Forever Peace

i remembered reading a book called "all my sins remembered" (AMSR) as a boy of 11 or 12. at that age i was pretty much into SF what with star_wars (later to be retitled 'episode IV a new hope'), 2001 a space Odessey Battlestar Galactica on TV, Star Trek - original series, close encounters of the 3rd kind. AMSR struck something like a bell in me, it was to me a different sort of SF, very well remembered sort of SF.getting back to 'Forever Peace'. fast forward to some 20 years on i read it after 'Forever War' which i first came across on a dark horse comic publication. this was a long time ago - about 4 years ago. so what business do i have writing a review about it now? i can talk about the impression FP had on me just like AMSR did. like drinking good hot coffee.the message is often the same: the numbing senselessness of war on the very immediate personnal level. fighters fought because they had to. call it fate or karma. there is often no right or wrong but there are the fortunate and the unfortunate, the quick and the dead, the smart and the stupid, and caught in between the rough stuffs and the really rough stuffs is love, um, isn't it like in the office this morning? maybe not and well, i'm not a soldier but i don't have to be one to appreciate books on the subject or know what the writer is saying.

I find myself always coming back to old Haldeman books when I am looking for something to read. Long after other science fiction novels have been hauled off to a library book sale, my tattered Haldeman books remain on the bookshelf because they are almost all worth re-reading. `Forever Peace' is no exception. It is in some ways a revisiting of the themes found in the "Forever War": of how a soldier of the not-too-distant future deals with war. However the author is 30 years (or so) older now and the mind of this soldier reflects that change.Haldeman brings to the table his fine story telling ability, his background as a scientist, and his background as a soldier. There are few writers out there who can tell a story like Haldeman can because of where he has been in life. I think that is what brings me back to his books. His stories work, his science feels real-enough, and his violence is drawn from memory, not from fantasy. A rare, difficult, and ultimately intriguing combination.

While not a true sequel in the sense of plot or setting, it is really the logical successor to The Forever War in terms of ideas. It's impossible not to compare the two, and I won't even try to avoid it. This novel is very different from the The Forever War. It's not as "tight" and follows several different characters, often covering periods of time without much suspense. This is not a flaw, however, as it lends to a superior novel of discovery rather than the negative feedback cycle of violence that dominated The Forever War.As always, Haldeman in eminently readable, and this book contains some great concepts. The Forever War explored the limits of war and violence in extreme situations, as well as it's effects on society. Here, in Forever Peace, Haldeman creates another option, an escape from the cascade of violence into a stable peace. By the end it becomes a wonderful poetic foil to the hard-hitting war novel.

First off, if you're looking for a sequel to the "Forever War", stop here. The two novels, in terms of characters, setting, etc. are in no way related. In their message they certainly compliment each other, but one is by no means a prerequisite for the other.As for the novel itself, "Forever Peace" is outstanding. While it is ultimately not quite as powerful as "The Forever War" it is also a lot more plausible. The world in which it takes place is disturbingly familiar to our own, and it is by no means unlikely that we could end up there in the relatively near future.Like "The Forever War", "Forever Peace" operates on two levels. On the one it is an exciting, engaging read with great chracters and technology. On the other, it is a serious examination of societal and politcal issues. To examine these issues here would give away some of the plot; suffice it to say they are both familiar and pressing.In "Forever Peace" Haldeman has written a novel that is both cautionary and hopeful. It is both and enjoyable read, and a book that will keep you thinking. To my mind, that's the best kind. Enjoy!

Joe Haldeman is so very underrated. There is so much good writing in this book I don't know how he does it. He put a lot of work and heart into this and it shows. This is classic sf and best of all it deals with so many real social and technological issues relevant even right now. The characters are real, not the usual stuck up cardboard cutouts you get in sci-fi. There are very few sci-fi authors who are willing to take on and discuss possible solutions to humanities problems (too risky), rather they just fly off into space centuries from now and say science fixed it or the holocaust reset everything, convenient! Joe Haldeman is not avoiding difficult social issues which make a lot of sci-fi seem dorky and pie in the sky. Better still he uses difficult social issues as he bread and butter. However this does not mean that we do not get giant hi tech mechanical killers and the like, Haldeman brings them on big time and they are very convincing. I was put off by some of the reviews here of Forever Peace and I'm glad I ignored them.