8.2 /10 1 Votes
Cover artist John Harris Language English Publication date 2013 Followed by The End of All Things Genres Novel, Science Fiction | 4.1/5 Goodreads Country United States Series Old Man's War series Originally published 14 May 2013 Preceded by Zoe's Tale Publisher Tor Books | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Media type Digital (E-book)
Print (hardcover & paperback) Similar Zoe's Tale, The Last Colony, The End of All Things, Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sff180 the human division by john scalzi
The Human Division is the fifth full-length book by John Scalzi set in the Old Man's War universe.
Contents
Publication history
The book was published at e-book retailers between 15 January-9 April 2013 as digital serials with thirteen episodes.
The episode titles with the release dates in 2013 are as follows:
- The B-Team (15 January)
- Walk the Plank (22 January)
- We Only Need the Heads (29 January)
- A Voice in the Wilderness (5 February)
- Tales From the Clarke (12 February)
- The Back Channel (19 February)
- The Dog King (26 February)
- The Sound of Rebellion (5 March)
- The Observers (12 March)
- This Must Be the Place (19 March)
- A Problem of Proportion (26 March)
- The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads (2 April)
- Earth Below, Sky Above (9 April)
On May 14, 2013, the serial was collected into a full-length novel of the Old Man's War universe, plus it included the first tale of Lieutenant Harry Wilson, After the Coup, and a short story that was not part of the serialization, Hafte Sorvalh Eats a Churro and Speaks to the Youth of Today. This short story was released at Tor.com and After The Coup can be found there as well.
Plot synopsis
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 against the Colonial Union called the Conclave. They have 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 will not be easy, either. It will take diplomatic finesse and political cunning: the "B-Team" advised by Lieutenant Harry Wilson.
As the story progresses, it deals with how humanity fares in a universe filled with other sentient races and without a military force to clash with them, since recruits from Earth were halted.
Sequel
The e-book serialization was successful so Tor Books contracted with Scalzi to write a sequel, later titled The End of All Things that was released serially in June 2015.