A review by sfletcher26
The Earthsea Quartet by Ursula K. Le Guin
5.0
I have been aware of the Earthsea books since at primary school but was largely dismissive of them. As I got older and more of the books came out I remained dismissive of them because they were said to be aimed at the "young adult" market. I wanted to read "real" books, aimed at the adult market. In retrospect a rather arrogant point of view because these are actually some of the best fantasy books I've read in a good while and deal with issues in far greater depth than many more "adult" books.
A Wizard of Earthsea ****
Sparrowhawk is a goatherd from Gont, an island at the edge of his world, who becomes the geatest mage of his time. This is the story of his training and the results of his arrogance. A story of growth, self knowledge and accepting the responsibility of one's own actions.
My one slight quibble is the speed with which the story was wrapped up, it just felt very rushed.
The Tombs of Atuan *****
Arha is the priestess of the place, a temple complex on the isle of Atuan. raised from the age of 5 to be the handmaiden of the Nameless Ones. her world is changed irrevocably when the mage, Sparrowhawk, enters her life in the pursuit of the mythical ring of Erreth-Akbe.
Moving the focus of this book from Sparrowhak to Arha was a surprise (well it was for me anyway). And changing the focus from a world spanning story to a much smaller scale were inspired. By far the best of the four books.
The Farthest Shore *****
Sparrowhawk and Arren must journey to discover why the power of magic is disappearing.
Having given us the small scale Le Guin shows us the large scale again in a story that moves from the mage's Isle to the island at the end of the world and on into the plane of the dead. A story that deals with death and the fear of death, friendship and honour.
Tehanu ****
Goha lives on the isle of Gont and saves an abused child, bringing her up as her daughter. Both are however not who they seem.
Back the the small scale and again and all the better for it. In this installment Le Guin deals with issues of abuse, pain and loss.
I so wanted to give this 5 stars but was again sadly disappointed by another somewhat rushed ending.
All in all 4 great stories that deserve far greater recognition for, I think its probably fair to say that, without them the works of Rowling and Pulman would be very different.
A Wizard of Earthsea ****
Sparrowhawk is a goatherd from Gont, an island at the edge of his world, who becomes the geatest mage of his time. This is the story of his training and the results of his arrogance. A story of growth, self knowledge and accepting the responsibility of one's own actions.
My one slight quibble is the speed with which the story was wrapped up, it just felt very rushed.
The Tombs of Atuan *****
Arha is the priestess of the place, a temple complex on the isle of Atuan. raised from the age of 5 to be the handmaiden of the Nameless Ones. her world is changed irrevocably when the mage, Sparrowhawk, enters her life in the pursuit of the mythical ring of Erreth-Akbe.
Moving the focus of this book from Sparrowhak to Arha was a surprise (well it was for me anyway). And changing the focus from a world spanning story to a much smaller scale were inspired. By far the best of the four books.
The Farthest Shore *****
Sparrowhawk and Arren must journey to discover why the power of magic is disappearing.
Having given us the small scale Le Guin shows us the large scale again in a story that moves from the mage's Isle to the island at the end of the world and on into the plane of the dead. A story that deals with death and the fear of death, friendship and honour.
Tehanu ****
Goha lives on the isle of Gont and saves an abused child, bringing her up as her daughter. Both are however not who they seem.
Back the the small scale and again and all the better for it. In this installment Le Guin deals with issues of abuse, pain and loss.
I so wanted to give this 5 stars but was again sadly disappointed by another somewhat rushed ending.
All in all 4 great stories that deserve far greater recognition for, I think its probably fair to say that, without them the works of Rowling and Pulman would be very different.