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The Lathe Of Heaven

4.07 of 5 stars 4.07 · rating details · 13,578 ratings · 763 reviews

This is the 9th Avon printing.

Ursula K. Le Guin is one of science fiction's greatest writers. She is also an acclaimed author of powerful and perceptive nonfiction, fantasy, and literary fiction. She has received many honors, including six Nebula and five Hugo Awards, the National Book Award, the Pushcart Prize, the Newbery, the Pilgrim, the Tiptree, and citations by the A...more

#43547, 175 pages

Published (first published 1971)

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Nov 20, 2012 Nataliya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Lovers of good sci-fi and philosophy

Recommended to Nataliya by: Catie

Shelves: hugo-nebula, 2012-reads, excellent-reads, catie-knows-best, locus-winner, ursula-k-le-guin

The Lathe of Heaven asks the reader - is it ever okay to play God?¹

(¹ Of course, when it comes to Morgan Freeman there is NO question.)

You have to help another person. But it's not right to play God with masses of people. To be God you have to know what you're doing. And to do any good at all, just believing you're right and your motives are good isn't enough.

Who would you normally root for? A guy with the power to change the ugly dystopian world² but is unwilling to do so? Or a guy who acti...more The Lathe of Heaven asks the reader - is it ever okay to play God?¹

(¹ Of course, when it comes to Morgan Freeman there is NO question.)

You have to help another person. But it's not right to play God with masses of people. To be God you have to know what you're doing. And to do any good at all, just believing you're right and your motives are good isn't enough.

Who would you normally root for? A guy with the power to change the ugly dystopian world² but is unwilling to do so? Or a guy who actively tries to harvest this power to change the world for better? If you think the answer to this one is easy, think again.

² It never stops raining in this dystopian Portland, Oregon. ~~So basically just like present-day Portland.~~

This short beautifully written novel is very eloquent and thought-provoking. It raises endless questions. What is our responsibility as humans? Are we responsible for changing the world if we have the means? And for fixing the damage? How far can we go? When do we stop? Is it possible to stop? What are the consequences of playing God? How do we decide who should hold power? How much power can we handle? Can we control it? Do the means justify the ends? What do we choose - activity or passivity? Is it balance or complacency? Is our vision of the perfect world actually perfect and who is to decide?

George ~~Orwell~~ Orr is quiet, passive, introverted. On every scale from 0 to 100 he is an average 50. His "style" is to escape, get away. He is "afraid of his own mind", as Haber puts it. He is afraid indeed - of his unexplained ability to change reality via his "effective" dreams in an unpredictable way, while retaining the memories of the previous realities. As a matter of fact, he may have dreamed his present world into existence when dying in the middle of a nuclear war four years previously. Outwardly docile, he has inner strength. And he has zero desire to play God.

“A person who believes, as she did, that things fit: that there is a whole of which one is a part, and that in being a part one is whole: such a person has no desire whatever, at any time, to play God. Only those who have denied their being yearn to play at it.”

Dr. Haber is an extroverted proactive sweet-talking dream specialist who wants to harvest Orr's power to make the world a better place (and get himself a bit of power in the meantime). He is frustrated with Orr's passive resistance. After all, "isn't that man's very purpose on earth - to do things, change things, run things, make a better world?" . His is sleazy, condescending, and manipulative, but ultimately NOT evil. His intentions are good - but what do they lead to? What means are used to change the world?

"The end justifies the means. But what if there never is an end? All we have is means."

George becomes Haber's unwilling accomplice/subject, his goose who lays golden eggs. He is afraid of what his subconsciousness may do. Just because something is "ought to be", should it? What are the consequences? And he is right to be afraid - what we get in Haber's attempts to better the world is horrifying Plague to deal with overpopulation, gray skin color to battle race issues, euthanasia to battle cancer, alien "invasion" to achieve peace. Seems that the world may be better the way it is, imperfect as it may be.

"We're in the world, not against it. It doesn't work to try to stand outside things and run them, that way. It just doesn't work, it goes against life. There is a way but you have to follow it. The world is, no matter how we think it ought to be. You have to be with it. You have to let it be."

And yet ultimately the frustration is with George as much as it is with Haber - after all, George's non-interference allows the horror to continue. But does he have the right to interfere at all? The previous attempts were not so good, after all. So is it our place at all to mess with the world order? Who are we to do this? What happens to the balance of things?

Haber: Life - evolution - the whole universe of space/time, matter/ energy - existence itself - is essentially change.
Orr: That is one aspect of it. The other is stillness."

It's a short read, but the one that is bound to stay with the reader for quite a while as we ponder over the questions it raises. The questions to which there may never be satisfying answers.
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Beautiful, intelligent book. 4 solid stars (not 5 only because Orr can be quite clueless. He could have solved his predicament halfway through the story, and it's a bit frustrating.) (less)

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Apr 23, 2011 Manny rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, strongly-recommended, transcendent-experiences

When I first came across this book as a teenager, I think I only really noticed the surface story. George Orr is a man whose dreams, literally, come true; he dreams something, and when he wakes up the world has changed. There's an unscrupulous psychiatrist who wants to exploit George's gift, a love story, some interesting aliens, and a good ending. I really liked it.

I've read it three or four times since then, and each time I've appreciated it more. One could imagine a book with a similar plot...more When I first came across this book as a teenager, I think I only really noticed the surface story. George Orr is a man whose dreams, literally, come true; he dreams something, and when he wakes up the world has changed. There's an unscrupulous psychiatrist who wants to exploit George's gift, a love story, some interesting aliens, and a good ending. I really liked it.

I've read it three or four times since then, and each time I've appreciated it more. One could imagine a book with a similar plot being written by Philip K. Dick, but, if Dick had done it, it would have had a different focus. Le Guin is also interested in the arbitrary nature of reality, but she is above all a moral writer, and it's easiest to explain why I think The Lathe of Heaven is a great novel if I compare it with some of her other books. Perhaps my favorite moment in her work is the ending of A Wizard of Earthsea. Ged has been relentlessly pursued for years by the deadly Shadow, whose one purpose seems to be to destroy him and everything he cares for. If only he could learn its true name, he would be able to use his magic powers to overcome it. Finally, when he can run no further and is forced to confront it on the open sea, he realizes what he has knows all along. The Shadow's true name is his own name. He, himself, is the dark force that is trying to ruin his life.

The struggle with the dark forces inside oneself is one of Le Guin's main preoccupations. This shades over into her fascination with creativity and the creative process, and in particular with the scientist, whose dreams can create reality in the most unexpected manner. Einstein turned a dream of matter, energy, space and time into a reality which soon crystalized as nuclear weapons. (My Japanese friend Yukie, who studied in Hiroshima, met several people who had come directly into contact with Einstein's escaped dream). In The Dispossessed, Shevek is a scientist who manages to control his dream. Le Guin, who clearly understands scientists well, shows just how difficult this is for him. He has to fight his society, and many of the ideas he has been brought up to believe in. As in A Wizard of Earthsea, a lot of the time he also has to fight himself.

The Lathe of Heaven, published three years before The Dispossessed, is a kind of rehearsal for the later novel, but with a myth-like treatment more reminiscent of A Wizard of Earthsea. George Orr's supernatural gift hands him a huge responsibility, which he is slow to accept. Like most dreamers, he lets himself be manipulated. And, just as in The Dispossessed, love is the key. There, Takver's unquestioning love for Shevek is what makes it possible for him to unlock the Principle of Simultaneity; here, the simple and touching romance with Heather is what gives George the strength to make the right decision when he reaches the crucial moment.

Dreams, truth, responsibility, love. If you're interested in that kind of thing, you should consider reading The Lathe of Heaven. Like all her books, it's beautifully written.

(less)

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Apr 14, 2013 Jim rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: apocalyptic, science-fiction, classics, audio

My edition is by Blackstone, but was downloaded from the local library. The reader was excellent, but I really would have liked it if they could have put the actual Beatles' tune in.

This review contains overall spoilers, I've only hidden specific ones. It's a 40+ year old book & has had 2 movies based on it, so unless you've been living under a rock [as far as the SF genre goes], you'll probably know most of it.

This is a tough review to write because there are just so many threads running th...more

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Aug 02, 2009 tim rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've always assumed chronic readers share the experience of finding connecting patterns from one book to the next. No matter how seemingly disparate books read consecutively may be, I've always come across overlapping concepts or some sort of shared meaning that is more difficult to pin down and describe. Whatever these synchronicities may be, I am always genuinely amazed and interpret them as signs that I'm witnessing something important--or at the very least, that I am reading the right book a...more I've always assumed chronic readers share the experience of finding connecting patterns from one book to the next. No matter how seemingly disparate books read consecutively may be, I've always come across overlapping concepts or some sort of shared meaning that is more difficult to pin down and describe. Whatever these synchronicities may be, I am always genuinely amazed and interpret them as signs that I'm witnessing something important--or at the very least, that I am reading the right book at the right time.

In the last several books I've read have been an uncanny amount of synchronicities bouncing off each other as I made my way through them. I won't bore with details, but the momentum of these emerging, overlapping patterns seemed to coalesce and bleed over into "real" life yesterday after just finishing The Lathe of Heaven. It's not the first time this has happened, nor the most remarkable occurrence, but worth sharing nonetheless.

Ursula K. Le Guin has existed in the periphery of my awareness for some time, but until now I hadn't read her. Upon finishing the book I read before this one, I had no idea what I would read next. My preference upon finishing a book is not to premeditate what I should read next, but instead let the "choice" come to me. So it was that when I finished Schrodinger's Cat Trilogy The Universe Next Door The Trick Top Hat The Homing Pigeons that The Lathe of Heaven popped into my head. I checked the library, a copy happened to be available right then, and so it was. Finally I should read one of the so-called required reads for all Portlanders.

I'm not normally taken to do what is suggested of me, but in this case it worked out. Not only did I really enjoy the journey, but I could only laugh when I discovered its influence did not end on the last page.

So yesterday, upon reading the last page, my family and I decided to catch a bus to Cathedral Park under the St. Johns Bridge--featured in the The Lathe of Heaven--and take in some free music. Okay, no, that is not the profound connection. It couldn't be, as that "choice" was determined by us. What wasn't determined by us was that on our way home we accidentally hopped on the wrong bus. It was hot and humid, we weren't thinking right, and the air conditioned bus looked only too inviting. Besides, the bus would eventually loop around and head back downtown. Anyway, as this bus took us farther and farther away from downtown and out into the boondocks, the bus driver pulled over to take a 40-minute break in the "town" of Linnton. So here we were, with no intention of our own, temporarily stuck in the roadside dilapidation of an old settlement 15 miles northwest of Portland. Pinned between industrial sprawl, railroads, the Willamette River, and the gorgeous green hills of Forest Park, it is a surreal landscape to say the least. More to the point, Linnton is where the second to last imagined scene takes place in The Lathe of Heaven.

I've lived in Portland nearly 15 years and had never before stepped foot in Linnton. Why would I? Yet, mere hours after encountering Linnton in the finishing pages of a novel, here I was, unplanned for, but really there. Maybe that's not so strange after all, but when the literature I read begins to flow over into and influence the life I lead outside of books, I take notice.

That's it. That's my story. I'm sorry if I built this up into a major let down. But it felt major to me at the time.

Oh, and regarding the book itself: I initially thought the character development lacked dimension until I realized this novel is not so much about character development as it is about the seriousness of possible ecological catastrophe and the unknown healing power and potential of dreaming. Read it. It may influence your "real" life too.(less)

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Oct 15, 2012 Nate D rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: solipsistic and uncertain conciousnesses

Recommended to Nate D by: mandated psychotherapy

Shelves: sci-fi, 70s-delerium, oneirics, favorites

Thoughtful and terrifying and compulsively entertaining. This is what the science fiction genre was made for.

Taking one of the most drastic hypotheticals, the most direly destabilizing of test cases, LeGuin sets about addressing the ambiguous and subjective nature of reality (in many ways, she out-PKDs her contemporary Phillip K. Dick, here) in direct but subtly calibrated ways, spinning off deep and troubling tangents worthy of their own stories as barest afterthought. Then she uses her sanely-...more Thoughtful and terrifying and compulsively entertaining. This is what the science fiction genre was made for.

Taking one of the most drastic hypotheticals, the most direly destabilizing of test cases, LeGuin sets about addressing the ambiguous and subjective nature of reality (in many ways, she out-PKDs her contemporary Phillip K. Dick, here) in direct but subtly calibrated ways, spinning off deep and troubling tangents worthy of their own stories as barest afterthought. Then she uses her sanely-insane apparatus to closely interrogate manifold ethical problems: the individual's responsibility to society, what exactly the greatest good is and can be, whether any individual is even capable of deciding such things. I've noticed other reviews here mentioning the "implausibilty" but this matters not a bit in service of such broad goals as here. Seriously, this is the kind of bold and insane premise that I wish much more sci-fi would dare to tackle. It's the book's best asset.

Though, as I said, it's also relentlessly gripping from the start, opening well into its action and then expanding uncontrollably upon the premise without stopping, wasting no time or words, often revealing world-detail elegantly in asides and background description. On the other hand, it's pace, concision, and scope demand a kind of obviousness at odds with some of my deepest-held sensibilities. Though at the time I was so caught up that I barely noticed, and behind the obvious bits, there are subtler shadings of idea flitting about, deepening the picture effectively.

I read this right after The Other Side, another very different, though also strangely compelling, vision of reality-warping dreamstate. In some ways, by broadcasting its questions more clearly, this is the far less dreamlike and ambiguous of the two, though it probably makes the stronger case for itself, ultimately.

As M says "I'd always been more into the idea of Ursula K. Le Guin" (we both read some of the Earthseas decades ago, independently, remember being somewhat bored, know that we should revisit), but this bears out Le Guin's promise quite spectacularly. Recommend me other essentials of hers in this vein, please!

Final afterthought: Jonathan Lethem has clearly read this / borrowed concepts and inspirations at least twice.(less)

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Nov 19, 2010 Tatiana rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Tatiana by: Ariel

Shelves: 2010, hugo, locus, nebula, sci-fi

Would you like to play God?

Would you like to shape the world to your liking? Maybe to rid it of war, overpopulation, hunger, racial prejudice, decease? To make it into your own idea of Heaven?

Well, the two main characters of The Lathe of Heaven have different opinions on this subject. George Orr, who possesses a unique ability to change the world by dreaming about, seemingly, the most mundane things, wants this power to be gone, he is sure the events should take their natural course, no matter h...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Sparrow rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: C.S. Lewis fans

Recommended to Sparrow by: Ceridwen

Shelves: pacific-northwest-glory, slaves, up-hill-both-ways-in-the-snow, utopia-dystopia, beards-are-mesmerizing, reviewed

I have long been a fan of dreams: talking about dreams, working out the interweavings between dreaming life and reality. I almost scare-quoted reality there, but then I realized that this review is probably going to be douchey enough as it is without adding a scare-quoted reality to it. Anyway, Ursula LeGuin’s worlds are typically not my worlds; when I’m reading her books, I tend to bump into walls and trip over furniture, where other readers intuitively know the lay of the interior decorating....more I have long been a fan of dreams: talking about dreams, working out the interweavings between dreaming life and reality. I almost scare-quoted reality there, but then I realized that this review is probably going to be douchey enough as it is without adding a scare-quoted reality to it. Anyway, Ursula LeGuin’s worlds are typically not my worlds; when I’m reading her books, I tend to bump into walls and trip over furniture, where other readers intuitively know the lay of the interior decorating. And, that is just the way reading goes, I think. Neither bad nor good. Sometimes an author puts the couch were we would like to sit, and other times not. This book, though. This is the LeGuin for me. This book is lovely in a way I can understand.

I grew up in a sometimes-fundamentalist home, so for those who didn’t, this comparison might sound like an insult. Please know that I don’t mean it that way. It strikes me that in some pretty superficial ways, The Lathe of Heaven is to Daoism what Narnia is to Christianity. In making that comparison, I am really comparing two things I love, even though they are both representing two very different value systems. I think that both present an emotionally symbolic world in which the roots of a belief system can grow in a simple and understandable way. I think both do a really good job of not sacrificing story to allegory, but still forming a perceptible spiritual message.

The other preliminary thought I have is a spoiler about Heather, so I’ll hide it. (view spoiler)

But, that is really only about the structure of Lathe, and what I really want to talk about is dreams. In Lathe, George Orr has “effective” dreams that change his reality. That is the basic premise that you find out at the opening of the story, and I will try not to spoil the plot beyond that. Joel was making the point that the story is a reflection on writing, which I think is an interesting, but narrow, reading of the story, and honestly was not how the story resonated with me at all. I think it is a good point, though, and worth noting. A writer re-creates the world, and in that way probably also shapes other people’s perceptions of the world. I think in many ways, though, we all do that, writing or no writing.

I guess the way the story resonated with me was more literal than Joel’s reading. I do think that any of us can have a dream in the Martin Luther King, Jr., sense, and that dream can guide culture, but I also think that literal dreams can do that, and maybe that is more where the book fascinated me. In college, I once went to sleep with no interest in a boy in my class and I woke up with a crush on him that it took me months to get over. And all that happened was that, in a dream I had that night, he looked at me a certain way. Dreams seem mysterious and mysteriously powerful to me. I had a dream like that this week, and the content of it is not very important, but there was a snake in it, and the snake was also human, and the dream changed something to me, so I thought of this book. I’m not sure what it changed, but it was just different than other dreams.

Once, in college, my best friend from high school had a dream in which we were both preparing for her wedding. About a year later, I had the same dream but from my point of view, which I didn’t realized until later that night I started describing the dream to her and she knew all of its details before I told her, but from her own point of view.

In my part of the dream, after she got married, I went to help an ex-boyfriend move his things into a new house and there was a soundtrack in that part, which is something I don't think I've had in another dream. After I woke up, I was walking to work and I put the Velvet Underground Loaded CD into my discman (I had bought it the day before). “Who Loves the Sun” came on, I realized it was the song in my dream, and I looked up and saw my ex-boyfriend sitting in front of the house he had moved into in my dream. The whole day was off, with the people I cared about in my dreaming and waking life crossing over.

I don’t have a moral or a lesson to that story, but it was an experience I had that made me wonder whether my dreams were creeping in to my reality, like they do with poor George Orr. And I do think many dreams can shape the world in a way I don’t understand, in a way that makes me small and brittle. I think LeGuin captures that literal power of dreams very gracefully, without creating a heavy-handed allegory, leaving room for many applications of the tone and texture of the story. I also love what she does with George and his therapist, and the yin and yang of their personalities, though I can't think of more to say about that than just stating it. I’m glad I found a LeGuin that is for me; I’m glad somebody wrote a story about dreams.(less)

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Jul 16, 2007 Tatiana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sciencefiction

This book is one of my all time favorites. First of all, UKL is an amazing writer. The book plays with the nature of reality and idea of creative dreaming. I believe UKL studied Australian aboriginal cultures' understanding of the dreamtime and how it interacts with the worldtime, and that study informs this book, as well as her book "The Word for World is Forest". The book is wildly creative and touches on elements of the human psyche that are far beneath the surface. The ideas she explores jus...more

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Mar 02, 2011 Robert rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi, favorites

I always say my favourite film is Raiders of the Lost Ark and my favourite book is the original Earthsea trilogy, or if pushed A Wizard of Earthsea. Picking one favourite is always a bit arbitrary but both of these are childhood favourites that have survived repeat viewings/readings and have developed accretions of personal associations that add to their significance to me. I think I can now go a step further and say that LeGuin is becoming my favourite author because she just has so many comple...more

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Dec 12, 2011 Kaethe rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, scifi, to-re-read

I watched this on PBS once long ago. It’s a modern take on the fairy tale about the fisherman’s wife. Whereas in the fairy tale the fisherman is the protagonist, here it would be the fish. George Orr is remarkable in only two ways. He is utterly, completely normal on virtually any scale; he is perfectly balanced. The other remarkable feature is that he sometimes changes reality in his dreams. In this distopian future George is busted for abuse of his pharm card, and for borrowing other people’s...more I watched this on PBS once long ago. It’s a modern take on the fairy tale about the fisherman’s wife. Whereas in the fairy tale the fisherman is the protagonist, here it would be the fish. George Orr is remarkable in only two ways. He is utterly, completely normal on virtually any scale; he is perfectly balanced. The other remarkable feature is that he sometimes changes reality in his dreams. In this distopian future George is busted for abuse of his pharm card, and for borrowing other people’s cards as well. He will not be charged as long as her enters voluntary therapy. Haber is a dream specialist with great ideals, as well as the inventor of a device called The Augmentor. With the machine hooked up to George, almost immediate REM is possible. By first giving George hypnotic suggestions, Haber can to some extent direct George’s dreams, granting himself wishes of a sort. It is a function of George’s talent that this entire reality will modify to make the dream fit naturally. And, of course, dreams are basically uncontrollable. Haber starts George dreaming about fairly inconsequential things: new murals in the office, a mountain cabin, a break in the constant rain. Gradually Haber’s ego builds up to momentous changes, all good changes for society: they dispose of racism by making everyone gray, the war in the Middle East ends when Aliens attack the moon. George makes two efforts to free himself of Haber: he enlists the assistance of a lawyer, Heather LeLache, who witnesses one of the sessions as an observer (overcrowding is cured by a Plague, years ago, that wiped out billions). Next he tries running away to the cabin, keeping himself awake for days. Heather finds him and tries to suggest a good dream, the result is that the Aliens attack and Haber admits he knows what’s going on.
Ultimately George is guided by his Aliens to a solution. Haber rids him of his power to dream effectively, then uses the Augmentor on himself, giving the entire world one half hour of confused, chaotic hell. After the Break, Haber is a vegetable, destroyed by his own effective dreams, and the world is a mess. Portland is left with the remains of five different public transportation systems, subway tunnels ending half way under the river, that sort of thing. George eventually runs into Heather again, who sort of remembers him, and things look like being fairly happy in the end.
Whereas the fisherman’s story is primarily about greed and the inability to be satisfied, Le Guin’s story is more about the futility of trying to solve all the problems in the world. It’s still about greed of a sort, Haber being greedy for a particular kind of power, but it’s greed with the Monkey’s Paw twist. In the modern world wishes can come true, but you’re always worse off if they do.(less)

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Nov 19, 2007 Nora Dillonovich rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was my first legitimate foray into sci-fi... having tried and tried for years to dedicate myself to finishing one book from this genre, only to fail miserable and be left scratching my head, wondering why?why?why? do people read this, given the array of other vastly more interesting and entertaining things to engage oneself in?

I read this on the plane from east to west. Apocalyptic Portland, identities awry... captivating brain powers, power hungry, narcissistic shrinks. I loved this so mu...more

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Sep 20, 2007 Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: science fiction fans, philosophers, psychologists, international volunteers

Shelves: fiction, sff

The Lathe Of Heaven is a taoist parable masquerading as a novella. Through the metaphor of George Orr, a man whose dreams become reality, it examines the consequences of interference and the hubris of believing that we can "improve" the world.

I read this book during a flight to Central America, where I was going to spend the summer before my second year of medical school doing HIV/AIDS education. The contrast could not have been more striking: the purpose of my summer and my career was to interf...more

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Mar 08, 2011 Mawgojzeta rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi-and-dystopian

I finished this book and proceeded to dream about it the same night; how fitting. Not really about the book itself, but borrowing elements from it. And, maybe it wasn't even that I was dreaming about it, but that I kept waking up with the strong impression that I must peel layers off the "onion" and get to the right place by going "deeper"; then I would fall back to sleep. This was happening about every 10 minutes or so for the first three hours that I was in bed (I looked at the clock each time...more

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Sep 21, 2011 Meg Powers rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: dystopia, read-in-2011, science-fiction

I have been meaning to read some Ursula K. Le Guin for years-pretty much since my brother started reading the Wizard of Earth Sea series when we were kids. I managed to read a short story in high school, but that's about it. I don't know what took me so long, but this book was an excellent introduction. It concerns the re-arranging of reality via one lonely guy's dreams and the creepy, Ghost-of-Christmas-Present-type oneirologist assigned to treat his time/space-distorting malady.

It's really spe...more

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Jan 12, 2009 Jimmy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: female, novel, year-1970s, and-a-half-stars

A good fast read. I liked the premise and the beginning/middle but then the ending it gets a little too confusing for my taste. I liked some of the philosophy behind it, though the book is driven more by characters and action (as it should).

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Jun 06, 2010 Misha rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fiction, own, science-fiction

Published in 1971 but set in 2002, the Lathe of Heaven is a phenomenal read, albeit a scary look into the future’s possibilities. Aside from some scientific lingo and references to dream states, the novel isn’t overly technical. That’s one of the reasons I enjoy Le Guin’s science-fiction pieces. She also has an exceptional way of writing, storytelling, and stirring up questions.

While reading Le Guin’s fable, the proverbial leprechaun granting a wish that wasn’t exactly wished for came to mind. I...more Published in 1971 but set in 2002, the Lathe of Heaven is a phenomenal read, albeit a scary look into the future’s possibilities. Aside from some scientific lingo and references to dream states, the novel isn’t overly technical. That’s one of the reasons I enjoy Le Guin’s science-fiction pieces. She also has an exceptional way of writing, storytelling, and stirring up questions.

While reading Le Guin’s fable, the proverbial leprechaun granting a wish that wasn’t exactly wished for came to mind. Instead of wishes and a wee man, dreams are used to shape reality through hypnotic suggestions from a mad scientist. The novel takes a good look at whether the end justifies the means. Also among its themes are power, humanity, dreams and reality, utopia, morality, masks, science, and Taoism. Even if mistakes happen, is it wrong to use science if it improves life and to what extent?

Le Guin has a knack for developing characters through their inner-thoughts and opinions of others. George is the type who "had a tendency to assume that people knew what they were doing, perhaps because he generally assumed that he did not". His first impression of the "jovial, masterful" Dr. Haber is that he’s successful because George was referred to him by the Medical School. The psychiatrist thinks a lawyer is covering up her timidity by wearing large metallic jewelry that clicks and clacks, whereas she thinks of herself as a spider seeking its prey. Through George’s thoughts, the doctor’s and his relationship, personalities are defined.

Having read Le Guin’s translation of Tao Te Ching, it’s unsurprising that Taoist notions course through the Lathe of Heaven. The naturalistic views work quite well to balance out those of science.

"Everything dreams. The play of form, of being, is the dreaming of substance. Rocks have their dreams, and the earth changes… But when the mind becomes conscious, when the rate of evolution speeds up, then you have to be careful. Careful of the world. You must learn the way. You must learn the skills, the art, the limits. A conscious mind must be part of the whole, intentionally and carefully- as the rock is part of the whole unconsciously."

The Lathe of Heaven can easily be considered one of Le Guin‘s finest novels, in fact, I place it right beside the Left Hand of Darkness in brilliance and as a favourite. I highly recommend this "must read".(less)

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Aug 30, 2009 Ken-ichi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Ken-ichi by: Tomio

Shelves: escape, science-fiction

This was probably my favorite LeGuin book to date. Languid, thoughtful, well-written. I loved the transitions between realities, which at first were hard to notice when I didn't have a baseline for what constituted reality in this book. Kind of like, "Ok, aliens. Wait, were there aliens before?" which is exactly what the characters experience as well. In one sense this is a classically ironic story a la The Twlight Zone, or The Monkey's Paw: person gains supernatural powers, but attempts to use...more This was probably my favorite LeGuin book to date. Languid, thoughtful, well-written. I loved the transitions between realities, which at first were hard to notice when I didn't have a baseline for what constituted reality in this book. Kind of like, "Ok, aliens. Wait, were there aliens before?" which is exactly what the characters experience as well. In one sense this is a classically ironic story a la The Twlight Zone, or The Monkey's Paw: person gains supernatural powers, but attempts to use them for good result in horrible side effects. That's fun, but not terribly original. The interplay between Orr and Haber at the center of all the changes is what keeps the book interesting. LeGuin explicitly describes Haber as a curious sort of solipsist: "Orr felt in him [Haber:] a wish to be liked and a desire to be helpful; the doctor was not, he thought, really sure that anyone else existed, and wanted to prove they did by helping them." That's Haber's modus operandi throughout, and the consequences of his well-meaning but oblivious attempts to assuage his conscience or solidify the world or what have you are what kept me reading. Orr is the anti-solipsist. He actually has the power to impose his internal reality upon the external world, but considers such alterations to be immoral, and wishes instead to be bound to a single, external reality.

The only real problems I had were the occasional unnecessary detail (like pre-marriage) and the kind of hackneyed doomsday sensibility. Not that the described catastrophes aren't still completely plausible (rising sea levels, epidemics, nuclear war), but it's hard to get excited or worried about futures that have been prophesied for 30 years and still haven't come to pass. And in that apathy lies our undoing... It's all scifi's fault!

The other salient characteristic of this book is that it's short! Less than 200 pages! I'd forgotten what closure after 200 pages was like.

Some Werds

abreaction (n): Dictionary.com says it is the release of emotional tension by acting out or mentally revisiting the source of that tension. (p. 87)

sibilant (adj): hissing (p. 92)

otiose (adj): lazy, futile, superfluous. (p. 159)(less)

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May 28, 2011 Ben rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've been reading a good deal of Miss Le Guin's books lately and something that's really impressed me is how the old school science fiction writers would craft these excellent, compelling, thought-provoking stories in less than 200 pages. It strikes me that today's science fiction and fantasy authors are over-enamored with flaunting their powers of description and so clutter up their books with hundreds of pages of delightful details.

The Lathe of Heaven is a fantastic concept, elegantly executed...more

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Dec 28, 2007 Craroline rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

this book was given to me by a close friend and it changed my outlook on a lot of things. it's science fiction, and there are aliens and battles and stuff, but also a lot about balance and how it is inevitable that good and evil will have to co-exist somehow. probably my favorite book ever.

12/28 ok i just read it again because i couldn't remember why it ended the way it did. the stuff with how the world ended in 1998 confused me because i thought maybe that's what Haber was dreaming about, and t...more

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Jan 16, 2009 Moira Russell rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favourites, comfort-rereads, childhood

I've lost count of how many times I've reread this book -- one of my permanent favourites. I saw the classic PBS adaptation when it first aired, too!

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Dec 09, 2008 Mary rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'd like George Orr to dream me up a puppy, but of course it would end up being some horrible zombie puppy that needs to eat my flesh to survive. Damn you and your uncontrollable effective dreams!

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Jan 11, 2009 Rhonda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Lathe of Heaven is a book of profound impact. I recall thinking that the concept of a world constantly turning inside out was almost too terrible to consider and, after I read it it, I began to feel like George, constantly disturbed while awake and unable to sleep peacefully. I began thinking about possibilities of our own world's demise, through no fault of my own, and suddenly felt responsible yet unable to aid it in any way. If anyone has suffered from insomnia, especially because of dist...more

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Apr 06, 2013 Steve Lindahl rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Lathe of Heaven was published more than forty years ago, but the ideas do not seem dated. That's good for the book, but not so good for the world in general. I found it interesting that the book covers environmental concerns, such as overpopulation and global warming, that are still being debated today.

The basic idea of the plot is simple. When George Orr dreams, he wakes up in a new world where aspects of his dreams have become real. When Dr. Haber discovers Orr's power, he manipulates it t...more

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Mar 06, 2013 Smcleish rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Originally published on my blog here in January 2008.

This short novel by Ursula Le Guin - over 850 pages less than the other book I was reading alongside it, Peter F. Hamilton's Pandora's Star - is quite untypical of the work for which she is best known: her anthropologically based examinations of alien societies such as The Left Hand of Darkness, or the young adult fantasy of A Wizard of Earthsea. While most of Le Guin's science fiction is original and unusual, particularly for its time, The La...more Originally published on my blog here in January 2008.

This short novel by Ursula Le Guin - over 850 pages less than the other book I was reading alongside it, Peter F. Hamilton's Pandora's Star - is quite untypical of the work for which she is best known: her anthropologically based examinations of alien societies such as The Left Hand of Darkness, or the young adult fantasy of A Wizard of Earthsea. While most of Le Guin's science fiction is original and unusual, particularly for its time, The Lathe of Heaven directly recalls two authors that one would not necessarily associate with her. These are Philip K. Dick and Roger Zelazny, both interested in the mind and the nature of reality.

The two major characters in The Lathe of Heaven are psychiatric patient George Orr and his therapist, Dr Haber. Orr believes that his dreams sometimes alter reality, and the effects of dreams produced under Haber's post-hypnotic suggestion convinces the psychiatrist that this is not a delusion. Haber sets out to improve the world, admittedly an unpleasant place: overpopulated, polluted, and violent. Orr becomes increasingly reluctant to dream under Haber's direction, mainly because of the guilt caused by some changes (such as his response to a suggestion that over-population be solved, which leads to the deaths of billions in a plague of environmentally related cancers: an event that only he and Haber remember not occurring some years earlier). He was involuntarily referred to Haber in the first place, so he can't just ask to stop the treatment.

This could very easily be an idea used by Philip K. Dick, touching on his common theme of the nature of reality. This is particularly important here, as the suggestion that the whole of Orr's dreaming might itself be a dream, as the end of the original dystopian world approaches. The lack of the profusion of secondary ideas that fill Dick's work is the main difference.

Zelazny's influence is more obvious, but perhaps more superficial: there is a clear relationship with The Dream Master, which also deals with psychiatric therapy using directed dreaming. However, Zelazny's story is less about the nature of reality - though the psychiatrists are effectively creating their own worlds to share with their patients. The points of view of patient (in The Lathe of Heaven) and therapist (in The Dream Master) make the novels quite different in emphasis. The Lathe of Heaven ends up feeling more like Dick than Zelazny - or, indeed, Le Guin. This last is because it isn't as different from the mainstream of the genre as Le Guin's Hainish novels: it is unusual in her output by not being particularly unusual.(less)

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Mar 05, 2013 Ethan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ursula Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven is an excellent portrayal of dreams as the central plot element in a sci-fi setting. The place is Portland, Oregon; the time is 2002. George Orr is suffering from a psychological disorder: oneirophobia, the fear of dreams. He attempts to dodge dreams through drug abuse, but is found out and forced to take “voluntary therapeutic treatment” with Haber, a clinical dream psychologist. However, Haber soon discovers the reason why George has been trying to dodge his d...more Ursula Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven is an excellent portrayal of dreams as the central plot element in a sci-fi setting. The place is Portland, Oregon; the time is 2002. George Orr is suffering from a psychological disorder: oneirophobia, the fear of dreams. He attempts to dodge dreams through drug abuse, but is found out and forced to take “voluntary therapeutic treatment” with Haber, a clinical dream psychologist. However, Haber soon discovers the reason why George has been trying to dodge his dreams: they can change reality. Whenever George has an “effective dream,” as he calls it, the continuum of spacetime shifts to accommodate his dream’s changes. Haber ends up trying to use this ability for his own ends, as George struggles against his “playing God.”

The book mainly revolves around this concept, detailing the morality of changing the world to fit one man’s ideals. The interactions between George and Haber are the main elements of the plot, and they produce a powerful moral message. Haber tends to play the role of a “naive hero,” changing the world for the “greater good” that he sees. George, on the other hand, scrutinizes Haber’s actions and feels that the world isn’t meant to be changed like this. This back-and-forth continues throughout the book, but its gradual escalation keeps it from getting too repetitive.

The message is one that isn’t brought up very often, but is well-executed here. I liked that the author used dreams as a plot device; dreams can often represent repressed desires and thoughts. This is useful for the book’s message that “playing God” can have unforeseen consequences. It plays out like a totalitarian dystopia fiction, but you get to see the world transform as you read. It shows the progression of society, becoming more “perfect,” but less human.

Overall, the book was definitely a fun read, had good pacing, and balanced the plot advancement and plot depth pretty well. The ending was rather disappointing, because the book kept building up on itself and never fulfilled the climactic ending that was expected. However, the rest of the book was fantastic, and I definitely recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in dreams and totalitarian dystopias.(less)

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Mar 05, 2013 Jburtson rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Lathe of Heaven follows an extraordinarily ordinary man named George Orr, where every deep dream he has becomes reality. Each dream not only changes something about the world from that point on but thrusts Orr into a new reality where the past makes room for the change and everybody is oblivious to the change. Orr tries to suppress these dreams, he doesn't want to change the world to something crazier, or otherwise worse. To do this he takes drugs which end him up in the care of Dr. Haber, w...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Dervishi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Lathe of Heaven is an excellent story by Ursula Guin that examines dreams and how they shape our reality. On top of that, Guin brings up some excellent questions about human nature and morality. Guin takes the idea of dreams shaping reality to a new extreme, creating a character in a dystopian overpopulated world named George Orr; the extreme part is when Orr’s dreams create an altered past, present, and future that all fit around certain parts of Orr’s dreams. The Lathe of Heaven has some f...more The Lathe of Heaven is an excellent story by Ursula Guin that examines dreams and how they shape our reality. On top of that, Guin brings up some excellent questions about human nature and morality. Guin takes the idea of dreams shaping reality to a new extreme, creating a character in a dystopian overpopulated world named George Orr; the extreme part is when Orr’s dreams create an altered past, present, and future that all fit around certain parts of Orr’s dreams. The Lathe of Heaven has some far-out concepts that the reader really has to work to wrap their head around; in the beginning of the book we learn that Orr creates a new space-time continuum for every “effective” dream that he has. This powerful ability eventually becomes exploited by a well-meaning scientist named Haber who becomes mad with power. As the book goes on, Orr and Haber's interactions threaten to compromise the entire universe.

While the book does include some discussions on human nature, the main theme, found in the relationship between the protagonist and his abusive antagonist, is morality and what makes something morally appropriate or inappropriate. The entire conflict of the book stems from two conflicting moral standpoints: Orr believes that the course of the universe should not be altered if it does not need to be (the only real necessity being the apocalypse). Orr is a firm believer in letting the world run it’s course, which is why he is so troubled and vulnerable to the antagonist. When the author shaped the antagonist on the other hand, she likely had the phrase, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” in mind. Haber, Orr’s court-ordered psychiatrist, will do anything to change the world and eliminate all the “evil” from the world. Haber will crush Orr’s spirit and soul and re-write the entire space-time continuum if it means he can get rid of unpleasant realities like war and hunger. Guin really brings up an excellent question, “Do the ends really justify the means?” Orr believes no, while Haber vehemently disagrees. This exchange between the two conflicting perspectives forms the gist of the book and it’s themes.

I enjoyed almost all of the book. Guin writes a very interesting story and develops her characters fantastically. The reader will learn to respect Orr and Haber for their unique developed personalities. This novel is best read in lit circles or with a friend, because there's a lot about The Lathe of Heaven that should be discussed with somebody else; some parts should be discussed to see alternative viewpoints on moral dilemmas that come up in the book, while other parts should be discussed just for further understanding, as the book can be pretty out there at times. Overall, an excellent read for those who enjoy sci-fi or fantasy.(less)

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Feb 20, 2013 Jessie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, favorites

The subject isn't exactly up my alley, but the writing is quite amazing. Dialogues craft out each character perfectly (except maybe George, who sometimes says rather more than he's expected to), and authorial interjections don't come across as abrupt at all. Superb irony interweaves throughout, but without disrupting the flow of plot.

Some favorite quotations:
- What will the creature made all of seadrift do on the dry sand of daylight; what will the mind do, each morning, waking? (P.1)
- There are...more

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Feb 16, 2013 Suhrob rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Excellent! Very good idea, masterly executed. Pity that my childhood library had only one book by her and I went my whole life thinking she was a dime-a-dozen fantasy writer...

It certainly helps that the book is close to my beloved Philip K. Dick's territory, but Le Guin is a very skilled writer (I'd wager to say that even technically superior to PKD) and has a distinct voice. The main hero - George Orr has the ability to change the world with his dreams. His psychologist Dr. Haber want to seize...more

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Dec 28, 2012 William Reichard rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I first read this book when I was in high school. That was many, many years ago. It impressed me then with its premise, its wisdom. All these years later, I've read it again and I still find it powerful and moving. And I see now what I couldn't see then - Le Guin's ability to look at the world in 1971 (the year the book was published) and predict, among other things, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, global warming, the melting of the polar ice caps and resultant drastic changes to the coastal regio...more

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About Ursula K. Le Guin

As of 2011, Ursula K. Le Guin has published twenty-one novels, eleven volumes of short stories, four collections of essays, twelve books for children, six volumes of poetry and four of translation, and has received many awards: Hugo, Nebula, National Book Award, PEN-Malamud, etc. Her recent publications include the novel Lavinia, an essay collection, Cheek by Jowl, and The Wild Girls. Forthcoming...more As of 2011, Ursula K. Le Guin has published twenty-one novels, eleven volumes of short stories, four collections of essays, twelve books for children, six volumes of poetry and four of translation, and has received many awards: Hugo, Nebula, National Book Award, PEN-Malamud, etc. Her recent publications include the novel Lavinia, an essay collection, Cheek by Jowl, and The Wild Girls. Forthcoming in 2012, Finding My Elegy, New and Selected Poems. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ούρσουλα Λε Γκεν (Ursula Kroeber Le Guin, Berkeley California, 21 Οκτωβρίου 1929 - ) Πολυγραφότατη, πολυδιάστατη και πολυβραβευμένη Αμερικανίδα ποιήτρια και συγγραφέας του χώρου της «Επιστημονικής Φαντασίας» αλλά και των παιδικών διηγημάτων.

ΠΡΩΤΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΑ
Γεννήθηκε στο Μπέρκλεϋ της Καλιφόρνιας από τον ανθρωπολόγο Άλφρεντ Κρέμπερ (Alfred L. Kroeber) και την συγγραφέα Θεοδώρα Κρέμπερ (Theodora Covel BrownKracaw Kroeber), σπούδασε στο «Radcliffe College» και εν συνεχεία Φιλολογία (γαλλική και ιταλική αναγεννησιακή λογοτεχνία) στο «Πανεπιστήμιο Columbia». Το 1953 παντρεύτηκε στην Γαλλία τον ιστορικό Σαρλ Λε Γκεν (Charles A. Le Guin), που έγινε καθηγητής Γαλλικής Ιστορίας στο «Portland State College» του Όρεγκον και απέκτησε μαζί του 3 παιδιά.

«ΕΠΙΣΤΗΜΟΝΙΚΗ» ΚΑΙ «ΜΕΣΑΙΩΝΙΚΗ» ΦΑΝΤΑΣΙΑ
Από τα μέσα της δεκαετίας του 1960 συνέγραψε περισσότερα από 100 διηγήματα (που εκδόθηκαν σε 8 τόμους), 3 συλλογές δοκιμίων, 5 ποιητικές συλλογές, 19 νουβέλες και 13 παιδικά βιβλία, αλλά είναι περισσότερο αναγνωρισμένη για τα έργα της στον τομέα της «Επιστημονικής» και «Μεσαιωνικής» Φαντασίας, όπου συγκαταλέγεται ανάμεσα στους σημαντικότερους σύγχρονους δημιουργούς (πιο γνωστά στην Ελλάδα είναι τα βιβλία της «Ο Αναρχικός των Δύο Κόσμων», Αθήνα, 1992 και «Το Αριστερό Χέρι του Σκοταδιού», Αθήνα, 1990, 1994). Το 1990 αιφνιδίασε το αναγνωστικό κοινό της όταν πρόσθεσε δίχως προειδοποίηση στην έως τότε τριλογία του «μαγικού» «κύκλου της Γαιοθάλασσας» («A Wizard of Earthsea», «The Tombs of Atuan» και «The FarthestShore», 1968 - 1972) το σκληρό «Τεχανού», για το οποίο έλαβε το Βραβείο Nebula.(less)

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Quotes from The Lathe of Heaven

“Love doesn't just sit there, like a stone, it has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new.” — 1,730 people liked it

“Current-borne, wave-flung, tugged hugely by the whole might of ocean, the jellyfish drifts in the tidal abyss. The light shines through it, and the dark enters it. Borne, flung, tugged from anywhere to anywhere, for in the deep sea there is no compass but nearer and farther, higher and lower, the jellyfish hangs and sways; pulses move slight and quick within it, as the vast diurnal pulses beat in the moondriven sea. Hanging, swaying, pulsing, the most vulnerable and insubstantial creature, it has for its defense the violence and power of the whole ocean, to which it has entrusted its being, its going, and its will.” — 12 people liked it

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