A Wizard of Earthsea

Rating:
Summary: euthanasia, please, over this book
Review: Ursula K. LeGuin -- genius, or Scotch warming pan? The distinction becomes blurred sixty pages into the book, when LeGuin decides to give your human sensibilities such a thorough rogering that you only wish you had run for magistrate of Gornoth Sector-7 to condemn the alien spice-fiend who has apparently taken over Ms. -LeGuin's- sensibilities to life in a boldronathian vector jumble. What in the name of heaven is Earthsea? Where is the plot? Has postmodernism become prehistoricism? This is not a book. It's words on a pages between two covers fashioned from the most typical of sci-fi novel cover-stock paper. LeGuin's writing is so poor that it seems to legitimise every Tor Science Fiction series novel every written, but as to exactly how, well, i'm not sure, but my guess it has something to do with the space-time continuum, hill-gnomes, and "dark wizardry." And vector jumbles. Rubbish.

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Summary: Truly Spellbinding
Review: This book is one of the best books I have ever read. A Great book on the passage into manhood and learning the responsibility that comes with power.

Rating:
Summary: Simple but Gripping
Review: I first read the book 9 years ago, I have never regretted it. Ursula K. le Guin uses a simple story to tell a realstic coming of age tale in a fantasy world of make believe. Sparrowhawk/Ged is shows a very simple human side that is seldom focused on in other books - Pride. The story centers on his pride and how because of it he loses something of himself. Later in life he finds the courage to face his mistake and regain that part of himeself which he lost through a moment of pride and folly.

Rating:
Summary: Too bad I can't give it zero stars!
Review: This is the most pathetic fantasy I have ever read. The characters are one-dimensional, the world seems like a cartoon, and I would rather get a lobotomy than read the dialogue. Don't even get me started about the plot!

Rating:
Summary: Easily one of the best fantasy books I've ever read.
Review: Along with J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy, A Wizard of Earthsea is one of the few fantasy books I find myself able to read over and over. All in all, an excellent, if symbolic, account of the stress felt by young adults.

Rating:
Summary: Great!!
Review: o.k, now I must admit that I am not much of a reader - so when my teacher handed me "The Earthsea Quartet" I was a little baffled. However, I decided that I would try and read it - I did and it was great. Le Guin has the amazing ability to take us into a subliminal dimension of wizards and magic. Anyone seeking escape should definately read this book, its unbeatable.

Rating:
Summary: Where is the diologe?????
Review: This looked like the best book on my summer reading list. It wasn't. It is ok, but there is only about five pages of diologe in the entire book!!! It is like you are veiwing the plot from behind one of those mirrors that you can see through one-way. You have no insight to the charictors thoughts or feelings. This type of writing might be ok for a charictor that shows their thoughts by talking or actions. But sparrowhawk is so withdrawn that you can't tell anything about him. I was very disapointed.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful book that probably changed my life.
Review: I remember reading this on my tenth birthday. I've read it many times since, and every time it's just as wonderful and just as magical.

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Summary: Incredible resource for pagan parenting
Review: If you are leading your children down the "Old Path" and want them to learn responsibility in their practices these are the first books I'd recommend.

Rating:
Summary: It felt a little distant
Review: While LeGuin's prose is beguiling and her characters believable, somehow I felt a little more removed from the scene than I like to be when I'm reading a novel. I'm not sure why that is. I would have preferred to get more deeply inside the heads of the characters than I did. Otherwise, an excellent book - I felt that things were happening even without the bloody battles and lurid affairs that so often are used in fantasy novels in place of good writing to hold the reader's interest.