Reviews tagging 'War'

The Word for World Is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin

35 reviews

morenowagain's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative fast-paced

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

4.0

A very appropriate read for what's going on in the world right now. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Xenophobia, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Violence, Murder, Sexism, Drug use, Rape, Racism, Gun violence, Gore, Genocide, and Death

itsnotsarah's review

challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Colonisation, Racism, Slavery, War, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism

Minor: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Rape

trailmixraisins's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This Ursula K. Le Guin classic is a short and bittersweet parable-like story. She uses vivid and explicit depictions of colonialism in the setting of an alien planet years in the future where humans have developed the technology to travel through space. Selver, an Athshean man, and his society are irrevocably changed after humans settle the planet to harvest wood to be sold on Earth. Though ultimately hopeful, the toll of human violence and hatred on the non-violent society puts its continued existence in jeopardy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Murder, Colonisation, Sexual harassment, Slavery, War, Xenophobia, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Confinement, Alcohol, Blood, Drug use, Misogyny, Torture, Grief, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

Minor: Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexism

ashleyend's review

adventurous challenging reflective fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Slavery, Colonisation, Death, Genocide, and Violence

Moderate: Racism, Sexual violence, Xenophobia, and Racial slurs

remib's review against another edition

adventurous dark fast-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War and Colonisation

Moderate: Rape

issyharvey's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I'm always a fan of Le Guin's writing and will definitely be rereading this piece again and again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Death, Genocide, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Gun violence, Bullying, Sexual assault, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood

Minor: Addiction, Drug use, and Alcohol

johnpfromkc's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Good message but it was a little too "on the nose." 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Death, Bullying, Colonisation, Police brutality, Murder, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Classism, Racial slurs, Violence, Addiction, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, War, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Blood, and Physical abuse

lottiegasp's review against another edition

hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

In this novella we meet the peaceful Ashtheans, a humanoid species living on a planet covered in forest. The planet has been colonised by Terran humans, who log the planet to return the wood to the now-arid Earth. We meet a selection of the humans living on Ashthe from the garishly evil Davidson who sees the Ashtheans as an inferior animal species, to Lyubov, an anthropologist who has studied, learnt the language of, and befriended the Ashtheans, and many in between with varying levels of respect or disdain for the Ashtheans. The main Ashthean we get to know is Selver, who leads the resistance against the humans.

Written in the 1970s, the story is an allegory for the Vietnam War, where the Ashtheans represent the otherwise peaceful Vietnamese who, when driven to it, fought for their country's self-determination. I liked how the story depicts a range of humans (representing Americans), but that even those who mean well are still complicit in human supremacy that hurts the Ashtheans.

I think stories like this that deal with speciesism against alien species and human supremacy function both represent the racism/colonisation of the past (blatantly defining non-white people as subhuman. These days the forms of racism tend to be more subtle) and also give us food for thought when considering how we treat non-human animals- making assumptions about their intelligence, feelings and value.

I always find Le Guin's writing quite dense, such that I struggle to get excited to go back to her novels while I'm reading them. Compared to her full-length novels I've read, this one was short enough to feel like less of a slog, but also meant it did not have the same build and climax that I enjoyed for instance in The Left Hand Of Darkness. But overall I recommend the book for its pertinent political themes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, War, and Genocide

Moderate: Rape

cjlacyhanks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Murder, and Rape

Minor: Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, War, Rape, Confinement, and Blood

some_random_person_hi's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

A brilliant exploration of violence/ war and its effects. Currently, the only reason it's not 5 stars is bc I personally enjoy books more when I get attached to characters but this book is more idea/theme-focused than trying to get readers to root for the characters. Was in no way a comfortable book to read but that was intended so I'll let it slide. Davidson was quite hateable though, and ended up swearing in annotations quite a bit during his chapters. Will reread for ecolit so I'm looking forward to seeing how my views change.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, Grief, Murder, Racism, War, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Death, Gun violence, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Misogyny, Genocide, Sexual violence, Drug use, and Rape

Minor: Confinement and Suicide

Davidson POV chapters have very intense misogyny, racism, genocidal inclinations, toxic masculinity & sadism in general.