Old Man’s War – John Scalzi

This book has been on my Amazon recommended list for ages; I was pleased to discover it at my local FSF bookshop recently and, despite my vow to the contrary, almost immediately felt the need to read it. Why are new acquisitions so much more desirable than those which have sat on my shelf for months or even years?
Scalzi’s debut novel (which won him the John W. Campbell award for best new writer) is set in a future where mankind is colonising the universe. The bad news is that we’re not alone – there are dozens of other species equally keen on colonisation, from whom we are protected by the Colonial Defense Forces.
For two hundred years the Colonial Union has only allowed citizens of countries where the population outstrips resources (India, Kazakhstan, Norway) to be colonists. If you are American, your only way into the stars is to register for the CDF (minimum period of enlistment is two years, up to ten if the CDF want you to) and if, ten years later, you still want to join the CDF, carry through to joining. It’s a one-way trip – you can reenlist at the end of your tour, or be a colonist, but you can never return to Earth. In fact, seventy-two hours after enlistment you are legally dead on Earth. And the CDF wants experience, so enlistees are all seventy-five. Nobody on Earth’s seen a member of the CDF – the recruiters are all employees – but everyone knows that you get a new, young and perfect body.
Old Man’s War, the first in a trilogy, tells the story of average-Joe John Perry. He and his wife registered, but she died a couple of years later. With nothing left or him on Earth but increasing debility, he enlists. We follow John from the day he enlists, as he meets fellow enlistees, goes through the procedure of getting a new and improved physique, the ordeal of basic training, and the reality of battle field experience.
I was strongly reminded of the more adventurous novels of Robert A. Heinlein (clearly purposefully, as he is credited in the post-novel acknowledgements), and the brilliant David Feintuch (whose Seafort septology I reread every year).
I knew going in that Perry would survive despite the odds, rise quickly among the ranks, and have unique insight. That much is a given. It’s the deftness and depth that sets Scalzi’s debut apart from other, similar efforts. Like Heinlein and Feintuch, Scalzi explores a military SF future peopled with true aliens (who think differently than humans, rather than just look different), smart and dynamic characters, and enough science to be credible.
Scalzi’s universe is rich, complex and original, his premise novel, reasonable and masterfully executed. I knew I was caught when I realised it was four in the morning and I still wanted to read just one more chapter. Book two is out in paperback, and the third is due out this year – it may already have been released, but if it has, and I check, I may find myself breaking my other vow and buying it. Yeah, not may, will. It’s just a question of how long until I crack. – Alex