Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Grief'
The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition by Ursula K. Le Guin
1 review
autistic_dragon's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’m so, so, sorry, Rick Riordan. I have a new favorite fantasy author and series.
By this point, I have made several reviews of some of the prior installments of the Earthsea series. This is the omnibus edition, the one I received last Christmas. It contains every piece of Earthsea story Ursula K. Le Guin ever wrote, from the pre-A Wizard of Earthsea short stories The Word of Unbinding and The Rule of Names to Le Guin’s final two entries in the world, The Daughter of Odren, written exclusively for this omnibus, and the posthumously published Firelight. It also includes Le Guin’s retrospective commentaries at the ends of her sextet of novels, and her “A Description of Earthsea” and “Earthsea Revisioned” essay and lecture, respectively.
I therefore have consumed much about this world in a short span of time, a little over two years with much of it crammed into 2021, and I can therefore say that this fantasy is beautiful, the way it tugs at the heartstrings, the way it calls forth our senses of awe. There are so many moments that are simply profound, and speak to the human condition, to the nature of power, to the mysteries of life and death, to not only ask if to life forever is a good thing, but if to want to do so is a good thing. It also speaks to issues that, as a cisgender, heterosexual man, I have no personal experience with. Le Guin got a lot of flak for the alternate perspective she took in the fourth novel, the decidedly child-unfriendly Tehanu, but without it, Earthsea would ring hollow, and the series would not have withstood the test of time. There are also far fewer continuity errors in the later installments than I thought there would be from my English professor’s remarks. Retcons (in the strictest sense of the term), certainly, but the only outright contradiction I found was (view spoiler).
But that notwithstanding, Earthsea is simply magical, in both senses of the word. Parts may be an acquired taste, due to the age of some and Le Guin developing her own style as she matured as a writer, but the series as whole remains criminally underrated and little-known outside its genres; the professional reviewers who put Le Guin as a pillar of fantasy alongside Tolkien and C. S. Lewis are not being hyperbolic.
By this point, I have made several reviews of some of the prior installments of the Earthsea series. This is the omnibus edition, the one I received last Christmas. It contains every piece of Earthsea story Ursula K. Le Guin ever wrote, from the pre-A Wizard of Earthsea short stories The Word of Unbinding and The Rule of Names to Le Guin’s final two entries in the world, The Daughter of Odren, written exclusively for this omnibus, and the posthumously published Firelight. It also includes Le Guin’s retrospective commentaries at the ends of her sextet of novels, and her “A Description of Earthsea” and “Earthsea Revisioned” essay and lecture, respectively.
I therefore have consumed much about this world in a short span of time, a little over two years with much of it crammed into 2021, and I can therefore say that this fantasy is beautiful, the way it tugs at the heartstrings, the way it calls forth our senses of awe. There are so many moments that are simply profound, and speak to the human condition, to the nature of power, to the mysteries of life and death, to not only ask if to life forever is a good thing, but if to want to do so is a good thing. It also speaks to issues that, as a cisgender, heterosexual man, I have no personal experience with. Le Guin got a lot of flak for the alternate perspective she took in the fourth novel, the decidedly child-unfriendly Tehanu, but without it, Earthsea would ring hollow, and the series would not have withstood the test of time. There are also far fewer continuity errors in the later installments than I thought there would be from my English professor’s remarks. Retcons (in the strictest sense of the term), certainly, but the only outright contradiction I found was (view spoiler).
But that notwithstanding, Earthsea is simply magical, in both senses of the word. Parts may be an acquired taste, due to the age of some and Le Guin developing her own style as she matured as a writer, but the series as whole remains criminally underrated and little-known outside its genres; the professional reviewers who put Le Guin as a pillar of fantasy alongside Tolkien and C. S. Lewis are not being hyperbolic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Grief, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Pedophilia, and Sexism
Moderate: Rape, Slavery, Drug abuse, Violence, and Death
Minor: Child death
More...