With all the power of his original creation, Card has created a companion volume to Ender's Game, a book that expands and complements the first, enhancing its power, illuminating its events and its powerful conclusion.
The human race is at War with the "Buggers," an insect-like alien race. The first battles went badly, and now as Earth prepares to defend itself against the imminent threat of total destruction at the hands of an inscrutable alien enemy, all focus is on the development and training of military geniuses who can fight such a war, and win.
The long distances of interstellar space have given hope to the defenders of Earth -- they have time to train these future commanders up from childhood, forging them into an irresistible force in the high -- orbital facility called the Battle School.Andrew "Ender" Wiggin was not the only child in the Battle School; he was just the best of the best. In this new book, Card tells the story of another of those precocious generals, the one they called Bean--the one who became Ender's right hand, his strategist, and his friend. One who was with him, part of his team, in the final battle against the Buggers.
Bean's past was a battle just to survive. He first appeared on the streets of Rotterdam, a tiny child with a mind leagues beyond anyone else's. He knew he could not survive through strength; he used his tactical genius to gain acceptance into a children's gang, and then to help make that gang a template for success for all the others. He civilized them, and lived to grow older.
Bean's desperate struggle to live, and his success, brought him to the attention of the Battle School's recruiters, those people scouring the planet for leaders, tacticians, and generals to save Earth from the threat of alien invasion. Bean was sent into orbit, to the Battle School. And there he met Ender....

Excellent. I really love Orson Scott Card's writing.

On its way to jennymidget in Australia!

Thanks Nyassa!
I have only ever read Orson Scott Card's "Alvin Maker" books, so some sci-fi from him might be different...I will let you all know once I've read it!

Wow! I really liked this book, found it un-put-down-able! Having never read the other books in the Ender series, I was concerned I'd be missing out on something, but Bean's story stood alone excellently. If I have any complaint (from the point-of-view of a first-time reader of the series) I thought that perhaps Ender's character in Bean's story was not really fleshed out enough for a stand-alone book. But this book really appealed - I'm heading out to my local bookstore to get the rest of the series!

Sending on to crimson-tide in Western Australia...

Arrived safely today as part of the "50 Most Wanted Books and Authors" BookRelay.
Thanks jennymidget.