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A review by theaurochs
Worlds of Exile and Illusion: Rocannon's World, Planet of Exile, City of Illusions by Ursula K. Le Guin
5.0
Achingly beautiful.
Le Guin's writing is at its very best in these three short novels from early in her career. The prose is lyrical, mythical, and has an almost fairy-tale feel to it. She masterfully captures the idea of an insterstellar civilization that is constrained by the very real problem of slower-than-light travel; the individual worlds are often in isolated, simplistic ways of life. But this doesn't seem like a bad thing, nor should it. The lives led by the inhabitants are fulfilling, honest and full of joy in many ways.
Her stories all feel like true epics of adventure, love and family; but manage to avoid the downfalls and tropes of so many classical stories and authors in the genre. Conflict is never glorified, superhuman feats are never pulled out of hats; we have a real and genuine sense of community in these stories, a feeling of cultures that could actually exist, and of families that support each other in genuine ways. You can absolutely feel Le Guin's anthropological expertise shining through!
It's sci-fi, it's fantasy, it's fairy-tale, it's deeply philosophically grounded, it is elegant and finely crafted. I really do not believe that Le Guin has many (if any) equals.
Le Guin's writing is at its very best in these three short novels from early in her career. The prose is lyrical, mythical, and has an almost fairy-tale feel to it. She masterfully captures the idea of an insterstellar civilization that is constrained by the very real problem of slower-than-light travel; the individual worlds are often in isolated, simplistic ways of life. But this doesn't seem like a bad thing, nor should it. The lives led by the inhabitants are fulfilling, honest and full of joy in many ways.
Her stories all feel like true epics of adventure, love and family; but manage to avoid the downfalls and tropes of so many classical stories and authors in the genre. Conflict is never glorified, superhuman feats are never pulled out of hats; we have a real and genuine sense of community in these stories, a feeling of cultures that could actually exist, and of families that support each other in genuine ways. You can absolutely feel Le Guin's anthropological expertise shining through!
It's sci-fi, it's fantasy, it's fairy-tale, it's deeply philosophically grounded, it is elegant and finely crafted. I really do not believe that Le Guin has many (if any) equals.