A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1) in The Sword and Laser

Nov 04, 2012 Harold Ogle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, fantasy, ya, magic, dragons, read-aloud

I read this book years ago, in my twenties, and liked it so much, I distressed that I hadn't read it earlier, as it seemed most of my friends had. So last year I figured I'd read it aloud to my son, and checked it out from the library. We started to read it in the hardcover edition I've selected here, but it is a book dense with deep thoughts on what it is to be human and it took us a long time to read through it...two copies of the book had to be checked out from two different libraries, since I read this book years ago, in my twenties, and liked it so much, I distressed that I hadn't read it earlier, as it seemed most of my friends had. So last year I figured I'd read it aloud to my son, and checked it out from the library. We started to read it in the hardcover edition I've selected here, but it is a book dense with deep thoughts on what it is to be human and it took us a long time to read through it...two copies of the book had to be checked out from two different libraries, since the first copy reached its maximum amount of renewals. To be fair, that had less to do with the book than with our itinerant reading habits: since we started reading it aloud, we read dozens of other books separately and together. But in part I felt it didn't do Le Guin's writing justice to just read a page or two at a time, so I saved reading the book to him for those times when we had enough time for at least most of a chapter. We both found the book quite enthralling, and reading it aloud - as it almost always does - gave us a much stronger appreciation for the craft of the language and the intricacy of the subtexts in the dialog.

Since I read this, I've read many other Le Guin novels, short stories and novellas, and I've found them consistently appealing and engaging. I also find her example inspiring as a writer, given that she wrote and wrote for many years before getting something published for the first time in her late thirties.

A Wizard of Earthsea creates an engaging world in which all of humanity lives on various clusters of islands separated by vast stretches of ocean, with nothing we would call a continent. Each island is isolated enough from the others that they have strong regional characteristics of distinct language and customs. There are some common cultural elements across most of the islands, though: customs of how to respect travelers, and also of wizardry. Some few people of the islands develop an affinity for magic, and they become respected members of the community as witches or wise men. Either that, or they find a master and learn to become an actual wizard, honing their innate skill into a learned craft. This book starts on the Isle of Gont, and is about a young smith's son named Ged, who is taken under the wing of the local wizard Ogion after Ged shows some promise with the meager skills he'd gleaned from interactions with a local witch. Dreaming of fame and drunk with his own promise, the teenaged Ged leaves his master for the world-famous School of Wizardry on distant Roke Island. Leaving Gont behind, Ged briefly feels a pang, but then he finds wonder at the diversity of the Archipelagic islands, and, once admitted to the school, finds pride in his natural prowess with all things magic. Ged is a prodigy, and earns the respect and envy of his fellow students. One student in particular, Jasper, the son of a wealthy noble, doesn't kowtow to Ged and instead goads and gibes him out of his envy. Ged foolishly oversteps his limitations and attempts to not only cross into the land of the dead, but retrieve the spirit of a famous legendary/historical figure. In doing so, he tears a rent in the fabric of the universe, and it takes all the strength of the archmage to seal the rift. But something came through the rent - a shadow creature that savages Ged before fleeing into the world. Ged takes the rest of the book to heal from the shame, darkness, wounds and trauma that he inflicted on himself, while first fleeing from and then pursuing the shadow creature.

Another thing to appreciate about the book is how much it has influenced so much of what has come after it. Countless books of magic stories owe some small debt to A Wizard of Earthsea, and others have taken a smidgen of this book - it is very dense with ideas - and expanded that throwaway reference into the basis for a book or even entire series of books. While very enjoyable in its own right, Garth Nix's Sabriel series bears a suspiciously strong resemblance to Ged's experience of the land of the dead. The idea of naming is one that has been used many times, and we see echoes of the School of Magic in countless other books and series. But this is not unusual, of course. Even the final chapter of this book evokes some slight recollection of the end of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in the weird lands that the characters find when they sail farther beyond the horizon than anyone has before them.

For all that it seems to have inspired so many stories that came after it, this book is not high fantasy, neither of swords & sorcery or of a humble peasant realizing his destiny as heroic world savior. I hesitate to call it "low fantasy" also, as that implies a focus on the tawdry and base in human nature. This really is neither; in essence, this book is actually a good coming-of-age story, with some very interesting and engaging fantasy trappings. ...more

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Feb 04, 2014 Jlawrence rated it really liked it

Shelves: re-reads, sword-and-laser

Originally read this tale of a young wizard struggling with his own power when I was twelve or so, loved it, and just re-read it for Sword & Laser.

It is very traditional (so much so that most of the women we see fall only into witch or seductress roles, something Le Guin later commented on and tried to rectify with later books in the series.) The storytelling is also very compact, the style sparse but often lyrical. Quite a change from most of the describe-everything-in-detail fantasy we usuall ...more

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Nov 16, 2010 travelgirlut rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Finally, a YA book that doesn't talk down to you. This book reads like an adult book. The main character acts like an adult. It's a refreshing change after some of the YA books you read today. This book expects some thinking and involvement on the part of the reader, and I liked that. The book had a solemn, determined feel to it that matched perfectly with the mood of the main character. A well-written fantasy story, and I will definitely follow up on the rest of the series.

UPDATE OCTOBER 2015: ...more

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Aug 03, 2009 kvon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: sword-challenge, re-read

As I get older I think that I don't understand the depths of this book as I did when I was young...
It is interesting to read it post-Other Wind. I see now how few women there are, and how little interest in them Ged has.

2018 Reread
What strikes me most this go round is how distant the narration is. Lately I've gotten used to tight third person narration, and we rarely see inside Ged's head. A year can pass by in a paragraph. But when she does turn her attention to description, Le Guin is lyrical. ...more

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May 15, 2009 Andrea rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, adventure, magic-school

Sparrowhawk is a driven boy whose anger and jealousy often drive him to do things that could be considered unwise, but there is no doubt that he possesses considerable power. This first tale of his adventures in the world of Earthsea tells of how he leaves home to be educated as a wizard and comes to face a terrible dark creature that could be his ruin.

I really appreciated the story in A Wizard of Earthsea and the characters. I love how the main character grows throughout the tale, but I simply ...more

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Jul 24, 2009 Jeff James rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I remember reading this book years and years ago and disliking it for whatever reason, even though Evan loved it and read the whole series. I wanted to give it another chance now because I was pretty sure I didn't give it a fair shake at the time, and I've been in the mood for period fantasy lately. Luckily, this was an excellent read, and I look forward to the next book in the series. Now I just need to re-read The Great Gatsby to undo the work of junior English class... ...more

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Jul 08, 2013 Melissa rated it it was ok

I'm not sure I understand the appeal of this book. I found the writing style not to my taste. It felt like wading through dry sand -- long stretches of dry sand that are so vast that you can't see the edges. I wanted to see what happened so I read to the end, but the end was not very satisfying either. ...more

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Apr 09, 2011 Beth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: foolscap-club, fantasy

This is a great read, with rich and engrossing language. This reread I was paying attention to GED’s schooling, and noticing how adults were making misjudgments that were either marked or unmarked by the text.

Fun discussion as well.

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