to a greater extent?

Nonetheless, the rest of the story is well constructed, and Scalzi surprised me with integrating an emotional thread into the armed services experience. It was a satisfying read, and enough to lead me to his next book.

"They are four words that so inadequately and so perfectly sum up a life."

Cross posted at: http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/0...
...more

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Aug 05, 2007 Temaris rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, alienworlds, reviewed

This is an odd sort of book. Scalzi has a really neat central premise -- but the story gets lost up against it. The story is told in an oddly clinical fashion that leaves a sort of feeling that you're being given a report on story instead of the story itself. The story moves along briskly enough, but I'm left oddly unmoved by the protagonist's experience.

It doesn't help that while the premise requires that the protagonist excel at warfare etc., he surpasses all expectations -- stuns his drillma ...more

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May 20, 2016 Vagner Stefanello rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, physical

Review in Portuguese from Desbravando Livros:

O que você faria se tivesse a opção de se alistar no exército aos 75 anos e voltar a ser jovem de novo? É uma ideia no mínimo tentadora, correto? E foi pensando nisso que o protagonista de Guerra do Velho, John Perry, decide se juntar às Forças Coloniais de Defesa (FCD) ao chegar nessa idade.

Uma decisão que a princípio parece fácil, já que você terá um corpo novinho em folha, habilidades aprimoradas, entre tantas outras vantagens, mas tudo isso tem um ...more

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Jun 01, 2015 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, r-rated, military, sometimes-fun-beats-profound

Military life in the future, fighting aliens over planets to colonize. The mysterious Colonial Defense Force recruits 75 year old men and women to fight its wars, and many sign up because some sort of second shot at youth is involved, and at this point in their lives they figure there's nothing to lose. But exactly what are they getting themselves into? And how is the CDF going to turn all these old farts into fighting machines?

I was really proud of my deductive reasoning in figuring out that th Military life in the future, fighting aliens over planets to colonize. The mysterious Colonial Defense Force recruits 75 year old men and women to fight its wars, and many sign up because some sort of second shot at youth is involved, and at this point in their lives they figure there's nothing to lose. But exactly what are they getting themselves into? And how is the CDF going to turn all these old farts into fighting machines?

I was really proud of my deductive reasoning in figuring out that this book was an homage to Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers, but then I realized I'm like the umpteenth millionth person to figure that out, and anyway there it is, right in Scalzi's acknowledgements at the end of the book. In any case, it's a lot less didactic and preachy, and much easier to read, than Heinlein's book (for me, anyway), if not as realistic about military life.

There were some philosophical questions about war that I was expecting this book to grapple with in a more meaningful way, but the book kind of breezes past all of them, with just a nod to the question of "Why are we fighting all these aliens anyway?" Seriously, with all these alien races out there, are there no better ways to settle interstellar differences? I wish this had been addressed more deeply, and I'm not certain whether Scalzi just decided this isn't that kind of book, or whether he saved these issues for the sequels. Maybe I'll find out one of these times. Whatever the reason may be, if you hate war, this won't be your kind of book.

So just understand that this is an action-packed, imaginative book with lots of violence, and have fun and roll with it. I started it yesterday, intending to read only a chapter or two, and ended up reading the whole thing, even though I have a shelf full of other books I meant to read first, which says something.

It's kind of a great action movie. Except a book. But all books can't be War and Peace, and I think there will always be a place in my heart for the ones that are sheer fun and adrenaline. Kind of like how The Avengers is one of my favorite movies, even though it's not terribly profound. "Puny god!"

description

Look!!! He's even green!

Content advisory: Scattered F-bombs (duh, it's the military), lots of fighting and maiming, and one sex scene (not very explicit). ...more

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Jan 16, 2014 David Sven rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi

I loved this book from start to finish. I loved the premise, loved the action, loved the protagonist, I even loved the aliens. And I'm confident a lot of the aliens would love me back - in a purely culinary kind of way.

Set in the far future, Earth has branched out to colonize as much of the known Universe as possible for the survival and betterment of the human race. Unfortunately, we are not alone among the stars. Every form of intelligent life from here to the end of the space time continuum h I loved this book from start to finish. I loved the premise, loved the action, loved the protagonist, I even loved the aliens. And I'm confident a lot of the aliens would love me back - in a purely culinary kind of way.

Set in the far future, Earth has branched out to colonize as much of the known Universe as possible for the survival and betterment of the human race. Unfortunately, we are not alone among the stars. Every form of intelligent life from here to the end of the space time continuum has pretty much the same idea. There is a cosmic land grab under way and every inch of interstellar real estate has to be contested and defended for any human colony to be viable.

And that's where the Colonial Defence Force (CDF) comes in. A privatised military army whose sole purpose for being is to defend us from them (and to protect its patented technology and reserve all rights to profit from same without interference from any human or alien government etc etc .. refer to fine print at the bottom of the page blah blah blah).

Of course, an expanding colonisation program requires an expanding military and so every human being anywhere has the opportunity to join up at the age of 75. You may wonder what use old farts are going to be where you have to out think, out fight, and out kill whatever monstrosity the universe throws our way. Well son, it just so happens, that the CDF is able to bio engineer you a brand new body, complete with a ten year warranty to ensure you are able to live a physically enhanced life as a Warrior of the ~~Colonial Defence Force~~ human race (disclaimer - 10 year warranty only extends to normal wear and tear or parts replacement due to faulty manufacture. Warranty will not cover you for beheading, liquification, or digestion in alien stomach fluids).

So step right up! Sign up for the advancement and well being of your fellow man. Renew your youth. Enjoy superior health with insurance thrown in as an extra. See the colonies in the wider universe. These are just the benefits we are authorised to advise you of before you join. After you join you will of course be introduced to the bonus benefits - like having a reasonable chance of your face being sucked off by oversized mandibles, being impaled from below by burrowers, goupified by fungus, or if you are really lucky - starring in an episode of Galactic Iron Chef, where YOU are on the menu.

So meet John Perry, our protagonist who, with nothing and no one left to live for, signs on the dotted line. We follow his progress from old fart to badass soldier as he embarks on a journey of rediscovering himself - Does his new life make him less human, or more than human? You'll have to decide for yourself. In the meantime suit up - grab your MP-35 and lock and load. Because we are going to have us some alien busting fun! Oohrah!

An easy 4 stars and I'm off to grab the next book in the series.

...more

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Aug 20, 2012 Michael rated it it was ok

Old Man's War is about old people giving up their lives on earth to join the colonial forces as supersoldiers to help defend humanity. That's a solid premise that I can get behind. Old Man's War is, however, not written well.

This book is bad. As I write this, I'm remembering that I only finished it to provide the most honest review. It was fun in spurts, but, on the whole, this book was, as I said, bad. The writing is pedantic at its best and horrid at its worst. Why do I keep expecting more fro Old Man's War is about old people giving up their lives on earth to join the colonial forces as supersoldiers to help defend humanity. That's a solid premise that I can get behind. Old Man's War is, however, not written well.

This book is bad. As I write this, I'm remembering that I only finished it to provide the most honest review. It was fun in spurts, but, on the whole, this book was, as I said, bad. The writing is pedantic at its best and horrid at its worst. Why do I keep expecting more from Science Fiction? Why, oh why, do I injure myself so?

I'll focus on one small issue and one large, big, huge issue. The former is the issue of the use of Old Men in Old Man's War, and the latter is the introduction of exposition.

*** Caution: For Those Who Care, Minor Spoilers Ahead ***

Old Man's Wars are fought by old men and women. That is true. The only thing young about them are their genetically-engineered bodies. So why do they all talk like wise-cracking 20-somethings, fresh off a network sitcom? I mean everyone, as well, from the good guys to the bad guys, the chicks and the dudes. Everyone, and I mean everyone, talks the same. They crack wise all the time. There's no flow, and everyone is just as adept as everyone else.

It's no secret that the bar by which I judge books is painfully higher than that of the average reader, and I feel that that's a shame. So far, I really can't trust other people's ratings or reviews to give me a clue as to what's good. And, to be fair, I don't really find anything all that good.

Which leads me (jarringly) to my second point: The exposition. FOR THE ENTIRE NOVEL, whenever the main character (who is just the same as everyone else) is kind of out of the loop, someone near him (who is just like him), postulates WITH INCREDIBLE ACCURACY as to the nature of the conundrum. What's with this ship? (wisecrack) Answered. (wisecrack) What's going to (wisecrack) happen to us? Answer. Ugh. There is no subtlety, no nuance, no story craft.

There are parts of this novel that raise interesting points on the ideas of life and soul and existence, but for the most part, it's a scifi nerd's two-dimensional wet dream, complete with meaningless animalistic sex without any kind of lead-up or gender politics, and with everything drawing our hero in "over his head," though he manages with identical ease in every situation.

Lukewarm scifi at its most meh. Read this if you hate yourself and have no standards.

2 out of 6 ...more

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Nov 19, 2014 Will M. rated it liked it

Shelves: 2014, sci-fi, space, war

What would you do if you were given a chance to live longer, and have a new "young" body that is way better than the normal human body? The catch is, you're now a soldier, in a different planet, and you can never go back to Earth.

Old Man's War was a very entertaining read, but it wasn't phenomenal. The main character is an old man, John Perry, yet he talked as if he was 30 years younger. I just didn't seem to connect with him, and all the other characters. It's not that they were all flat and bo What would you do if you were given a chance to live longer, and have a new "young" body that is way better than the normal human body? The catch is, you're now a soldier, in a different planet, and you can never go back to Earth.

Old Man's War was a very entertaining read, but it wasn't phenomenal. The main character is an old man, John Perry, yet he talked as if he was 30 years younger. I just didn't seem to connect with him, and all the other characters. It's not that they were all flat and boring, but rather they were all just characters that I couldn't relate to. Not just because of their age, but also their humor. There were a lot of circumstances wherein the author tried to make the dialouge funny, but it just ended up looking pathetic [to me, unfortunately]. I know that a lot of people loved this novel, but it was just decent for me. Nothing to really be crazy about.

The plot itself was also just decent. Almost half of the book talked about what will happen to Perry, and how it would happen. Then came the endless conversations he had with his crew. I get that character building is very essential, but if it's going to take up more than half of the novel, then that is just absurd. There were minimal action and the whole "war" was terribly boring and short. The novel's premise seemed to offer that the book's going to be about space-war, but it's all science talk in reality. Yes, I enjoyed the whole concept of being able to alter the human body into something better, but if the author's going to expound on that, then he shouldn't shorten the length of the war itself. The book has a title of "Old Man's War", but all I've read was "Old Man's Life". I'm not trying to show some pun there, but seriously, all I read about was his trying to adapt, and his past problems. More complaining than action. I also get that this is a space opera novel, but I've read quite a few other space operas that contained both drama and action. It just didn't satisfy my wants of reading a space-war novel.

Overall the book was not that bad. I kinda liked Perry in the end of the novel, but this being a Sci-Fi-Military novel, I wanted more of the action, rather than the life of a soldier. 3.5/5 stars, and I'm still planning on reading the sequel in the future. I'm just hoping that the next book would contain more war than drama. ...more

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Feb 27, 2011 Kemper rated it really liked it

Shelves: sci-fi, military, war, space, aliens, 2011

Getting old sucks but as the old joke says, it‘s better than the alternative. However, what if there was a way to get to be young again? The catch is that if you do it, you’ll probably die in some horribly bloody and spectacular fashion at the hands of aliens on a distant world. Any volunteers?

In this terrific novel, humanity has spread out to the stars only to find that they’re competing with several types of aliens for habitable planets. The Colonial Defense Force has been waging those wars an Getting old sucks but as the old joke says, it‘s better than the alternative. However, what if there was a way to get to be young again? The catch is that if you do it, you’ll probably die in some horribly bloody and spectacular fashion at the hands of aliens on a distant world. Any volunteers?

In this terrific novel, humanity has spread out to the stars only to find that they’re competing with several types of aliens for habitable planets. The Colonial Defense Force has been waging those wars and gathering advanced technologies in the process. Needing volunteers, the CDF has a recruiting pitch that’s hard to top. They’ll take senior citizens from Earth and somehow make them young again. Survive the ten year enlistment, and the reward is getting set up on one of the colonized planets.

John Perry is a widower who joins the CDF on his seventy-fifth birthday. He quickly learns how the CDF makes good on their promise to make soldier young again, and also finds out that the war they’ll be fighting is incredibly brutal and that most won’t survive their enlistments.

The idea of humans fighting wars out in space with advanced technology is nothing new, but Scalzi did a great job of taking fresh approaches to this concept. The idea of an army made up of senior citizens is unique in itself, and the weapons and tech he came up with are also clever and inventive. It’s filed with rip-roaring battle scenes, and the alien opponents he created are also several notches above what you usually get in these space war type books.

But the real hook is here the outstanding job that Scalzi did with the characters, and the sense of humor that he weaves into the story. There’s a lot of very funny stuff in this book amidst the interstellar war, and that’s something that many sci-fi writers forget to include. I particularly loved how Scalzi took the standard war story scenes of the gruff old drill sergeant training the recruits and gave it a twist.

I’ll be checking out the sequels as soon as I can get my hands on them. ...more

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Apr 24, 2012 Jess McCabe rated it did not like it

Awful. 'I did this cool thing, then I saved some people, then I single handedly rescued the mission, even though I was the least qualified, then I came up with this cool idea and got promoted. I was a green superhuman too.'

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Apr 27, 2016 Kaitlin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-sff-faves

So I finnnnnalllyyy got around to reading this, I have been meaning to for a fairly long time now. I'm definitely glad that I did read this too becuase although it's a short book for me, it actually worked super well as a military SF that I enjoyed (not something too common for me to be honest). This story drew me in fast and then kept me interested right the way through by following the character of John Perry, an old man who joins the Space Army in exchange for somehow becoming younger.

I have ...more

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Jul 10, 2015 Terence rated it liked it

We all have regrets and things we wish we could do differently if life would allow it. What would you be willing to do to have an honest chance to live life over again? In Old Man's War that's not a philosophical question it's a real choice and one that many senior citizens take gladly. One such senior citizen is John Perry who on his 75th birthday chose to live his life over again.

In order to get that second chance John joins the army, well the Colonial Defense Force (CDF) to be exact. The CDF We all have regrets and things we wish we could do differently if life would allow it. What would you be willing to do to have an honest chance to live life over again? In Old Man's War that's not a philosophical question it's a real choice and one that many senior citizens take gladly. One such senior citizen is John Perry who on his 75th birthday chose to live his life over again.

In order to get that second chance John joins the army, well the Colonial Defense Force (CDF) to be exact. The CDF only takes the elderly for recruits and the elderly are only too happy for a shot to do things over again. No one knows exactly what to expect short of a 2 year minimum term in the CDF fighting aliens over planets to colonize. Anyone who survives their term gets the opportunity to colonize one of the planets they and their brethren bled to claim.

Old Man's War has a remarkable concept in which the CDF only recruits the elderly to fight for them. The opportunity for a second chance is amazing as the recruits find out, but the work they're required to do is far deadlier than anyone could have imagined. As one of the military personnel so callously stated that after 10 years three quarters of the recruits would be dead, "But remember back home, you most likely would have been dead in ten years, too frail and old, dying a useless death." There are tons of encouraging pep talks like this, in all honesty this was one of the more encouraging pep talks of the book.

The first third of the book in many ways read like a comedy. A bunch of 75 year olds who just said and did what they want came together laughing, joking, and having a good time all while wondering how everything would go. This was the best part of the book to me.

The remainder of the book focuses on the former geriatric recruits as they've been transformed into warriors. I don't want to get into details of the change because that is easily one of the most interesting parts of book. The rest of the book reads like any other generic sci-fi story. People fight aliens, aliens fight people, and when many of the aliens win they eat the people. I'm still disturbed by this story and if you're squeamish don't click the spoiler. (view spoiler) I felt sick just now reading and typing that out...I don't know why I bothered.

Old Man's War has tons of creativity jammed into it starting with their remarkable concept. Some parts of the overall story don't make a ton of sense to me though. For example I don't understand why it's so crucial that the CDF goes around colonizing planets at all. At no point does the author inform us that the Earth has become dangerously over populated or that the natural resources have been exhausted so new resources must be found. One additional plot point made the concept seem a bit pointless, but as it's an important part of the end of the story I won't spoil it.

All in all Old Man's War was an interesting story that kept me intrigued from beginning to the end. ...more

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Dec 19, 2013 Trin rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, american-lit

The first 100 pages or so of this book are absolutely fantastic. The Colonial Defense Forces recruit citizens of Earth on their 75th birthdays to fight with them against the various alien species threatening the series of colonies Earth needs because of population overflow, war, all the usual ways we’ve fucked up the planet. Senior citizens sign up because the CDF promises to make them young again—if they sign a contract to serve for ten years. And most of them will probably get gruesomely The first 100 pages or so of this book are absolutely fantastic. The Colonial Defense Forces recruit citizens of Earth on their 75th birthdays to fight with them against the various alien species threatening the series of colonies Earth needs because of population overflow, war, all the usual ways we’ve fucked up the planet. Senior citizens sign up because the CDF promises to make them young again—if they sign a contract to serve for ten years. And most of them will probably get gruesomely killed in that time. But at least they won’t die old, right?

All of this stuff is fascinating. I loved the set up, the procedure and world-building involved in John Perry, 75-year-old widower and retired ad writer, joining the army and making friends with his fellow recruits and going through pre-procedure tests and through the actual procedure (which I won’t spoil) and the boot camp stuff that comes after. Scalzi describes the actual battles which follow with no less intensity, but once John starts fighting, the sense of who he is really gets lost. (I was actually waiting for that to be revealed to be part of the point, but it wasn’t.) John just becomes A Soldier, almost instantly. Besides his sense of loyalty and his lingering feelings about his dead wife, there’s very little left to connect him to who he used to be. It’s mentioned several times that John and his wife protested the big war on Earth, but John seems almost entirely unconcerned with the unquestioning massacre of various alien species. I must admit, it started to make me a liiiiiitle uncomfortable. Scalzi has said that his inspiration for this book was Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers, and this book, I think, faces a lot of the same problems I’ve heard are inherent in that one. (I haven’t actually read it, so if I’m way off base, please tell me.) Both, I believe, walk the line between criticizing war and glorifying it, and so whatever message results is kind of muddled. I got the most enjoyment out of Old Man’s War when I, well, just tried not to think about it too much. Not an attitude I usually endorse, but there you go. Still, the underlying sci-fi concepts in this book—the stuff about identity—are really interesting; I am anxious to get my hands on the sequel, even if it means I’ll have to turn off my brain for a while. Or at least the hard-working liberal guilt section. ...more

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Jan 22, 2014 Jason rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: e-books, read-2014

5 Five stars.

Old Man's War by John Scalzi has been on my to read list for a very long time. Countless of my friends have recommended this book to me. After long while I finally read it. Wow is all I can say I'm totally blown away. To me and my taste this book is a perfect science-fiction novel. It really has it all. I was already a fan of Scalzi before reading this novel but now I can see him easily among my top favorite.

So many things set this book apart from the competition. First, you do not ...more

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Jan 14, 2015 Veronica Morfi rated it it was amazing

Rating: 5/5

Old Man's War is one of the first adult sci-fi I've ever read (could be the first one too) and it was pure awesomeness. John Scalzi managed to create a setting and characters that really made me get lost in the story.

This is the story of John Perry, a 75-year-old who decides to join the Colonial Defense Force. It seems like people managed to colonize other galaxies but they are not the only ones and in order to protect their colonies and create new ones they need a army of 75-year-ol ...more

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May 07, 2016 Victor Almeida rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2016

Eu amo a união de ficção científica e temas militares, e com esse livro não foi diferente. Foi uma leitura muito gostosa, rápida e que me entreteve demais. A história é bem interessante e o universo criado pelo autor é surpreendente — inclusive acredito que seja o ponto mais forte do livro. Toda a ciência, a tecnologia, os planetas e as formas de vidas criadas me interessaram do começo ao fim. John escreve muitíssimo bem e pinta o cenário de forma fantástica.

A primeira coisa que me surpreendeu f ...more

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Oct 23, 2012 Matthew Iden rated it liked it

Recommends it for: military SF, thoughtfully adventurous readers

Shelves: science-fiction

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

How do you fulfill a promise to tackle a complicated subject like human mortality and aging using believable science fiction tropes, exploring a premise of why septuagenarians would make excellent soldiers in a futuristic space war?

Easy. You don't.

Parallel Universe
Old Man's War is really two books in one: Old Man and War.

Old Man is a well written, thoughtful, and at times emotionally wrenching fictional memoir. It doesn't require a science fiction setting to make the re ...more

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May 26, 2012 Kat Hooper rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

* In this universe, experience counts.
* Guns don’t kill people. The aliens behind the triggers do.

John Perry is 75 years old, his wife is dead, and he has nothing left to live for. It’s a perfect time to join the army, and the Colonial Defense Force is recruiting. They need a lot of loyal human bodies to maintain the universe colonization project, so their preference is to recruit old people, rejuvenate their bodies (nobody on Earth knows exactly how th ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

* In this universe, experience counts.
* Guns don’t kill people. The aliens behind the triggers do.

John Perry is 75 years old, his wife is dead, and he has nothing left to live for. It’s a perfect time to join the army, and the Colonial Defense Force is recruiting. They need a lot of loyal human bodies to maintain the universe colonization project, so their preference is to recruit old people, rejuvenate their bodies (nobody on Earth knows exactly how this happens), and train them to fight for the human race. Most of them will be dead within a few years, but that’s all they were expecting on Earth anyway. The Colonial Defense Force gives them something valuable to do for humanity, and a chance for a new life.

Old Man’s War is one of the most enjoyable novels I’ve read this year. The premise — old people being rejuvenated — makes for an excellent twist on the usual alien-fighting theme. The elderly, as opposed to the usual young heroes we find in so many speculative fiction novels, have had a lifetime to accumulate knowledge, skills, wisdom, and experience. I found John Perry and his cohort to be mature heroes whom I could admire and enthusiastically cheer for. I cried for them, too, as they lost each other or ruminated on past loves. Perry’s explanation of why he missed being married was moving and reminded me of my graduate school days when I would have felt lonely and unsupported (and maybe quit) if it hadn’t been for my husband’s presence.

Scalzi’s villains, on the other hand — all those alien creatures — are absolutely horrifying! The humans usually have no idea what they’ll find on a new planet, which is why their mortality rate is so high. It could be an insectoid creature with razors for hands, or a jumping slime mold, or a virus... The diversity of alien life that Scalzi has created adds suspense and terror to his story.

Old Man’s War is not a comedy, but it’s often funny — very funny. I laughed hard and out loud many times. William Dufris, the narrator of the audiobook version I listened to, contributed to the humor by reading the funny parts in a perfect deadpan voice. Dufris was outstanding and I highly recommend Macmillan Audio’s version.

I will definitely be reading John Scalzi’s other books in this series. Old Man’s War was excellent.

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature. ...more

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May 10, 2008 Brownbetty rated it really liked it

Not quite what I expected from the cover. In my experience of oil-paintings-of-planets-and-spacecraft covers, you tend to get pretty hard SF to go with them. This was more extra-firm tofu hard. The cover blurbs compared him to Heinlein, which was fair.

The book has a couple of reveals, the first of which I genuinely did not see coming, and the second of which I saw coming for a while, so I'll separate my review into the bits I can talk about without spoiling and the spoilery bits.

John Perry, the ...more

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Dec 16, 2013 Bookwraiths rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi, library

Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths Reviews

In the future, mankind has finally spread out into the stars. Humans from overpopulated countries around the world taking to the stars routinely to found colonies on numerous worlds. There has been no new “renaissance” from this otherworldly exodus on mother Earth however. No change in the sociopolitical norms. Nothing different in the daily life of an average citizens of the United States or any other industrialized country. Indeed, most pay little atte Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths Reviews

In the future, mankind has finally spread out into the stars. Humans from overpopulated countries around the world taking to the stars routinely to found colonies on numerous worlds. There has been no new “renaissance” from this otherworldly exodus on mother Earth however. No change in the sociopolitical norms. Nothing different in the daily life of an average citizens of the United States or any other industrialized country. Indeed, most pay little attention to the news that comes from beyond the globe. It does not affect their daily lives, which revolve around the normal things: getting married, going to work, raising children, and hoping to have enough savings to enjoy their old age.

And, really, there is no need for people of Earth to concern themselves with “out there” anyway. That is what the Colonial Defense Force (CDF) does. It manages and controls everything to do with other world colonization. It is their bureaucrats who decide upon the individuals who take to the stars. Their space station which orbits the Earth. Their skip drive ships that leave from that station to transport both people and materials out into the vastness of space. The CDF even controls the flow of information from those colonies back to mother Earth. Under their supervision, the spread of mankind to the stars has become almost hoo-hum; nothing to get excited about at all.

The only time when a citizen of a rich country even concerns themselves with the CDF is at age seventy-five. For at that age, you have finally become old enough to join the colonial armed forces. Why sit at home, feeling death creeping up upon you, and using up valuable resources when you could join the proud, the few, the colonial defense force!. You'll never see Earth again, but in return, you will experience the unknown wonders of the galaxy and be given back your youth. How the CDF restores you back to twenty years old is a mystery, but it is a great incentive for seniors to get out of their recliners and head to their local CDF recruiter.

John Perry is one of those seniors who sees nothing for himself on Earth but a countdown to the grave. His beloved wife has already died, his only son is grown, and hanging around to be a granddad on traditional holidays doesn’t hold any allure. Thus, he heads off to the CDF to see something of the colonies and - more importantly - to recapture his lost youth. Maybe his second chance at life will produce as much happiness as his first trip did.

Once he rockets off into space for the nearest human colony, John begins to understand exactly what he has signed up for. The CDF was not lying when they intimated that he would be given back his youth. However, his old, worn out body must be discarded for a young, superhuman body that has been thoroughly tested and patented by the CDF technology division. This new body is genetically modified and enhanced by nano-technology and alien dna. (Not to mention that it is green.) But the worst part is that all these modifications of his frail, human form have been made for the simple reason that otherwise he would have no chance to survive his tour of duty in the CDF!

The galaxy is a very dangers place if you are a human, John learns. The CDF has been guarding the Earth all these centuries, protecting it not only from the aliens’ menace but also from the realization that the majority of the galaxy views mankind as a tasty snack. An animal to be captured, breed, fattened up and then savored at dinner with a nice, white wine. That is why the CDF has hidden the truth from people on Earth. Why they only recruit old people who have already had a chance to live their life. The reason John Perry and his friends “The Old Farts” onboard their outbound ship have to shed their ignorant bliss and become soldiers. Because now that Earth is in the rear view mirror, they are not on top of the food chain anymore!

I’m sure this sounds eerily similar to Heinlein’s Starship Troopers for many of you, but Old Man’s War is very different than that revered novel. Scalzi’s work would be better labeled a military science fiction novel for readers who do not like reading military fiction or trying to understand scientific theory. Oh, there is a bit of both here: chapters dealing with military training and skirmishes and others where “theoretical” explanations are given to some basic, future technology. However, Mr. Scalzi never spends much time with either subject, merely introduces enough information to keep you in the “know” and continuing on with the story of John Perry.

And a wonderful story it is. John Perry quickly becomes one of those ordinary guys who turns into a natural "hero," not because he is gifted above his friends or finds some alien technology that gives him an edge but because he uses his wits and is lucky. He alternates between grieving for his beloved wife who died years ago to being a good friend to the other “Old Farts” whom he met on his recruitment ship to trying to survive as a grunt in the trenches of a war with countless aliens. Mr. Scalzi writes each facet of our heroes story superbly, making a reader both understand and empathize with him all along the way.

Of course, there are problems with this novel; there always are. Here Perry becomes the person who always has the epiphany which saves the day. He is the guy who always survives the grenade event though he was closest to it. The foot soldier that is honored by his enemies even though he is a nobody in the trenches. When a plot line late in the novel involves a person from John’s past, it doesn’t surprise anyone that once again fortune has smiled upon him. Simply put, it is good to be John Perry in Old Man’s War, and that does distract from the overall tone of the narrative a bit.

Even with these annoyances, Old Man’s War was a joy to read. The writing was clear and concise, easy to consume, and John Perry’s journey from ignorant, protected Earthman to wise, veteran soldier of the Colonial Defense Force was a joy to read. I could barely put it down when I read it, and I am sure you will do the same if you give it a try. So stop reading this review already and go get a copy of the book. ...more

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Dec 01, 2015 Amar rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2015, kindle

Moja prva space opera pa sam možda pogrešna osoba da u detalje sudim ovu priču . Zbog toga ću ukratko.

Ja sam veoma zadovoljan . Knjiga pršti finim idejama i po meni je presmiješna priča u nekim dijelovima ( pogotovo Master Sergeant Antonio Ruiz . Zbog njega je suza suzu gonila od smijeha )

Cjelokupno gledajući je prvi dio knjige čista 5* , dok je ostatak nekako u sjeni toj prvog dijela , pa zato od mene samo 3* .

Sve u svemu , lijepa priča , lako se čita i ni trenutak nije dosadna .

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Aug 09, 2013 Jon added it

Recommended to Jon by: Kristin

Shelves: science-fiction, fiction, read-in-my-40s, hugo-nominee, liked-it

4 stars

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Jon I despise Amazon. I'm hanging around GR because I love my reading friends and the groups I'm involved in.

Amazon also has a bad habit of censoring rev ...more
Jun 03, 2013 06:00AM

Tracey Allen at Carpe Librum Hi Jon, I love looking at the recommendations generated by GoodReads, but it doesn't mean I'm going to go and buy them from Amazon. Most likely I'll ...more
Jun 03, 2013 06:10AM

Nov 08, 2013 Rick Riordan rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorites

I love this guy! It's been a long time since I sat down and read some straight-forward science fiction, and Scalzi seems to have a direct feed to the recorded consciousness of the late great Robert Heinlein. Old Man's War introduces us to John Perry, a seventy-something earth man who has nothing to live for after the death of his wife, so he signs up for the army. You see, in the future, you can either die when you get old, or you can join the Colonial Defense Forces, get a new body designed for ...more

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Jul 02, 2010 Stephen rated it really liked it

Shelves: sf-space-opera, award-nominee-hugo, award-nominee-locus, multiple-award-nominee, signed-first-or-limited-edition, audiobook

4.0 stars. Very impressive debut novel. Reminds one a lot of a Heinlein novel but updated with a political and social voice for the 21st century. Good world-building and am looking forward to reading more by this author.

Nominee: Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (2006)
Nominee: Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (2006)
Nominee: Locus Award (Runner-up) for Best First Novel (2006)

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Dec 15, 2014 David rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Authors who wish they'd joined the Army, little green army men

Shelves: science-fiction, ebook, space-opera, aliens, military-fiction, war, mary-sue, read-on-nook

This is John Scalzi's signature novel, the one that kicked off his popular military SF series and was supposedly going to be made into a movie.

I have enjoyed a lot of Scalzi's novels, but always found him to be a good writer, an entertaining writer, but never a great writer.

Old Man's War leaves me...underwhelmed.

By his own admission, this book is a Heinlein tribute. Hence the obvious similarities to Heinlein's "signature novel" (I suppose Heinlein purists might argue about this), Starship Troope ...more

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About John Scalzi

John Scalzi, having declared his absolute boredom with biographies, disappeared in a puff of glitter and lilac scent.

(If you want to contact John, using the mail function here is a really bad way to do it. Go to his site and use the contact information you find there.)

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Quotes from Old Man's War

“For as much as I hate the cemetery, I’ve been grateful it’s here, too. I miss my wife. It’s easier to miss her at a cemetery, where she’s never been anything but dead, than to miss her in all the places where she was alive.” — 83 likes

“Now, you may think that this is some sort of generalized hatred that I will carry for the lot of you. Let me assure you that this is not the case. Each of you will fail, but you will fail in your own unique way, and therefore I will dislike each of you on an individual basis.” — 61 likes

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