Old Man’s War
by John Scalzi
★ Top 25 book of 2005 · #17 on Best Books of 2005
On his 75th birthday, John Perry visits his wife's grave and then enlists in an interstellar army that restores old recruits in young, enhanced bodies. Humanity fights aliens for scarce habitable planets, with a wry tone reminiscent of Heinlein.
Best for: Fans of military science fiction with humor, in the spirit of Heinlein
Old Man’s War is #17 on BookWard's Best Books of 2005, out of 52 2005 books that cleared our data bar.
What Old Man’s War is about
John Perry spends his 75th birthday visiting his late wife's grave, then signs up for the army. In Scalzi's 2005 debut, Earth is a quiet backwater in a long interstellar war, and the Colonial Defense Forces take volunteers after retirement. The deal is startling: your mind moves into a young, improved body grown from your own DNA, and if you survive your term of service, you get a new body and a place on a colony. Livable planets are rare and aliens eager to fight for them are not. Sharp, funny, and quick, it carries a Heinlein-style spirit and suits readers who like military science fiction with a wry voice.
Old Man’s War on the Best Books of 2005
Old Man’s War came out in 2005. Of the 52 books first published in 2005 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #17 on our Best Books of 2005 list.
Why it made the list: 334 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (112 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 2005 list
- Death Note, Vol. 1 Tsugumi Ohba, #15
- The Game Neil Strauss, #16
- Pretties Scott Westerfeld, #18
- It's in His Kiss Julia Quinn, #19
See all Best Books of 2005 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2004 Best Books of 2006.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 185 want to read it, 5 are reading it now and 144 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.2 out of 5 from 112 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 67 | 55% |
| Reader love | 88 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 15 | 20% |
Questions about Old Man’s War
When was Old Man’s War published?
Old Man’s War by John Scalzi was first published in 2005.
Was Old Man’s War one of the best books of 2005?
Old Man’s War is #17 on BookWard's Best Books of 2005, out of 52 2005 books that cleared our data bar. 334 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (112 ratings).
Why is Old Man’s War on the Best Books of 2005 list?
334 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (112 ratings).
More of the best books of 2005
- The Lightning Thief Rick Riordan, #1
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince J. K. Rowling, #2
- The Glass Castle Jeannette Walls, #3
- Looking for Alaska John Green, #4
- Eldest Christopher Paolini, #5
- Freakonomics Steven D. Levitt, #6
See the full Best Books of 2005, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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