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A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)

Ursula K. Le Guin

Start date: November 1, 2017

Finish date: November 27, 2017

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A Wizard of Earthsea

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By Aaron · 6 posts · 6 views

last updated Nov 27, 2017 01:04PM

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Nov 26, 2017 Red Dog rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: re-reading, literally-geeky

As I have said elsewhere, this is one of those books I read when I was very young that I've always wanted to come back to, but never quite got around to doing. Now having done so, I have to say that I'm thrilled that it has more than lived up to my memory of it, to some extent even surpassing it, since I couldn't help thinking as I read it that I couldn't believe I had actually enjoyed it when I was about 14, so deep and satisfying to read as an adult as it was. I know that some people (Hi Craig As I have said elsewhere, this is one of those books I read when I was very young that I've always wanted to come back to, but never quite got around to doing. Now having done so, I have to say that I'm thrilled that it has more than lived up to my memory of it, to some extent even surpassing it, since I couldn't help thinking as I read it that I couldn't believe I had actually enjoyed it when I was about 14, so deep and satisfying to read as an adult as it was. I know that some people (Hi Craig!) found the book's pace messed with their ability to connect with the places, people, or character relationships described, but personally I found the narrative voice pulled me into the world of Earthsea with all the skill of a seasoned campfire storyteller relating a well-worn and beloved myth.

I also found Earthsea to be compelling because rather than being your stock quasi-medieval fantasy world, it had more in common with our world in the Iron Age, something I probably missed when I was younger due to the cover of the Penguin edition I read looking like this:

I may also have been influenced by the fact I have just recently read The Celts by Nora Chadwick, since rather than getting any sense of the Taoist philosophy of balance as other readers have done, I was struck by how the magical/supernatural world of Earthsea matched that of Irish mythology, not least “the naturalness with which men, women and the gods meet and pass in and out of the natural and the supernatural spheres. In many circumstances there does not seem to have been any barrier.” Similarly, the conceptual world of the people of Earthsea, and not just the wizards, seems to match that of Irish/Celtic prose, in that it involves “a reversal of all our normal values, all our accustomed measurement of time and place, all our preconceived laws of probability, the complete ascendancy of the imagination and fancy over the world of logic, and over our normal ideas of cause and effect, of the way things happen in this world”. Finally, just as the gods and heroes of Irish myth aren't necessarily magical in the ordinary sense of the word, but masters of "skill" and "art", so the magicians of Earthsea dedicate their lives to studying (i.e. devoting time and attention to gaining knowledge) the true names of things, since as Robert Macfarlane has said in a recent article (that I recommend you read), "naming enables adventures into the mysterious life worlds of different creatures, even different kinds of matter".

So overall, I have hugely enjoyed returning to this book after three decades (thanks Literally Geeky), and would recommend you read it too. ...more

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Aug 28, 2020 Elina Mäkitalo rated it liked it · review of another edition

Ei ehkä mun pala kakkua mutta kolme tähteä kuitenkin koska kerronta oli selkeää ja taitavaa, joskus tämän tyylisissä kirjoissa on niin paljon kaikkea ihmeellistä joka vaikuttaa sekavalta että on vaikea seurata tarinan kulkua mutta tässä sitä oli jokseenkin helppo seurata ja kerronta oli myös kaunista. Toisaalta tarina oli kyllä lievästi sanottuna ainakin paikoitellen kovin tylsää ja ajatukset lähtivät kulkemaan muita latuja. Ihan ok lukukokemuksena vaikka ei mitään maata mullistavaa itselle. Kai ...more

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Jul 01, 2012 Beth rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-library, literallygeeky

This was required reading in high school (a long time ago for me) and it is a book that I will keep on my shelves. The whole series is worth re-reading every couple of years.

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Mar 25, 2014 Craig rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, sword-and-laser, literally-geeky

I see the beginning of some interesting world building in this book. Some of the characters and places are intriguing, but there isn't be much time spent on the places, people, or character relationships. It seemed rushed and kept me from developing a connection with the characters or places, or appreciating the relationships between characters. For example, we're told of the rivalry between Jasper and Ged but I never really felt it. ...more

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