This was one of those books that everyone was reading, when I was in high school. Based on the high volume of reviews, it seems like it still is. I read it, at the time, because of the glowing recommendations from a number of people whose opinions I valued.
For the life of me, I cannot understand why this book is so popular.

The characters are wooden in their portrayal, and some of the most implausibly written children I've ever read. The pacing is awful, rushing through sequences. It's as if Card's written a timeline checklist, and is trying to get through each point as quickly as possible. Which would explain why every instance of characterization is so damn heavy-handed.

Worst is the fact that Card's Mormonism is a driving factor to the plot. A different planet for each religion? Pro-militaristic dogma? Overt homophobia? Even when I was 15 and had no idea what Card's ideologies were, the book still left me feeling queasy, annoyed, cheated.

I'm not even sure why I'd given this book two whole stars when I first rated it, poor as it is. I'll adjust that.