Review of The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

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Rating from TwistedSciFi ★★★★★ 


I love reading Science Fiction! As a reader and reviewer, I’m always interested in devouring the newest Science Fiction releases.

Sometimes, however, I hear so much buzz about a Science Fiction classic, that I’ve got to bump it to the top of my reading list; this was the case with Joe Haldeman’s The Forever War.

I owe my friends at SF Signal podcast a debt of gratitude for having Joe Haldeman as part of their Military Science Fiction Panel; this is where I first learned about the author and book.

As a Vietnam War veteran, Haldeman looks at the intersection of war, politics and society. What are the costs (financial and otherwise) of a sustained war? What’s society’s perception of the war and the soldiers risking their lives for the cause? What’s it like for soldiers when they return home? What was the basis for going to war in the first place?

With foreign troop involvement in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, these issues are just as relevant today as they were when the book was first published in 1974.

Don’t be confused by The Forever War’s classification as Military Science Fiction; this is not an account of Haldeman’s time in Vietnam rewritten in outer space. Sure there are battle scenes and a military backdrop, but The Forever War is so multifaceted that it’s unfair to pigeon-hole it into a single genre. Even if Military Science Fiction isn’t your thing, you’ll still get a lot out of this book.

I really enjoy the way that Haldeman’s possible future tackles certain critical issues. How will unchecked population growth strike a balance with limited resources? How can technology and psychology be employed to motivate soldiers in battle?

Haldeman’s future is dystopian, but it’s almost so extreme in certain instances that I found myself laughing out loud while reading. This technique of presenting extremes forces us to ask the question, “How far are we willing to go to win a war?” Intentional or not, I was able to uncover an undercurrent of dark humor that permeated throughout the book.

Perhaps the most fascinating element of the story is how Haldeman addresses the time compression that results from travelling at or near the speed of light. This book is nothing at all like any other stories or books that I’ve read involving time travel. I’m not a scientist, but his approach to this topic certainly seems more scientific, and as a result, more believable than others.

This book is a true Science Fiction classic; it lived up to the lofty expectations that I had. Any true Science Fiction fan should consider this mandatory reading.

Of course The Forever War is available at Amazon and all major retailers, but before you run out and get yourself a copy, check you public library’s catalogue. I was able to locate a copy at my local public library and read it for free.

Have you read The Forever War or any of Joe Haldeman’s other books? Please share your comments below, and don’t forget to click on the yellow stars at the top of this post to share your rating (1-5 stars) of The Forever War.

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  • http://twitter.com/meijersjc Meijers

    The Forever War is a classic. Pure and simple. It may be dystopian, but it also is very human. What subtly struck me is how as colder the setting and scale gets, the closer the main protagonist comes to another human element. It’s almost a method of compensating for how the tale is stretched by virtually everything that makes men (and women) insignificant in a larger picture.

    There is an old comic adaptation of it as well, I forgot the publisher unfortunately, but it was one of the few times that I have seen an adaptation to a graphic novel format where the story of the book itself preset the adaptation to completely capture the atmosphere and the evolution of the story itself.
    I need to dig that up again. Too many boxes :(

  • http://twitter.com/leaguejohnny Johnny Atomic

    I thought you might like this. It’s the
    painting I did for Joe when he won the Nebula Grand Master award. League
    Entertainment presented it to him on stage during the ceremony. He and his wife
    both loved it. Funny thing is they didn’t notice the portrait of Joe in the
    background for over a year after it was hung on their wall!

    So there you have a little piece of
    Forever War trivia. Don’t say I never gave you anything:)

    • http://www.twistedscifi.com/ Blase Ciabaton

      Great story & fantastic art-thanks so much for sharing Johnny

  • B. Morris Allen

    Definitely a classic. A few others have copied it (Scalzi), but Haldeman’s book is the real thing. The sequels don’t quite measure up, but they’re good, and fun reading.