Based on a once-removed extrapolation of ideas (by way of Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy) to be found in Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire - mainly, that history is shaped by the use of power - the earth is under attack and the survival of the human species depends on a military genius who can defeat the alien 'buggers.' Recruited for military training, Andrew 'Ender' Wiggin's childhood ends the moment he enters his new home: Battle School. A Hugo Award-winner in the author's definitive edition.