galoshes's review against another edition
Finished the first 2 books in Earthsea - I liked them ok but not enough to keep going with the entire tome for now. Maybe will return to it later.
viksquires's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
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
5.0
maxsebastian's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
5.0
If I read The Books of Earthsea again, it might surpass The Lord of the Rings as my favorite book series. From Charles Vess's incredible illustrations (love his work on The Sandman too) to the archipelago setting, Earthsea's world is magical. Keep a close eye on how LeGuin portrays dragons, death, and heroism throughout the stories. The books are divided into two trilogies that LeGuin wrote nearly 20 years apart, and her evolution as a writer is clear. If you don't love the first three, it really is worth sticking with it. That said, I was a fan of most all of it. Let's get to how this giant volume breaks down!
The book begins, as all great books do, with a map. The islands and regions are beautiful. I particularly am fond of the eastern island chain "The Hands," the massive central "Havnor", and "The Dragon's Run" in the far West. Look up the map if you haven't. It is spectacular. While I love the Earthsea landscape, the map printing in The Books of Earthsea is blurry and missing printing in the center. This issue is annoying and makes figuring out where characters are much harder.
Following the map is LeGuin's introduction. Don't skip her forwards and afterwords that accompany the stories enclosed. They all shed light on her process and the world as a whole.
After this, we jump straight into A Wizard of Earthsea, with a black and white cover image, a color print, and the table of contents with a half page illustration. Vess includes a similar setup for each book and at least a cover image for every story and the concluding essay. Further black and white images are included throughout each book, but they feel concentrated in the first trilogy, at least to me. Let's jump into individual reviews.
A Wizard of Earthsea: This book reads Harry Potter mixed with Frankenstein, and I adore it. Sparrowhawk is a lovable protagonist, but Ogion and Vetch are the real stars in this book. This almost prologue to the rest of the series is what made me fall in love with Earthsea. It is also the story that modern writers most frequently pull from. From Kvothe to the University, Rothfuss draws heavy inspiration from A Wizard of Earthsea, for example. 4.75 stars.
The Tombs of Atuan: Although it starts slow, this book really sets up what Earthsea is all about. It's got a female heroine (not yet a female hero by LeGuin's definition), beautiful maps, and a really surprising change from the first book. The story focuses on the Karghad lands, the main region of Earthsea where people have fair skin. I adore the ending of this story and the characters it introduces. 4.5 stars.
The Farthest Shore: While the concept of this story (and Sparrowhawk's evolution) are amazing, the execution fell a little flat for me. The ending, however, has major consequences. The fact that LeGuin ends this book the way she does and then didn't follow it up for YEARS is wild. 3 stars.
Tehanu: And here, LeGuin hits her stride. This story is full of old faces cast in new lights. Therru is a fascinating new character you will love. It starts with an ending and ends with a beginning. It's the pinnacle of this series, and I think if people could read this one first, they would immediately fall in love with Earthsea. On a quick note, there is some sexual violence in this story that I have complicated feelings about. 5 stars.
Tales from Earthsea: While thematically this book progresses LeGuin's vision, it's not my favorite. That said, LeGuin's framing of this book as her trying to understand her own world really shows. Bones of the Earth is my favorite story in here and I feel it's a little slept on. This book is definitely required reading, particularly Dragonfly, the other story in Tales from Earthsea that I love, which forms an important bridge between Tehanu and The Other Wind. 3.5 stars.
The Other Wind: A spectacular conclusion to the Earthsea books. The ending had me in tears. This book answers huge questions about the world and makes you reflect on the way characters grow and change throughout an author's life. Sparrowhawk and Tenar are forever my favorites. 5 stars.
The Books of Earthsea closes with her version of Tolkien's Appendices (thankfully in LeGuin's case only 20 pages long), several short stories, and an essay. It's wonderful to see the complete evolution of her view on Earthsea with these stories, from the first hints of a larger world in The Word of Unbinding to her pokes at Tolkien in The Rule of Names. Firelight brings Sparrowhawk's tale to an even better conclusion and Earthsea Revisioned presents the series as LeGuin sees it. These last two especially are essential in seeing the overall picture of this universe.
Thanks for reading all of this! A few more closing thoughts. These books are all short, from about 150 to 250 pages. I love how well edited LeGuin is. Imagine if we tried to pack The Stormlight Archive into one book! It's wonderful that LeGuin is able to create just as magical of a universe as Sanderson in a book that is 1/10 the forecasted length of his series. That said, her writing is dense, mostly in the best of ways. There so much to unpack here. I think her best writing is as rereadible as The Name of the Wind and features much more powerful theming. Please read The Books of Earthsea. This edition and the stories within are foundational to the modern fantasy world and hold up brilliantly. Ged, Tenar, Tehanu, thank you for sharing your life with me in a way only comparable to Lyra, Frodo, and Morpheus.
The book begins, as all great books do, with a map. The islands and regions are beautiful. I particularly am fond of the eastern island chain "The Hands," the massive central "Havnor", and "The Dragon's Run" in the far West. Look up the map if you haven't. It is spectacular. While I love the Earthsea landscape, the map printing in The Books of Earthsea is blurry and missing printing in the center. This issue is annoying and makes figuring out where characters are much harder.
Following the map is LeGuin's introduction. Don't skip her forwards and afterwords that accompany the stories enclosed. They all shed light on her process and the world as a whole.
After this, we jump straight into A Wizard of Earthsea, with a black and white cover image, a color print, and the table of contents with a half page illustration. Vess includes a similar setup for each book and at least a cover image for every story and the concluding essay. Further black and white images are included throughout each book, but they feel concentrated in the first trilogy, at least to me. Let's jump into individual reviews.
A Wizard of Earthsea: This book reads Harry Potter mixed with Frankenstein, and I adore it. Sparrowhawk is a lovable protagonist, but Ogion and Vetch are the real stars in this book. This almost prologue to the rest of the series is what made me fall in love with Earthsea. It is also the story that modern writers most frequently pull from. From Kvothe to the University, Rothfuss draws heavy inspiration from A Wizard of Earthsea, for example. 4.75 stars.
The Tombs of Atuan: Although it starts slow, this book really sets up what Earthsea is all about. It's got a female heroine (not yet a female hero by LeGuin's definition), beautiful maps, and a really surprising change from the first book. The story focuses on the Karghad lands, the main region of Earthsea where people have fair skin. I adore the ending of this story and the characters it introduces. 4.5 stars.
The Farthest Shore: While the concept of this story (and Sparrowhawk's evolution) are amazing, the execution fell a little flat for me. The ending, however, has major consequences. The fact that LeGuin ends this book the way she does and then didn't follow it up for YEARS is wild. 3 stars.
Tehanu: And here, LeGuin hits her stride. This story is full of old faces cast in new lights. Therru is a fascinating new character you will love. It starts with an ending and ends with a beginning. It's the pinnacle of this series, and I think if people could read this one first, they would immediately fall in love with Earthsea. On a quick note, there is some sexual violence in this story that I have complicated feelings about. 5 stars.
Tales from Earthsea: While thematically this book progresses LeGuin's vision, it's not my favorite. That said, LeGuin's framing of this book as her trying to understand her own world really shows. Bones of the Earth is my favorite story in here and I feel it's a little slept on. This book is definitely required reading, particularly Dragonfly, the other story in Tales from Earthsea that I love, which forms an important bridge between Tehanu and The Other Wind. 3.5 stars.
The Other Wind: A spectacular conclusion to the Earthsea books. The ending had me in tears. This book answers huge questions about the world and makes you reflect on the way characters grow and change throughout an author's life. Sparrowhawk and Tenar are forever my favorites. 5 stars.
The Books of Earthsea closes with her version of Tolkien's Appendices (thankfully in LeGuin's case only 20 pages long), several short stories, and an essay. It's wonderful to see the complete evolution of her view on Earthsea with these stories, from the first hints of a larger world in The Word of Unbinding to her pokes at Tolkien in The Rule of Names. Firelight brings Sparrowhawk's tale to an even better conclusion and Earthsea Revisioned presents the series as LeGuin sees it. These last two especially are essential in seeing the overall picture of this universe.
Thanks for reading all of this! A few more closing thoughts. These books are all short, from about 150 to 250 pages. I love how well edited LeGuin is. Imagine if we tried to pack The Stormlight Archive into one book! It's wonderful that LeGuin is able to create just as magical of a universe as Sanderson in a book that is 1/10 the forecasted length of his series. That said, her writing is dense, mostly in the best of ways. There so much to unpack here. I think her best writing is as rereadible as The Name of the Wind and features much more powerful theming. Please read The Books of Earthsea. This edition and the stories within are foundational to the modern fantasy world and hold up brilliantly. Ged, Tenar, Tehanu, thank you for sharing your life with me in a way only comparable to Lyra, Frodo, and Morpheus.
lithiumlion's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
skweeka's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyable on the whole, some books are better than others
alisonburnis's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Starting off 2023 strong with Le Guin! I’ve always wanted to read her work, but felt somewhat intimidated - so an omnibus edition like this was perfect for me to get into one of her worlds. Earthsea is a world of islands, populated with different kingdoms, sorcerers, witches, and mages - magic being practiced in many different ways and levels. I read this all straight through, which was certainly a choice. Not a bad one! But it’s a real commitment.
This omnibus edition contains the six books of Earthsea, plus a number of short stories and an essay. I really did enjoy getting into the world of Earthsea but I find myself thinking about the afterwards to each of the books, where Le Guin explains her thought process and context for each book. The illustrations were also lovely, and very much in line with what Le Guin expressed repeatedly throughout the afterwards. Anyway! Amazing fantasy! Subversion of fantasy tropes and rules!
This omnibus edition contains the six books of Earthsea, plus a number of short stories and an essay. I really did enjoy getting into the world of Earthsea but I find myself thinking about the afterwards to each of the books, where Le Guin explains her thought process and context for each book. The illustrations were also lovely, and very much in line with what Le Guin expressed repeatedly throughout the afterwards. Anyway! Amazing fantasy! Subversion of fantasy tropes and rules!
un_sharp's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
silvae's review against another edition
5.0
I reread this story multiple times the evening I finished my big Earthsea collection book. This story recounts Ged's final moments, looking back at the adventures he embarked on over the course of his long life, and the people he met along the way - I desperately missed Estarriol in The Other Wind, so it was nice to know that Ged still remembered him after all these years.
Once I finished reading the story the first time around, I felt immensely sad. I started reading Ursula K. Le Guin after she passed, and I feel an ache knowing that I can't send a letter to her or her publisher, thanking her for these stories and also the vulnerability with which she wrote this final story. It was released posthumously, but I do think there is a lot of her in this reminiscing.
Have you ever looked into a fire on a dark evening and just zoned out, feeling your thoughts ebb and flow in front of your mind's eye? Reading Firelight feels exactly like that.
Once I finished reading the story the first time around, I felt immensely sad. I started reading Ursula K. Le Guin after she passed, and I feel an ache knowing that I can't send a letter to her or her publisher, thanking her for these stories and also the vulnerability with which she wrote this final story. It was released posthumously, but I do think there is a lot of her in this reminiscing.
Have you ever looked into a fire on a dark evening and just zoned out, feeling your thoughts ebb and flow in front of your mind's eye? Reading Firelight feels exactly like that.