One of the most imaginative adventure stories I've ever read
Published in 1978, this was Orson Scott Card's second novel (his fourth book to be published). It faded out of print, then Card made some major revisions/rewrites and republished it in 1988 under a different title. I have not read the revised version, simply titled TREASON, but it is supposed to be a complete overhaul with 10% new material.As Card himself has acknowledged, A Planet Called Treason is amateurish. There is no question Card has improved his tone, pacing, character development, and storylines over the last twenty years. But this story is still one of the most imaginative I have ever read, despite the structural flaws. This is the kind of wild, no-holds-barred fantasy every 10-year old boy dreams about, but few adults have the talent to write (Orson Scott Card and George Lucas come to mind). This novel illustrates why I enjoy OSC so much - even when he's not in peak form, his books are still too fun to put down.
One note about different versions: There are differences between the Dell paperback and the hardback edition (at least, the Book Club edition I own). First, the map included on page 1 is much more detailed in the paperback version than the hardcover. Second, I think there are some minor editorial revisions in the paperback. I happened to notice, when I picked up the hardcover to find where I left off in the paperback, the last sentence of Chapter 10 was changed; I have no idea why this was done or if any other alterations were made
An extremely imaginative and memorable book.
I read this book about 20 years ago and I'd have to say this has been one of best books I've ever read. It is proably one of the reasons I've kept reading. The main character is an outcast. He leave his home and travels throughout his planet. As he does so he learns various skills from the people of other cultures. Instead of abusing his powers he uses them consciencely. Although he suffers various trials, he grows and rises above the the situations. This book is a must read for people who enjoy sci-fi/fantasy.
Science Fiction at its BEST!
The Characters will become real to you. With this original story brings you entire races To life and a planet that has an incredible past. Orson Scott Card is a science fiction genius.
highly imaginative
The hero is the product of a society of exiled, but gifted outcasts who have individually founded Families that have in Darwinian fashion genetically adapted their various physical and mental capacities into fantastic abilities, however,they are in competition with each other for the mother planet's favor. Reviled as an outcast himself, our hero flees his Family and explores the planet, incorporating into himself knowledge and powers of the various cultures to become a true "superhero", who sees the power of the planet's diversity and singlehandedly frees it from slavery to the mother planet. Card's love of heroic figures reaches near perfection in this story, and his imaginative powers create multiple worlds within this one book, any single one of which could have engendered a story in itself. This version is much more powerful than the author's wordy second rendition.
Kathryn E. Dietz c/o brozak@bear.com
Different, yet good
This book starts off really weird, but if you stick with it, it all starts to make sense and is quite interesting. It is about a prince of a "nation" who can regenerate his body parts, alter the flow of time, and command the ground to obey his every command. The plot, however, is how he is going to save his "nation" from destruction as it is being constantly attacked from more powerful ones
