Reviews with content warning for Confinement - The Left Hand of Darkness

The worldbuilding is masterfully executed, revealing a rich and diverse world and culture within the confines of a relatively short book. The characters are captivating, and the narrative effectively captures the challenges of collaboration with a culture one doesn't fully comprehend and vice versa.

The book successfully presents multiple perspectives, with the main character questioning his own ideas and cultural norms after engaging with Winter's people. What stands out is how Winter and its countries aren't portrayed as utopias nor lesser places than earth. They're not good or bad, just different, with their own moral grey areas. Even the two countries that are shown in the book have big cultural differences. Eventhough gender is a significant theme and the first thing you'll likely learn when looking up the book, the core focus revolves around learning to respect and collaborate with another culture. The way gender is represented in the book is in a world that shows the what-if scenario of a society where gender (or sexuality) has no impact on people's role in it.

The only aspect I wish were different is that 'neutral' pronouns and other terms are male to the reader. Perhaps it highlights the flaws of the main character and his default way of thinking. But I still found it odd.

Content Warnings

arcturus_b's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

waxwwing's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This book is so complicated, man. (Yes, I understand how ironic the use of the word 'man' is here). I'm very grumpy about

Estraven's death

but I think the ending of the novel is, ultimately, very fitting. This is the sort of novel that I believe I would enjoy much more if I was studying it - there's so many layers to this text and what is has to say about gender, and I'm particularly interested in the role

incest (god)

plays into the narrative. TLDR; Ursula Le Guin would be massively fascinated by modern ABO fanfic.

Content Warnings

citrine's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

bookishperseus's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative lighthearted reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

It did take a while for me to be able to start this book, and at times I found it incredibly slow, complex or tedious.

I did keep reading it because there was a small interest as to what would happen, even though this book is following what could be considered a 'usual every day life'.

Towards the end, I found the final 3 or 4 chapters actually quite interesting. Not something I'd read again, but glad I finished it!

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