Old Man's War

Old Man's War - Scalzi

A must read for Sci-Fi fans. Space battles, nanotechnology, faster than light travel, and much more sciency ideas to play with. There is the classic fight for the universe against ugly sounding aliens, with a big explosive finish. A solid sci-fi book, in my opinion.

The premise of the story is that older humans can join an army of space colony defenders. The draw is that instead of dying of old age you are rejuvenated with special technology that makes your body young again. The catch is that you are now part of the colony defender army for a term of ten years.

This change, from old to young, is a fun read. Both from a physical point of view and a psychological perspective. The new body is enhanced with special 'Smartblood' that holds nutrients and oxygen better, and also clots quick to save you from dying in battle. The new recruit is also given a 'Brainpal', a microchip in the brain that is essentially a computer, allowing you to connect with others and 'google' information. A new body full of technology to make a super soldier.

There are a few boot camp type training scenes and grisly battles against creepy aliens to show this new technology at work. Great fun.

The story gets deep when the main character comes across his long dead wife. Only it's not his wife, it is just her DNA used to create a specialized human soldier.

Throughout the book there are deep questions. What does it mean to be human? Is it your body or your mind that make you the person you are? What happens if you disrupt the regular cycle of life? Is death a good thing? How much modification can you do before the body is not human anymore?

These questions are not specifically asked, of course. But they are hinted at, very discreetly, throughout the entire book. It makes you think.

I like Scalzi's writing style. It's serious, with what feels like hard sci-fi ideas, but he works in a humorous tone. A sarcastic tone maybe? Whatever it is, I like it. I find myself smiling while reading, and thinking deep thoughts when I put the book down. That's a winner to me.