Science Fiction · DarkSoldiers fighting an interstellar war age slowly while those they left behind grow old
The Forever War
by Joe Haldeman
A soldier's war lasts centuries while he ages only a few years
Analog Magazine serialized parts of the story, and St. Martin's Press published the book in 1974. It is a military science fiction story about human soldiers fighting an interstellar war against the Taurans, an alien civilization. Travel near the speed of light causes large relativistic time effects, so the soldiers age far more slowly than the people they left behind. William Mandella and Marygay Potter are the main characters. The first edition has 236 pages.
More about this book
Who
William Mandella and Marygay Potter.
World
An interstellar war against the Taurans, with near-light-speed travel.
What makes it different
Haldeman wrote it as his MFA thesis at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. It is the first title in the SF Masterworks series, and early editions were abridged.
Feel
Hard-edged and sad.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- The Forever WarWikipedia