Speaker for the Dead
By: Orson Scott Card
In the aftermath of his terrible war, Ender Wiggin disappeared, and a powerful voice arose: The Speaker for the Dead, who told the true story of the Bugger War. Now, long years later, a second alien race has been discovered, but again the aliens' ways are strange and frightening...again, humans die. And it is only the Speaker for the Dead, who is also Ender Wiggin the Xenocide, who has the courage to confront the mystery...and the truth.
Auuster's Takeaway
The second book following Ender Wiggin thousands of years after his win against the buggers and exile from Earth. Flies around the Universe uncovering unknown information of the dead and speaking the truth for their eulogy. He ends up in a peculiar establishment, Lusitania, where there are only a handful of species on the planet and is plagued by the Descolada virus. Here he uncovers many secrets of the world and the book ends in a gruelsome ritual of one of the species on the planet, the Pequeninos.
This book takes a very different turn from enders game and has barely any cohesion other than the characters. This makes sense as it is placed thousands of years after the first book where the only surviors is Ender and his sister.
I do like this book. The author explored the difference of cultures in humans vs other living creatures and did not shy away from what humans perceive as gruesomeness. It is a good book discussing the importance of communication and preservation of cultures, while maintaining a sci-fi story line.