charliequicken's review against another edition
have i read the first three earthsea books? no. will i? yes, of course. still, even without that context, this was such a great read. i love tenar and tehanu, though i am, as always, begging authors to have very different names for their characters, because i will get them confused. in the beginning, there's an uncomfortable way of talking about wandering travelers, who bear a resemblance to roma and other people that don't live in one place, so beware, but otherwise a great book about growing older and what it means to be happy
emilyjarman's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
5.0
adashske's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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
4.0
maren_hemsath's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
slow-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? It's complicated
4.75
circleofreadersdruid's review against another edition
5.0
I have to say, Tehanu is the best in the Earthsea books so far. I liked the first three, especially the second, which also featured Tenar, but in Tehanu, Le Guin has finally come into her own as a writer. The slow reveal of where she was going with her world- and magic-building was delicious, and I lapped up every bit of her questions and discourses about feminism, power, and societal responsibility. Here’s one of my favorite quotes:
If women had power, what would men be but women who can’t bear children. And what would women be but men who can.
One last note: Jenny Sterlin is an amazing narrator. I’ll be on the lookout for more books read by her.
If women had power, what would men be but women who can’t bear children. And what would women be but men who can.
One last note: Jenny Sterlin is an amazing narrator. I’ll be on the lookout for more books read by her.
enbyglitch's review against another edition
5.0
Another solid Earthsea book, which greatly subverted my expectations of both the series and feminism.
Two books I've read are somewhat reminiscient - Hobb's "Ship of Destiny" and Larkwood's "The Unspoken Name". In either of those stories, Tenar or Therru would have eventually taken up the power to deal with the problems facing them. Here though, their heroism comes in surviving abuse until an opportune moment. It is a very different take than I'd seen previously, and probably puts to rest my hopes of seeing Tenar become a cool wizard in this series haha.
Le Guin has a lot to say here about the victimization and dehumanization of women in the acts and words of men - and the truth there cannot be denied. It's fascinating to me that she emphasizes and explores a real binary between the genders, then in the Afterword talks about needing to transcend systems that have proven chronically traumatic. Maybe its just my genderqueer bias, but I think she was almost there.
Overall a good story, if certainly worthy of all kinds of content warnings regarding sexism and abuse. Le Guin's take on feminism is both wildly different and interesting in its own right.
Two books I've read are somewhat reminiscient - Hobb's "Ship of Destiny" and Larkwood's "The Unspoken Name". In either of those stories, Tenar or Therru would have eventually taken up the power to deal with the problems facing them. Here though, their heroism comes in surviving abuse until an opportune moment. It is a very different take than I'd seen previously, and probably puts to rest my hopes of seeing Tenar become a cool wizard in this series haha.
Le Guin has a lot to say here about the victimization and dehumanization of women in the acts and words of men - and the truth there cannot be denied. It's fascinating to me that she emphasizes and explores a real binary between the genders, then in the Afterword talks about needing to transcend systems that have proven chronically traumatic. Maybe its just my genderqueer bias, but I think she was almost there.
Overall a good story, if certainly worthy of all kinds of content warnings regarding sexism and abuse. Le Guin's take on feminism is both wildly different and interesting in its own right.
fi_reads_books's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
sjbooks123's review against another edition
5.0
Favorite of the books. Excellent in dealing with the treatment of Tehanu, getting Ged and Tenar together, contempt of son to mother, feminist view of Tenar and the duties of women, required to go on, Ged selfish and unseeing.