I purchased this book to read to my five year old son. It is a great adaptation and there are pictures on every three to four pages which keeps him interested in the book. Great illustrations! We are loving every minute of it and read 2-3 chapters a night!

It's around US$4.99 in Amazon.com

In Canada, it costs about CDN$5.99 in Amazon.ca

And it's available in Amazon UK, but I'm not sure about the price.

Some do good folks come up with a technogology that can enclose objects withing a large mirror like sphere that cannot be penetrated. Presumably all within it are killed. That does not stop them from using this device coupled with computer tech and large power sources to bobble up all of the major weapons systems and weapons bases in the world in an effort to create peace on earth.
We begin the book with a plane crash. We discover a severly depopulated planet that has suffered from numerous man made plagues that were released just after the Peace Authority bobbled all the major military powers into ineffectiveness. None but the authority can utilize mass production or large power sources. We are introduced to an old man who may have some insight to what happened 50 years ago when the Authority came to power and he burns with the desire to bring them down. All of this is predominantly seen through the eyes of a teenager with remarkable intelligence as he is saved from homelessness and...

It's around US$10.17 in Amazon.com

In Canada, it costs about CDN$15.16 in Amazon.ca

In UK, it sells for £7.21

An good sci-fi space adventure.

I picked up this book after a reviewer had mentioned this work in his review of another book; I'd been a avid fan of the fantasy genre for as long as I can remember and this book provided an enjoyable excursion into something a little different.

This story is a classic confrontation of good verses evil in space; a tale of suspense, betrayal, and the unexpected. All the action/events take place concurrently in a space 'lab' and on an unique planet that orbits a dormant sun; a sun that only 'fires up' for about 40 out of every 200 years. Appropriately, this sun is call the 'On/Off Star.

Overall, Vinge is an excellent story teller; he makes most of his chapters [with some exceptions, see 2.) below] just long enough to tell what has to be told and then proceeds on to the next event/topic. I found he was able to create real tension (to whet your appetite, as it were) within a given scene with comparative ease, leaving the reader eager to get back ...

It's around US$7.99 in Amazon.com

In Canada, it costs about CDN$9.99 in Amazon.ca

And it's available in Amazon UK, but I'm not sure about the price.