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jodar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This SF novel is about the first contact by a single envoy (the MC) to an icy planet (Winter) inhabited by a human species unique in their sequential hermaphroditism. The envoy comes from a benign, intergalactic ‘cooperative’ consisting of scores of planets who over thousands of years have made contact across a human diaspora from long ago.
Le Guin here focuses, as is typical, on social, personal and political themes. Notably here, the MC strikes cultural misunderstandings in both directions, often without realising till later on that a misunderstanding has occurred. The envoy gradually learns, with the help of a key ally in Winter and after considerable physical suffering, how to approach the cultures of Winter effectively. We also read events from the perspective of the MC’s ally.
Originally written in 1969, the novel has elements of the cold war, with ideological differences between states, one of which is essentially communist and has secret police and brutal prisons reminiscent of the Soviet Union. Le Guin also, as often, brings in eastern thought, such as yin and yang, deep meditation and theology-free religious life. Though to me there are also shades of the Judeo-Christian story of prophets coming to a people from ‘another place’, there the spiritual realm, here the intergalactic cooperative. These political, religious and interpersonal/sexuality threads are teased out in an interweaving, complex way, which is one of Le Guin’s fortes. Nothing didactic, but a lot to mull over by the reader.
I read this first in November 1985 and I hugely enjoyed this challenging, but wonderful novel again.
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Death, and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Miscarriage
lastonedown's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Moderate: Incest, Suicide, Transphobia, and Death
Minor: Homophobia and Violence
carrionkid's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Incest
jiangslore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Xenophobia and Violence
sara_n's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
Graphic: Physical abuse, Death, Deportation, and Violence
blazingquill's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
That being said, it’s a very profound look into the difference between things that are societally decided and things that are innately human, in a way that thoughtfully offers solutions to the world we currently live in rather than just pointing out the bad. (From what I understand, this is often a core tenant of Le Guin’s work, and makes me excited to read more.) At it’s core, despite the way it sometimes reads, it’s a story about friendship and love. The line, “I do not know if we were right,” inflicted psychic damage upon me, and just barely manages to push the heavy queer coding into explicitly queer.
If you have experience reading dense science fiction, and don’t mind it, I would highly recommend.
Graphic: Xenophobia, Grief, Incest, Misogyny, and Trafficking
Moderate: Torture, Violence, Vomit, and Police brutality
Minor: Murder, Transphobia, and War
loki's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
As a final note that i will not specify as a positive or a negative, this is essentially omegaverse before omegaverse even existed.
Graphic: Violence, Sexism, Colonisation, and Grief
thecriticalreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Sexism, Death, and Incest
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, War, and Miscarriage
geonox's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Suicide
dhiyanah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
I appreciate Ursula's treatment of imaginative concepts, how easily she weaves a story that serves as a potent reflection for real-life considerations. The frustrations and complications of gender showcased through this slow interplanetary adventure is both intriguing and irritating. I enjoyed the melding-together of landscape, political science, and character growth in this story.
Graphic: Sexism and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Torture, Suicide, and Body horror
Minor: Death and Violence