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Tales from Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5)
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You Save: $ 24.00 ( 100% )
Manufacturer: Harcourt
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Publisher: Harcourt
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Our Price:
You Save: $ 24.00 ( 100% )
Manufacturer: Harcourt
Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Publisher: Harcourt
Average Customer Rating:
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Tales from Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5) Description
Binding: Hardcover
EAN: 9780151005611
ISBN: 0151005613
Label: Harcourt
Manufacturer: Harcourt
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 320
Publication Date: 2001-05-04
Publisher: Harcourt
Studio: Harcourt
EAN: 9780151005611
ISBN: 0151005613
Label: Harcourt
Manufacturer: Harcourt
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 320
Publication Date: 2001-05-04
Publisher: Harcourt
Studio: Harcourt
Editorial Review of Tales from Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5)
The tales of this book, as Ursula K. Le Guin writes in her introduction, explore or extend the world established by her first four Earthsea novels. Yet each stands on its own.
"The Finder," a novella set a few hundred years before A Wizard of Earthsea, presents a dark and troubled Archipelago and shows how some of its customs and institutions came to be. "The Bones of the Earth" features the wizards who taught the wizard who first taught Ged and demonstrates how humility, if great enough, can contend with an earthquake. "Darkrose and Diamond" is a delightful story of young courtship showing that wizards sometimes pursue alternative careers. "On the High Marsh" tells of the love of power-and of the power of love. "Dragonfly" shows how a determined woman can break the glass ceiling of male magedom.
Concluding with an account of Earthsea's history, people, languages, literature, and magic, this collection also features two new maps of Earthsea.
"The Finder," a novella set a few hundred years before A Wizard of Earthsea, presents a dark and troubled Archipelago and shows how some of its customs and institutions came to be. "The Bones of the Earth" features the wizards who taught the wizard who first taught Ged and demonstrates how humility, if great enough, can contend with an earthquake. "Darkrose and Diamond" is a delightful story of young courtship showing that wizards sometimes pursue alternative careers. "On the High Marsh" tells of the love of power-and of the power of love. "Dragonfly" shows how a determined woman can break the glass ceiling of male magedom.
Concluding with an account of Earthsea's history, people, languages, literature, and magic, this collection also features two new maps of Earthsea.
Customer Reviews of Tales from Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5)
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: perfect
Review: This book arrived well before the expected date and was a great buy. I will be buying from them again.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Not Free SF Reader
Review: "AT THE END OF THE fourth book of Earthsea, Tehanu, the story had arrived at what I felt to be now. And, just as in the now of the so-called real world, I didn't know what would happen next. I could guess, foretell, fear, hope, but I didn't know. Unable to continue Tehanu's story (because it hadn't happened yet) and foolishly assuming that the story of Ged and Tenar had reached its happily-ever-after, I gave the book a subtitle: "The Last Book of Earthsea." O foolish writer. Now moves. Even in storytime, dreamtime, once-upon-a time, now isn't then. Seven or eight years after Tehanu was published, I was asked to write a story set in Earthsea. A mere glimpse at the place told me that things had been happening there while I wasn't looking. It was high time to go back and find out what was going on now."
She goes on to detail some time periods in which these stories are set (including Ged's). Some of this is written because people want more Earthsea stories, but comes out pretty reasonably, at 3.50.
A not quite 3.75 book.
Tales from Earthsea : The Finder - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : Darkrose and Diamond - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : The Bones of the Earth - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : On the High Marsh - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : Dragonfly - Ursula K. Le Guin
Otter go to Roke, or:
"Tern's nose into a book till he could read it. "Illiterate wizards are the curse of Earthsea!" he cried. "Ignorant power is a bane!"
3 out of 5
I'll be scr3wing, you wizard, and the rock and roll lifestyle is enough magic for me.
4 out of 5
Local mastery.
4 out of 5
Of cows and mages.
3.5 out of 5
Archmage political conflict.
3 out of 5
3.5 out of 5
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excellent short story/novella collection
Review: "Tales from Earthsea" verifies why Ursula K. LeGuin is one of the best writers around -- of fantasy, science fiction, or any genre.
Simply put, it has wonderful stories that ring true, yet have mythical elements -- the people are fully real, with faults, and make mistakes, yet do remarkable, visionary things in various ways -- from the quotidian to the sublime.
This book has three new stories and two reprints; the reprints ("Darkrose and Diamond" and "Dragonfly") are very good stories, and I enjoyed re-reading them very much. The first is a romance; even people who've never read an Earthsea novel will understand it. The second is about gifts denied, and powers lost -- along with love, redeemed in a rather unusual way. (Love in Ms. LeGuin's books or stories is almost always understated. The overt romance of "Darkrose and Diamond" is rare, but very welcome.) I'm not sure the latter story will be much understood without reading the first three books of the Earthsea trilogy, but you don't necessarily need to read "Tehanu" (the fourth book of Earthsea, inaccurately titled "The Last Book of Earthsea," as Ms. LeGuin wryly points out in her preface to this book), although you will enjoy that book as well if you enjoyed either of these two stories.
The remaining three stories ("The Finder," "The Bones of the Earth," "On the High Marsh") are all about the redeeming power of the human spirit. Finding friendship when it's not expected -- Otter, the hero of "The Finder," finds a true friend while he's temporarily enslaved (she helps get him out and away), Dulse, the wizard of Re Albi, finds a friend in his apprentice-wizard, Ogion (the later first teacher of Ged/Sparrowhawk, Archmage of Roke during the latter two books of the Earthsea trilogy) when wizards rarely get along (especially in such close proximity), and Irioth the wizard finds love and healing with the cheesemaker Gift (wizards also rarely, if ever, love women and don't seem to ever profess physical love for men, either; they believe being celibate helps their powers, which is something Irian in "Dragonfly" is challenging; wizards, for the most part, do not believe that women's magic is a strong as men's, which is of course ridiculous) after he'd left Roke due to extreme mental and physical torment (some brought on by his own doing, some not).
Ms. LeGuin's work is a triumph because of how human these people are. They have to make powerful, difficult choices; Diamond has to leave his father (who wants him to be a mage, rather than a musician) and only see his mother rarely because he must follow his heart and love Darkrose (while performing his music). Irian is hot-tempered, irritable, difficult, and extremely talented; her question, "Why can't women be mages?" goes to the heart of the hypocrisy of Roke, something the mages there for the most part would rather not confront. (The status quo is always easier to defend than the unknown, even when the status quo is wrong.) Dulse's dilemma is more poignant; save himself, or save his island with his friend Ogion's help? (Many would choose to save themselves and later rationalize it. Dulse isn't made that way.) Irioth's problem is more fundamental; he believes he's harmed himself by the use of magic, and that he's harmed others, and that he must make amends. (Finding love along the way with an extraordinary woman was never in his plans. And Gift doesn't think herself remarkable; that, too, is one of Ms. LeGuin's strengths, how she shows that "ordinary" people are anything but.) And Otter, in "The Finder," finds a friend at his time of greatest need, but can't keep her as she's dying; how he memorializes her through living his life is extraordinarily powerful, yet quietly drawn.
To put it bluntly, there isn't a better writer on the planet when she's on than Ms. LeGuin. There just isn't.
Everyone should read this book. Every single last one.
Five-stars plus, with the highest recommendation possible.
Barb Caffrey
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A wonderful collection
Review: A lovely collection of stories from around the archipelago. While not quite as good as the best Earthsea stories, you'll definitely want this to complete your collection.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Tales From Earthsea is a wonderful anthology that answers some of the questions hinted at in the previous books.
Review: Le Guin's fast, lyrical prose is a joy to read and these five stories stand as sterling examples of her work. I loved everything about this work, especially the surprising facts that women and men founded Roke and that a single biased archmage created the myth that women could not be mages. The appendix at the end of the book sums up nicely all the varied tales and legends in Earthsea that were only mentioned in passing before. I was very glad about this because I always wondered what really happened between Morred and Elfarren. All in all a magnificent work. Also, if you missed Tino Georgiou's masterful novel--The Fates, go and read this popular best-seller.
Review Summary: perfect
Review: This book arrived well before the expected date and was a great buy. I will be buying from them again.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Not Free SF Reader
Review: "AT THE END OF THE fourth book of Earthsea, Tehanu, the story had arrived at what I felt to be now. And, just as in the now of the so-called real world, I didn't know what would happen next. I could guess, foretell, fear, hope, but I didn't know. Unable to continue Tehanu's story (because it hadn't happened yet) and foolishly assuming that the story of Ged and Tenar had reached its happily-ever-after, I gave the book a subtitle: "The Last Book of Earthsea." O foolish writer. Now moves. Even in storytime, dreamtime, once-upon-a time, now isn't then. Seven or eight years after Tehanu was published, I was asked to write a story set in Earthsea. A mere glimpse at the place told me that things had been happening there while I wasn't looking. It was high time to go back and find out what was going on now."
She goes on to detail some time periods in which these stories are set (including Ged's). Some of this is written because people want more Earthsea stories, but comes out pretty reasonably, at 3.50.
A not quite 3.75 book.
Tales from Earthsea : The Finder - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : Darkrose and Diamond - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : The Bones of the Earth - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : On the High Marsh - Ursula K. Le Guin
Tales from Earthsea : Dragonfly - Ursula K. Le Guin
Otter go to Roke, or:
"Tern's nose into a book till he could read it. "Illiterate wizards are the curse of Earthsea!" he cried. "Ignorant power is a bane!"
3 out of 5
I'll be scr3wing, you wizard, and the rock and roll lifestyle is enough magic for me.
4 out of 5
Local mastery.
4 out of 5
Of cows and mages.
3.5 out of 5
Archmage political conflict.
3 out of 5
3.5 out of 5
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excellent short story/novella collection
Review: "Tales from Earthsea" verifies why Ursula K. LeGuin is one of the best writers around -- of fantasy, science fiction, or any genre.
Simply put, it has wonderful stories that ring true, yet have mythical elements -- the people are fully real, with faults, and make mistakes, yet do remarkable, visionary things in various ways -- from the quotidian to the sublime.
This book has three new stories and two reprints; the reprints ("Darkrose and Diamond" and "Dragonfly") are very good stories, and I enjoyed re-reading them very much. The first is a romance; even people who've never read an Earthsea novel will understand it. The second is about gifts denied, and powers lost -- along with love, redeemed in a rather unusual way. (Love in Ms. LeGuin's books or stories is almost always understated. The overt romance of "Darkrose and Diamond" is rare, but very welcome.) I'm not sure the latter story will be much understood without reading the first three books of the Earthsea trilogy, but you don't necessarily need to read "Tehanu" (the fourth book of Earthsea, inaccurately titled "The Last Book of Earthsea," as Ms. LeGuin wryly points out in her preface to this book), although you will enjoy that book as well if you enjoyed either of these two stories.
The remaining three stories ("The Finder," "The Bones of the Earth," "On the High Marsh") are all about the redeeming power of the human spirit. Finding friendship when it's not expected -- Otter, the hero of "The Finder," finds a true friend while he's temporarily enslaved (she helps get him out and away), Dulse, the wizard of Re Albi, finds a friend in his apprentice-wizard, Ogion (the later first teacher of Ged/Sparrowhawk, Archmage of Roke during the latter two books of the Earthsea trilogy) when wizards rarely get along (especially in such close proximity), and Irioth the wizard finds love and healing with the cheesemaker Gift (wizards also rarely, if ever, love women and don't seem to ever profess physical love for men, either; they believe being celibate helps their powers, which is something Irian in "Dragonfly" is challenging; wizards, for the most part, do not believe that women's magic is a strong as men's, which is of course ridiculous) after he'd left Roke due to extreme mental and physical torment (some brought on by his own doing, some not).
Ms. LeGuin's work is a triumph because of how human these people are. They have to make powerful, difficult choices; Diamond has to leave his father (who wants him to be a mage, rather than a musician) and only see his mother rarely because he must follow his heart and love Darkrose (while performing his music). Irian is hot-tempered, irritable, difficult, and extremely talented; her question, "Why can't women be mages?" goes to the heart of the hypocrisy of Roke, something the mages there for the most part would rather not confront. (The status quo is always easier to defend than the unknown, even when the status quo is wrong.) Dulse's dilemma is more poignant; save himself, or save his island with his friend Ogion's help? (Many would choose to save themselves and later rationalize it. Dulse isn't made that way.) Irioth's problem is more fundamental; he believes he's harmed himself by the use of magic, and that he's harmed others, and that he must make amends. (Finding love along the way with an extraordinary woman was never in his plans. And Gift doesn't think herself remarkable; that, too, is one of Ms. LeGuin's strengths, how she shows that "ordinary" people are anything but.) And Otter, in "The Finder," finds a friend at his time of greatest need, but can't keep her as she's dying; how he memorializes her through living his life is extraordinarily powerful, yet quietly drawn.
To put it bluntly, there isn't a better writer on the planet when she's on than Ms. LeGuin. There just isn't.
Everyone should read this book. Every single last one.
Five-stars plus, with the highest recommendation possible.
Barb Caffrey
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A wonderful collection
Review: A lovely collection of stories from around the archipelago. While not quite as good as the best Earthsea stories, you'll definitely want this to complete your collection.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Tales From Earthsea is a wonderful anthology that answers some of the questions hinted at in the previous books.
Review: Le Guin's fast, lyrical prose is a joy to read and these five stories stand as sterling examples of her work. I loved everything about this work, especially the surprising facts that women and men founded Roke and that a single biased archmage created the myth that women could not be mages. The appendix at the end of the book sums up nicely all the varied tales and legends in Earthsea that were only mentioned in passing before. I was very glad about this because I always wondered what really happened between Morred and Elfarren. All in all a magnificent work. Also, if you missed Tino Georgiou's masterful novel--The Fates, go and read this popular best-seller.