The Human Division cover art

The Human Division

Old Man's War, Book 5

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The Human Division

By: John Scalzi
Narrated by: William Dufris
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About this listen

Following the events of The Last Colony, John Scalzi tells the story of the fight to maintain the unity of the human race.

The people of Earth now know that the human Colonial Union has kept them ignorant of the dangerous universe around them. For generations the CU had defended humanity against hostile aliens, deliberately keeping Earth an ignorant backwater and a source of military recruits. Now the CU’s secrets are known to all. Other alien races have come on the scene and formed a new alliance - an alliance against the Colonial Union. And they’ve invited the people of Earth to join them. For a shaken and betrayed Earth, the choice isn't obvious or easy.

Against such possibilities, managing the survival of the Colonial Union won’t be easy, either. It will take diplomatic finesse, political cunning…and a brilliant "B Team", centered on the resourceful Lieutenant Harry Wilson, that can be deployed to deal with the unpredictable and unexpected things the universe throws at you when you’re struggling to preserve the unity of the human race.

©2012 John Scalzi (P)2013 Audible, Inc. Adventure Military Science Fiction Space Opera Fiction War
All stars
Most relevant  
Every second line is “Egan said” “rigney said”, less than ideal way of representing dialogue. Great story otherwise.

He said, she said

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I don't usually enjoy space sci fi but John Scalzi makes it great! Everything he does is smart and thoughtful but not overly dramatic.

Positive review

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I genuinely really enjoyed this. It was a nice departure from the main story of, and getting to know Harry and the rest of the B team better was great. I enjoyed the elements of mystery and intrigue in this one. Overall I continue to really enjoy John Scalzi, and the narrator is doing an excellent job.

Nice Change of Pace

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Awesome story but I was really put off by:
By the amount of times 'said' is used... Surely other words can be used.
The premise was excellent and the narrator engaging.

Awesome story

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A good series and original story although thinking that once you reach 75 your life is finished is a bit far-fetched - I hope to be partying way into my 80s.
I skipped Zoe's tale as it looked like a fill-in from all of the comments - always read people's comments on books!
As mentioned in past comments I can't believe the narrator was instructed to read the book exactly as written - including she says, he says, etc. which is a very annoying way to listen to books while other books/narrators don't follow this style - I think our listeners are smart enough to follow an audiobook without these continued comments.
Also in this book, we have various senior managers bullying their direct reports. I can't believe this style, especially knowing that a hard-ass boss in space would probably, like the real army, be thrown out into space once they had left Earth. I can't believe how abusive some of the commentaries make soldiers and staff worried about their own lives. Not a great standard to portray to listeners and young people. Maybe the author had a very nasty boss in his past life!!
Otherwise well worth the read!
Paul

Dont Comment Very Often - Good Read But!!

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a few audio glitches in the final parts were annoying. otherwise a solid addition to the OMW universe.

solid

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Carrys the story on, but was far removed from the HFY stories of the first few books.
In saying that, seems to be building in to something epic, so will continue with the series

Meh

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The novella style John has taken to its very disjointed and struggles to push a coherent narrative. The pace and lack of true suspense was a bit of a downer.

The first 3 books of the series were great.

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overall I did enjoy this story however it wasn't what I was expecting from OMW

no John or Jane etc

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The Human Division by John Scalzi is a science fiction novel that falls short of its potential. While Scalzi's writing style is engaging and accessible, the story lacks depth and fails to deliver on its intriguing premise. The book is structured as a series of interconnected short stories, which, while initially promising, ultimately feel disjointed and incomplete. The characters, although likable, lack development and fail to evoke any significant emotional investment from the reader. Additionally, the plot progression feels uneven, with some episodes feeling rushed while others drag on (I read an entire story and at the end realised that not a single word stuck in my memory), leading to a lack of narrative cohesion. Overall, The Human Division is a disappointing addition to Scalzi's six part series, failing to live up to the standards set by its previous novels.
Despite its flaws, The Human Division does offer some redeeming qualities. Scalzi's trademark humor and witty dialogue are present throughout the book, providing occasional moments of entertainment. Furthermore, the novel explores interesting themes such as political intrigue and human-alien relations, offering glimpses of potential depth. However, these aspects are not fully explored or capitalized upon, leaving the reader wanting more. Ultimately, while The Human Division has its moments, it feels unnecessary and only tenuously related to the first three books in the six part series, which I strongly recommend.

Lost In Space

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