Earthsea: A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore

A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore
Ursula K. LeGuin, 1968, 1971, 1972

Premise: The boy Ged becomes a wizard, becomes a man, then continues to shape the destiny of Earthsea. 

I read A Wizard of Earthsea years and years ago but had no real memory of it. I picked up this trilogy cheap at some point, so this post is another in this year's "reading the unread books on the shelf" project.  

I deeply respect LeGuin, and I knew these were beloved, but for some reason, I didn't expect the books to be awesome. But of course, they are. 

From the start, this is a cool world. A complex area of islands and archipelagos bounded on all sides by the unknowable seas. Steeped in myth and mystery, but still grounded with the everyday details of farming, fishing, sailing.  

All three books have cool stories. They are often marketed as YA; the first one in particular is accessible to young readers without pandering to them, and it's not limited to their concerns. 

Ged is a major supporting character in both the second and third books rather than the viewpoint character, and it did take me a minute to adjust to that when I started the second book. The lead of The Tombs of Atuan leads a lonely life, forced to take on the role of fated priestess to a strange cult, and she is understandably twisted by her upbringing. The Farthest Shore brings us back to big-picture struggles and an epic journey undertaken by Ged and a young nobleman who came to ask the wizards to look into a strange disease of the spirit. They're all great stories. 

Overall, these are fully epic fantasy that is consciously jettisoning anything eurocentric and any focus on battle or strength of arms. The characters in these books win their battles with strength of magic, mind, and morals. Needless to say, I'm keeping these books. 

5 Stars - Awesome Books