Where should I start? LeGuin Edition

[[deleted user]]

So, as those of you who may be following the discussion on The Word for World is Forest will know, I didn't really care for it.

This being my first experience of LeGuin, an author who I've heard a lot of good things about, I don't want it to be my only experience of her work(read: I really, really, really didn't like it).

So, was hoping some of you who are more familiar with her stuff would be able to point me at what you consider to be her best work? Or, at least, the best starting point for her work?

Much Appreciated.

[Geoffrey]

I would suggest A Wizard of Earthsea if you like fantasy.

If you prefer scifi I would suggest The Lathe of Heaven

You can then, if you enjoy those works, dive into the Left Hand of Darkness.

[Tom]

I have not read much of her work.

I thought The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia was good. It won a few awards.

Tried reading The Left Hand of Darkness and just couldn't get through it. It was like I read it before.

Going to try The Lathe of Heaven at some point.

Most of her work looks a little too fantasy for my taste.

[Silvio]

Well, I really like The Lathe of Heaven, but I doubt it would be a good choice for you, Ala. If you felt preached at by The World for World is Forest you'll probably feel the same way about Lathe. The early Earthsea books or her other fantasy series, the Annals of the Western Shore, may be as different as you'll get and still be Le Guin, so they'd probably be my first recommendation. Also there's Malafrena which is not SF or fantasy but set in the nineteenth century in an imaginary European country.

The Dispossessed and The Left Hand of Darkness are probably the best and certainly the most famous of the universe in which The World for World is Forest is set. They also have a utopian strain to them which you might consider preachy, but on slightly different themes from The World for World is Forest and The Lathe of Heaven.

[Bill]

I agree with the recommendations for The Left Hand of Darkness (a fantastic story) and The Dispossessed.

[[deleted user]]

Thanks everyone!

I think I'll go with Silvio on this and grab the first Earthsea book, since it rings a bell somewhere in the deep, dark recess of my mind.

Then, if that goes well, I'll branch out to The Dispossessed.

[Bill]

Generally, I like to read a new author in publication order, except for series which I read in internal chronology order.

[Margaret]

Well, LeGuin is hardly a new author. :) Reading her Earthsea series in internal chronology order is a good idea, but if you started with her very earliest SF, I think she would be the first to tell you that it's not her best.

[Kevin]

You should watch the anime they did four years ago of the third book in Earthsea, The Farthest Shore, called Tales from Earthsea. I loved it, much better than the miniseries, all wrong on the character. All her main characters in Earthsea was suppose to be black, not in the miniseries. I love her being one of the first authors to do that.

[Geoffrey]

Actually I would caution against watching ANY filmed treatment of ANY book before reading the book. When you see the film first, the pictures you get in your head belong to the filmmakers. When you read the book first the pictures belong to you which is what the author intended.

Earthsea was not designed to be primarily black but to be primarily multi-ethnic. MOST of the characters are non-white but only one is actually black. The rest are analogs for East indian, Native American, asian and polynesian. And there are lots of white characters too.

Ms LeGuin has been very vocal and specific about this over the years and it's quite clear in her work.

[Bill]

Margaret wrote: "Well, LeGuin is hardly a new author. :) Reading her Earthsea series in internal chronology order is a good idea, but if you started with her very earliest SF, I think she would be the first to te..."

When I say new author, I mean to me. I've been taking a number of golden age and more recent authors and reading them in toto, in order. I may have read a novel or 2 but missed a lot. For ULG, I'd read Lathe of Heaven and DIspossessed when they were 1st out, and Earthsea, but not the lesser known works. I'm now doing her, Hal Clement, Wm Gibson, Cory Doctorow, Samuel R. Delany and Janny Wurts in genre fiction.

[Bill]

Geoffrey wrote: "Actually I would caution against watching ANY filmed treatment of ANY book before reading the book. When you see the film first, the pictures you get in your head belong to the filmmakers. When you..."

I agree with this in general. Although, I can think of some movies I thought were better than the novels. FOr both Maurice and Make Room Make Room (Soylent Green), I read the novels because I liked the movies and for both, I think the movies better. I think I would say the same for Bladerunner.

Ms LeGuin has been very vocal and specific about this over the years and it's quite clear in her work.

Which does not mean that I cannot visualize the characters as is my wont. I would not let an author dictate my response to their work.

[Rich]

Yes, I would read Earthsea and the Lathe of Heaven and go from there.