Review - Orson Scott Card's The Worthing Saga

Why did I read this book?

If you read this blog a lot you know that we are huge Orson Scott Card fans. That being said, I had never heard of The Worthing Saga until a few months ago. As soon as I read the premise I knew it was something that I would be interested in. Not that I wouldn't read anything Card put out..

What is it about?

On a planet where they have never known physical or mental pain, the sudden introduction of it, a Day of Pain changes the world: deaths are remembered, people are horribly killed, and everyone feels a great loss of a protection they never knew they had.

Soon after, two people come from the stars. They choose a village and the inn-keeper's son to tell their story. Their story is one of a galactic empire, a drug that prolongs life, a man that became a god, and a universe without pain that had to wake up.

Why you should read this book:

As always, Card's storytelling and character development is superb. If you have read the Ender books you will feel like you are returning to an old friend with this work. Yet, in many ways this book surpasses the stories of Ender.

With The Worthing Saga Card asks the question, how can humans be human without the pain of humanity? It's an intriguing question that I had never thought about before. One that makes me look at some of the "wonderful" things people try to do for the world in the "now," and wonder if they will still be "wonderful" in 100-1000 years .