Old Man's War
Old Man's War by John Scalziby John Scalzi
Shares rank 63 of 179 science fiction novels by recommenders
Recommended as a series with a strong opening sentence that readers devour. Critics say the characters sound alike and it is only good, not great.
Recommended as a series with a strong opening sentence that readers devour. Critics say the characters sound alike and it is only good, not great.
9 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 7
- criticize it
- 2
- approval share
- 78%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 7 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 3.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Great opening sentence
“had such a great first sentence I devoured the series”
Comment from 25 Jan 2026 in “First, Make Me Care” Readers devour the whole series
“had such a great first sentence I devoured the series”
Comment from 25 Jan 2026 in “First, Make Me Care”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Characters all sound alike
“Scalzi's characterizations in that one are singular, in that all of his characters think and talk like exactly the same snark-spewing geeky dude.”
Comment from 7 Sep 2026 in “2026 Hugo Awards” Reads like wish-fulfillment fantasy
“It read like a teenage boy's wish-fulfillment fantasy”
Comment from 8 Sep 2026 in “2026 Hugo Awards” Good rather than great
“I would put it as a good one, but not a great one.”
Comment from 7 Sep 2026 in “2026 Hugo Awards”
Other science fiction novels people recommend
The four most recommended other science fiction novels, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Hail Maryby Andy Weir | 117 | 24 | 83% | 12 | — | Approved |
| There Is No Antimemetics Divisionby qntm | 98 | 34 | 74% | 9 | 1.5 yrs6 owners | Approved |
| Blindsightby Peter Watts | 96 | 27 | 78% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Duneby Frank Herbert | 82 | 25 | 77% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Old Man's Warby John ScalziThis page | 7 | 2 | 78% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
4 of the 9 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It read like a teenage boy's wish-fulfillment fantasy”
“I would put it as a good one, but not a great one.”
“Scalzi's characterizations in that one are singular, in that all of his characters think and talk like exactly the same snark-spewing geeky dude.”
“had such a great first sentence I devoured the series”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.