Earth is at war with a race known only as the Taurans, for no other reason that a human ship was destroyed in Tauran space. With no effective method of communication between the two races, a war known as the Forever War (because of the huge subjective time jumps through collapsars) begins. The antagonist is William Mandella, a young physicist drafted into the Elite Special Forces for his brains and athletic ability. The book chronicles the Forever War through Mandella's eyes, allowing Haldeman to paint a cynical quasi-satire of the Vietnam War that was raging when this title was written. | ||
Plot & Themes Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story Training/Apprent. Yes Working up the ranks of... If an invasion, from Earth/human POV: - fighting overt invasion (attacking aliens) War or Invasion Yes Major kinds of combat: - lasers Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Cultural problems, alien culture Yes Culture clash- - one person from different culture of other persons Descript. of chases or violence - 10 % planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30 % Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 40 % Intense exploration of society's culture? Yes Main Character Identity: - Male Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Main Adversary Identity: - an entire race How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount Setting Terrain Spaceship setting: - futuristic human warship - someone is depressurized - futuristic human freighter/transport A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body: - humans in a futuristic society - humans in a contemporary society - empty, or nearly empty world - very controlled society Planet outside solar system? Yes Takes place in spaceship? Yes Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - explicit references to deaths scientific jargon? (SF only) - an average amount of scientific explanation Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references only - descript of kissing - descript of touching personal anatomy - orgies - How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript |