A review by gussurireads
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

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

3.0

Read as part of "a journey to earthsea" book club, hosted by @sunflowers_and_storms 

Took me longer than expected to finish this. The second half of this book took me twice as long to get through than the first half. The run-on sentences and long descriptions of sea travels dragged on for far too long, the plot barely moving along, which does not help when there's barely any dialogue, and my ADHD-addled brain ended up straying quite often.

I think Ursula summarizes my feelings about the book in the afterword of my edition: "[...] A Wizard was perfectly conventional. The hero does what a man is supposed to do: he uses his strength, wits, and courage to rise from humble beginnings to great fame and power, in a world where women are secondary, a man's world." I rarely read stories with male characters, especially in Fantasy, as I just find traditional fantasy quite boring and well, male-focused. As a queer woman, I'm just not very into that kind of narrative.

And even where Le Guin tried to subvert fantasy tradition (which truly at that time it was basically Tolkien) with her darker skinned cast, she did it in such a subtle way that it allowed publishers to "fool" audiences for years and put white men in the covers of Earthsea.

Still, I'm looking forward to see how the series evolves, especially with shift in focus and protagonist with Tehanu. I might pick up the Portuguese editions from the library next though, for easier reading.
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