Card's first novel never got much attention, which is a shame because I think this is one of his more interesting works. The writing is a bit clumsy, true - just what you would expect from an inexperienced author. But the world he constructs taps into the heart of what makes sci-fi great. In the first chapter we are introduced to the main character, who belongs to a race/family of planetary colonists who possess the genetic trait of "radical regeneration," that is, their bodies can repair almost any injury. As he travels the planet we meet other families, each of which has a genetic ability more mind-bending than the last.