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Songmaster Paperback – December 6, 2002

by
Orson Scott Card (Author)
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4.2 out of 5 stars 91 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Orb Books; Reprint edition (December 1, 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312876629
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312876623
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #780,291 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsA True Masterpiece
By Bryon T. Smedley on June 25, 2000
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Never having read any of the works of Mr. Card, and not even associating him with the whole "Ender's" phenomenon, I went into this book without any preconceptions or expectations. I found this to be one of the most insightful and unique stories written in the latter half of this century. The concept of a collective who communicates primarily through song is a twist on the norm, and Orson Scott pulls it off with utter brilliance in his prose and form. At one point I had to actually mark my place, put the book down and regain my composure, lest I surely lose my ability to see through the tears. These were not tears of sorrow, mind you, rather tears of joy. This story grabbed my attention and emotions and slung them around like only an E-ticket ride at the Magic Kingdom can do. I have since read anything and everything I can get my hands on by Mr. Card, and not once have I been disappointed. Although some of his works are better known and more popular, "Songmaster" remains my favorite. Find this book and purchase it immediately. On my honor, you will not be disappointed.
Bryon T. Smedley - bsmedley@novell.com
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4.0 out of 5 starsA Song of Power
By Patrick Shepherd on August 3, 2004
Format: Paperback
Card seems to have a predilection for having child protagonists. But not just any children, rather children who are special, who are prodigies, who in many ways are far stronger than most adults. This book is no exception, with Ansset as the premier Songbird of his day. Songbirds are specially trained child singers, trained in not just the basics of music, but more importantly in how to read the emotional makeup of their audience and express it in their songs.

Ansset is assigned to be the Songbird for the Emperor Mikal, a brutal man who thinks nothing of wiping out the entire population of a planet to further his ends. But the end Mikhal is driving toward is lasting peace throughout the galaxy - a truly benevolent dictator. It is just this moral ambiguity that Ansset sees and understands, just as he can understand, accept, and reciprocate the love of Josif, a bisexual who can only be attracted to one person at time.

In fact, there are no hard and fast moral laws laid down in this book. Fraud, kidnapping, assassination, murder, homosexuality, pedophilia, devotion, political machinations, and, yes, even true love all receive an examination here, and each item is shown in more than one light. A good part of this book's strength lies within these examinations, which are shown by the events and people Ansset is exposed to, rather than by any sort of expository dialogue. The rest of the strength lies within the raw emotion that sings throughout this book, an almost poetic handling of what would be in lesser hands a very ugly set of happenings. Characterization is excellent, for not just Ansset but also all the players around him: Mikal, Ricktors, Esste, Kya-Kya - each are unique individuals that breathe life into this work.Read more ›
3 Comments 28 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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4.0 out of 5 starsA younger, rougher Card
By amazonker on May 16, 2003
Format: Paperback
Orson Scott Card's stories and novels always carry a moral message. In his more recent, in-print publications, the moral message is often very clear and up front, and while he's hardly someone who uses a formula to write his books, he does have a very strong method and set ideas about what he wants from literature. But back when he wrote Songmaster, he was still finding his way. As with most of his early work, his characters here face far more immediate violence, pain, and hardship than in his later books, and while their responses can be somewhat uneven, the result is, from my perspective at least, a far more moving read than the smooth, knowing Card of today. This younger, rougher, less morally bound Card is worth checking out.
There's no denying the similarities between this book and Ender's Game. Yes, the main character is a male prodigy who struggles to learn and grow in emotional isolation. But all four of Card's major series begin with such a character (Ender, Bean, Alvin, and Nafai), and it's when he's writing about these remarkable children that Card does his best work. They're far more interesting than his adult characters because they genuinely don't know what to do when facing a problem -- every important decision they make is based on the information they have at hand, not any prior set of beliefs. This, plus their genius, makes them remarkably unpredictable and allows us to re-evaluate out own beliefs. Ansset, the "hero" of Songmaster, is no exception.
Card explores homosexuality in this novel, a topic he hasn't really braved since then, and an interesting choice given his Mormonism. The results may initally seem ambiguous -- after all, bisexual Josef suffers tremendously and commits suicide as a result of his failed encounter with Ansset.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsSheer brilliance...
By A Customer on February 25, 2001
Format: Mass Market Paperback
This was my first Scott Card novel. I came across a review in Amazon's very clever Listmania. I have actually found a number of "unknown" (to me at least) authors this way, not the least of whom is Orson Scott Card. I LOVE THIS BOOK! I had to get it through Z-shops. How can anything this good be out-of-print? To describe the plot is to do an injustice to all concerned, but I'll attempt to give some idea. The theme of teaching children to use their voices in song as communication, healing, education, destruction is not new, but it has never been done like this. This is what I always hoped to read, but could never find. The characters are complex, beautiful, touching. The unfolding of a story in which such beauty must be exposed to such ugliness, in which such love must endure such betrayal, and yet it ends on such a note of hope, victory, courage, triumph of human spirit and wisdom... I did not want it to end. I'll have to re-read this at least once. And so, a boy is trained to use his talent, and becomes a SongBird. This is the story of his life and the music he makes in strange and sometimes not so wonderful times, in strange and sometimes not so wonderful places. If you want the depth and magic of it, you'd best read it yourself! It is sheer brilliance.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsAn amazing book. And Im not sure how I could ...

An amazing book. And Im not sure how I could say that. Read it and you will know how it stretches your mind a mind a bit. Read more

Published 23 days ago by Clark
2.0 out of 5 starsOkay, but not up to Card's standards

Not as good as some of his others

Published 4 months ago by Bob
5.0 out of 5 starsA different twist from Card

This book was the first ofCard's to take me awhile to get involved in, but once I did, it was very engaging. A very different tale.

Published 4 months ago by Michelle Deneau
5.0 out of 5 starsHauntingly Beautiful

It was so hauntingly beautiful. Definitely not as science fiction as the genre misleads you to think except for the locations of the story and definitely a wonderful read for all... Read more

Published 6 months ago by Cara
5.0 out of 5 starsSongbird

This book is enchanting. Sometimes soft and beautiful, sometimes terrible, but always rich with emotion. Young Annset is a songbird, a singer with incredible power in his voice. Read more

Published 7 months ago by Kindle Customer
3.0 out of 5 starsSongmaster

Okay read. Not Orson Scott Card's best work. Poor 3 way love triangle.

Published 8 months ago by Bernard F Turner
1.0 out of 5 starsEw.

Orson Scott Card, what is wrong with you? No normal, stable human being looks at a prepubescent boy this way. Maybe the women who fancy Taylor Latner, but he's a teenager. Read more

Published 9 months ago by Akemi
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

I love this story. It's my favorite book from Card.

Published 11 months ago by Luis F.
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Card makes you love his characters, even the villains.

Published 13 months ago by Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 starsWhile the book seems to match Card's usual style (younger ...

While the book seems to match Card's usual style (younger lead character forced to deal with crisis), the book just isn't up to his usual standards. Read more

Published 13 months ago by Robert V

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