Speaker for the Dead
Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Cardby Orson Scott Card
Shares rank 135 of 179 science fiction novels by recommenders
Readers who liked Ender's Game recommend this follow-up for its speaking-for-the-dead concept and memorable characters, and some rank it above Ender's Game.
Readers who liked Ender's Game recommend this follow-up for its speaking-for-the-dead concept and memorable characters, and some rank it above Ender's Game.
3 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 3
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not 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: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 3 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 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
Speaking for the dead concept
“As an adult, I greatly enjoyed all of the followup books to Ender's game and the whole concept of "speaking for the dead".”
Comment from 16 Aug 2026 in “Speaking for the Dead” Even better than Ender's
“It's brilliant, even better than Ender's”
Comment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?” Memorable character Jane
“I like Jane from Speaker for the Dead, etc..”
Comment from 25 Oct 2026 in “Eunice is almost here”
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 |
| Speaker for the Deadby Orson Scott CardThis page | 3 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
All 3 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I like Jane from Speaker for the Dead, etc..”
“It's brilliant, even better than Ender's”
“As an adult, I greatly enjoyed all of the followup books to Ender's game and the whole concept of "speaking for the dead".”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.