Kelvin and I were browsing at Page One at Vivocity a few weeks ago and discussing SF depictions of future war when he recommended 'Old Man's War'. We shared our admiration of Robert Heinlein's 'Starship Troopers' and Joe Haldemann's 'The Forever War', but I was disappointed with most bestselling military SF books which were essentially war stories or westerns in minimal SF trappings. Honour in outerspace? Doh...
On Saturday night, I had bought 'Old Man's War' at Borders. After I read Sam Harris' eloquent 'Letter to a Christian Nation' on Sunday, I started this riveting read that night and subsequently finished it last night.
John Scalzi's 'Old Man's War' is a Heinlein-esque, wide-eyed view of future war with different approaches of waging war being taken with regard to different aliens. As Kelvin had observed, the work was reminiscent of 'The Forever War' and 'Starship Troopers' and there was a lengthly exposition of the technology involving and the methods of war-making. It was an imaginative extrapolation of what war could be like rather than merely the usual honourable men with ray guns against honourable aliens with ray guns.
War was essentially genocidal in nature in Scalzi's future and it was plausible and consistent within his framework. No honourable aliens (ie Indians, Japanese or mysterious 'other'). Phew!
I would be picking up 'Ghost Brigades' later this week at Borders.
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