Tales from Earthsea

Starred review from March 5, 2001

In this stellar collection, which includes a number of original stories, Le Guin (The Telling; Four Ways to Forgiveness; etc.) makes a triumphant return to the magic-drenched world of Earthsea. The opening novella, The Finder, set some 300 years before the birth of Ged, the hero of A Wizard of Earthsea
(1968), details both the origin of the school for wizards on Roke Island and the long-suppressed role that women and women's magic played in the founding of that institution. "The Bones of the Earth" describes Ogion, Ged's first great teacher, when he was a young man, centering on that wizard's loving relationship with his own mentor. "Darkrose and Diamond" is also a love story of sorts, about a young man who'd rather be a musician than a mage and the witch girl he loves. "On the High Marsh," the only story in which Ged himself appears, albeit in a secondary role, is a touching tale of madness and redemption. Finally, in the novella Dragonfly, a tale set immediately after the events related in her Nebula Award–winning novel Tehanu
(1990), Le Guin tells the story of a young girl who chooses to defy the ban on female mages, tries to enroll in the school on Roke Island and, in doing so, initiates great changes to the world of Earthsea. In her seventies, Le Guin is still at the height of her powers, a superb stylist with a knack for creating characters who are both wise and deeply humane. The publication of this collection is a major event in fantasy literature. (May)FYI:In addition to five Hugo and five Nebula awards, Le Guin has won the Kafka Award, a Pushcart Prize and the Harold D. Vursell Memorial Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Jenny Sterlin narrates this collection of five short stories from iconic fantasy author Le Guin at an unhurried steady pace. Sterlin is an engaged storyteller who takes in stride the various characters ranging in age and social status. In "Dragonfly," which is about a girl intent on studying magic at a school that has been restricted to young men, Sterlin demonstrates this range with the interaction between the young Dragonfly and the masters, some of whom line up in support of her and others of whom who stand steadfastly against her. The masters are differentiated through a combination of tone, tempo, accents, and timbre but in a general contrast to the youth are weighty and ponderous. J.E.M. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine


Years after we thought the "Earthsea Trilogy" was complete, Ursula Le Guin has treated her fans to a fresh helping of stories dealing with her fantastic realm of wizards, mages, and dragons. The five stories in this collection are set before and during the original trilogy, and provide background to the events and characters of those novels. Amanda Karr gently reads "The Finder," set years before A Wizard of Earthsea. Gabrielle de Cuir reads "Dragonfly," about a woman's struggle to enter the all-male school of wizardry on the island of Roke. The author adds her own personal touch reading "The Bones of the Earth," another story set before the events of the original trilogy, a touching story of the lonely and stubborn life of a wizard. Scott Brick reads "On the High Marsh," a story with as many characteristics of a good Western as a fantasy. Stefan Rudnicki, who produced the audiobook, also reads a tale, and creative consultant Harlan Ellison provides a slightly silly postscript. S.E.S. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine