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A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, 1) Paperback – Illustrated, September 11, 2012
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The first novel of Ursula K. Le Guin's must-read Earthsea Cycle. "The magic of Earthsea is primal; the lessons of Earthsea remain as potent, as wise, and as necessary as anyone could dream." (Neil Gaiman)
Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless Sparrowhawk. In his hunger for power and knowledge, he tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world.
This is the tumultuous tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
With stories as perennial and universally beloved as The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of The Rings—but also unlike anything but themselves—Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea novels are some of the most acclaimed and awarded works in literature. They have received accolades such as the National Book Award, a Newbery Honor, the Nebula Award, and many more honors, commemorating their enduring place in the hearts and minds of readers and the literary world alike.
Join the millions of fantasy readers who have explored these lands. As The Guardian put it: "Ursula Le Guin's world of Earthsea is a tangled skein of tiny islands cast on a vast sea. The islands' names pull at my heart like no others: Roke, Perilane, Osskil . . ."
The Earthsea Cycle includes:
- A Wizard of Earthsea
- The Tombs of Atuan
- The Farthest Shore
- Tehanu
- Tales from Earthsea
- The Other Wind
- Print length320 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Grade level7 - 9
- Lexile measure1150L
- Dimensions4.19 x 0.5 x 6.88 inches
- PublisherClarion Books
- Publication dateSeptember 11, 2012
- ISBN-100547773749
- ISBN-13978-0547773742
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"The magic of Earthsea is primal; the lessons of Earthsea remain as potent, as wise, and as necessary as anyone could dream."—Neil Gaiman, author of The Sandman
"New and longtime Earthsea fans will be drawn to these impressive new editions."—Horn Book —
About the Author
URSULA K. LE GUIN was born in Berkeley, California, in 1929, and passed away in Portland, Oregon, in 2018. She published over sixty books of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, children’s literature, and translation. She was the recipient of a National Book Award, six Hugo and five Nebula awards, and was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
Product details
- Publisher : Clarion Books; Illustrated edition (September 11, 2012)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 320 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0547773749
- ISBN-13 : 978-0547773742
- Reading age : 10+ years, from customers
- Lexile measure : 1150L
- Grade level : 7 - 9
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 4.19 x 0.5 x 6.88 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #69,752 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (US /ˈɜːrsələ ˈkroʊbər ləˈɡwɪn/; born October 21, 1929) is an American author of novels, children's books, and short stories, mainly in the genres of fantasy and science fiction. She has also written poetry and essays. First published in the 1960s, her work has often depicted futuristic or imaginary alternative worlds in politics, the natural environment, gender, religion, sexuality and ethnography.
She influenced such Booker Prize winners and other writers as Salman Rushdie and David Mitchell – and notable science fiction and fantasy writers including Neil Gaiman and Iain Banks. She has won the Hugo Award, Nebula Award, Locus Award, and World Fantasy Award, each more than once. In 2014, she was awarded the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. Le Guin has resided in Portland, Oregon since 1959.
Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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The Earthsea books are a spiritual journey. I am always renewed by my visit with Ged. For me, as I try also to undo past mistakes, or finally simply accept my story, and my place, and weave into the spells of today a forgiveness not only of myself, but of all things, I know there is a magic in all we do. For it is in the telling of the story we belong, to live out loud, to meet dragons in their own domain, follow dying friends into the land of death, even at our own peril, and return with terrible effort back up that hill. Lots of poetry in t hese books, great lessons. for kids in ethics, and wonderful imaginary threads to weave a magical world of our own.... The Earthsea series stimulate the imagination of all ages, I recommend it for people 10 through ... 100.
When The wizard Ged creates, through vanity, aloneness, insecurity, a. rip. in the fabric of the world,
a shadow enters, one only Ged can finally put to rest. It is a mistake of childhood, folly that follows him through his life in many small ways ... and so many of us can related to this story, especially if we are inclined to see magic in the inexplicable order of things around us. He must leave what. would have been a life of acclaim and respect - one he seemed destined for - and set out into the. dangerous world of 'the archipelago' and find this thing he fears most. It is a story of courage, of fear, of power, and the acceptance of ones self. The world Ursula Le Guin creates is just enough to linger in, the high mountains and cold streams, the empty roads where Gebbith can catch up with you and the castles with spells that hide the door from no one except the one who really wants to get out of there..
The lessons taught by the Earthsea series have fed me all my. long life. I was Walking with Ged over the wall that divides life and eath, and into the dry land. Every detail of her fantasy world is delicious. In this final story, the dragons lose their speech - and they were the first to have it. The world we have all taken for granted is losing something and we cannot exactly say what it is...but we recognize the signs. Hopelessness, a dulling of senses... The last jouney of Ged reminds him - and us - that our deeds and actions are never far from us, and cruelty - for any reason - can exact a terrible price in return. The world is saved and set right, yes. But many die, and much is lost forever.
Le Guin describes the dignity of a thing. She takes her time with the boat and the sea, for the mage who must perform these tedious actions enjoys the power of doing, with his hands. We magicians, we like to dig in the dirt sometimes.
Sure, Yes, the teenaged wizard in this book was created. long before Harry Potter and the stories do share a queer among of details.. Enough to say that Rowlings lifted afew of her ideas from Le Guin. but no matter..we are talking about the Earthsea books, and they are a higher level, seeking to teach and not simply entertain. I would tell you though that ... the shadow that Harry Potter. realizes is himself, thats the same story here. And that the school of wizardry, from the fountain in the middle to the types of classes taught - that's here too. But, its magical and wonderous here. Rowlings makes hers... cotton candy.
First he is fleeing this darkness and then hunting it in an odyssey around the world of Earthsea, luckily he doesn't need riches to travel, "A wizard’s staff is passport and payment on most ships. " As much as this is an odyssey around the world of Earthsea it is also an internal voyage of self discovery for Ged.
There isn't a huge cast of characters, apart from Ged the only standout characters are his wizard friend Vetch and his sensei Ogion. There is also not a lot of dialogue, LeGuin tells us what has been said rather than showing us what they are saying.
Overall this was an enjoyable read and I can see it as a pioneering work in the fantasy genre.