Rating: 
Summary: Anthropological Fantasy Masterpiece
Review: Ursula K. LeGuin's "A Wizard of Earthsea" comes from a different place then the other two fantasists with whom her Earthsea trilogy is so often compared. Tolkein's so-called fantasy was a real attempt to capture what Tolkein believed the languagues lost before the beginnings of early English, while his Oxford colleague wrote his Narnia fantasies from a Christian viewpoint. LeGuin's fantasy novels derive from her background in anthropology and show it in every way. The story concerns the Wizard Sparrowhawk and his education. Sparrowhawk comes from a desperately poor village in the mountains, from among illiterate peasants (compare to the world of the hobbits, where, though illiterate, there is no squalor) who live with their goats. His home island, Gont, is the birthplace of Goatherds, Pirates, and Wizards, and from an early age Sparrowhawk shows his powers. After saving his village from an invading army, Sparrowhawk is apprenticed to Ogion, the great Mage. There Sparrowhawk begins to learn what Wizards know: the names of all things. He also is drawn to showing off, including calling up the dead. Too powerful and curious for Ogion, Sparrowhawk goes to the isle of Roke to attend the school there ( Rowling only stole from the best) and finds he's not only the best pupil, but he can make enemies. In a boast, he calls up a spirit and brings out a sort of un-him. The un-him scars Sparrowhawk and kills the school's Archmage who uses his power to try and undo what Sparrowhawk has done. Ged, Sparrowhawk's true name, must now pursue this unhim while fighting dragons, evil stones, and gibbeths, people the unhim have entered and destroyed. Finally, Ged turns on his pursuer to fight an epic battle on the unsea and reunite himself. LeGuin's spare prose is based on folktales, and myths, and Earthsea's theology of balance, true names, and magic is clear: Ged has disturbed the balance, so he must restore it. Like Tolkein's and Lewis' books, there is a sexual innocence here: Ged is a mage first and foremost: he feel attractions, but no lust. Of course, Heros of Myth are too good to be lustful; chastity preserves their power. Unlike the other fantasies, the Earthsea Trilogy is not England, but an actual mythical place, albeit medieval in a European sense. Ged is no Englishman either, being copper-colored. LeGuin also makes more use of magic that others; it pervades everything in Earthsea. How many acts of magic does Gandalf actually perform in LOTR? I would rather have had GED along myself. LeGuin also makes it clear than every Magical act costs something which Tolkein never enters into. The deep understanding of what makes a culture a culture underlies everything LeGuin has written, from "The Dispossed" to "Terhanu." The intelligence behind these books is impressive, neither sentimental nor baroque, almost clinical in its portrayal of an premodern world where magic does work, and where every action has personal consequences and real pain.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: I picked up this book when I had nothing else to read. My mom had read it ages ago,when she was really into fantasy and reccomended it to me. I could not put it down.It was complex,magical,and at many points exciting.Le Guin developed and amazing culture ,yet she did not go too far ,like other authors (David Eddings). I adored how Le Guin put an anti-racist thing in,very slyly.The Kargs ,had pale skin,and a good deal of Earthsea didn't(the Kargs are "evil").This book made simple classes of wizardry ,which in most books would be amazingly boring,was extremely interesting.Most of the boring parts were when the character was bored,not when you for some reason were supposed to be interested. I have to say ,besides Ged,my favorite character was the otak.So cute ,yet so loyal.Le Guin can make little things wonderful. Alright,I suppose I'll need to go to the plot now.Ged ,a young sheephearder on the island called Gont,discovers that he is a wizard.He is sent to the Isle of Roke to train.Soon he becomes powerful,but while trying to summon a dead spirit ,he unleashes a shadow upon Earthsea.That Shadow is after him.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, mellow fantasy
Review: I tried and failed to read this book a couple of times in my teens, but over a decade later I recently picked it up again and it charmed me. Your typical swords and sorcery this is not, so skip this book and its sequels if you're looking for another Tolkien clone. Le Guin is as original a sci-fi/fantasy author as you can find, and A Wizard of Earthsea is pioneering fantasy. Le Guin has a background in anthropology, and it shows here: A Wizard of Earthsea succeeds best in subtle characterization and gently sculpting the fantasy setting: an island archipelago whose mythology and mysteries are sparsely described but nonetheless captivating. The book will give you many original and refreshing delights: the practice of magic is more about learning the true names of things than memorizing incantations, death is a traversible landscape, and dragons are the true masters of the ancient language of magic, which binds ordinary mortals to truth. Read the series with an open mind and you will find ample rewards.
Rating: 
Summary: Hmmm
Review: I seem to be one of the few people who hated this book. I can see how it would make a half-way entertaining children's book, the kind that third graders are forced to read for school, but I can't understand what all the adult reviewers see in A Wizard of Earthsea. There are a hundred things that annoyed me about this book- I'll list a few.
1) The names. It seems like a minor thing, but GED?!? I felt sick having to read that name a million times, over and over and over. Earthsea? Wow, imaginative! Not really. All the names of the islands on the little map provided seemed to be random combinations of letters, barely pronouncable and utterly meaningless. I'm not even sure why the islands were named, since only a very few of them are mentioned.
2) The language. There actually are places with good description- but very, very few of them... Most of the language that Le Guin uses is dull and boring. Even though the shadow is a main part of the book, she couldn't be bothered to find a single synonym. The result is that the word "Shadow" is used, on average, about once per page. And these are tiny pages with big writing. Sometimes even if a plot is horrible, I can read and enjoy the book anyway because the descriptions used are interesting and I like the wording used. Not so in this book.
3) The characters. Ged is the only character who has any depth whatsoever, and what personality he has is trite and cliched. The other people in the book seem to be there just to move the plot along, without any real effort to make them worthwhile or original.
4) The storyline. As a few other people mentioned, the story just hops around. One second Ged is four, then in the next paragraph he's thirteen. You can't skip reading a single word if you want to have any clue as to what is going on, because in just a single sentence, the plot will shift hugely and the reader will be left confused. I was, anyway. Even a seven year old should be able to predict the end right from the beginning- there are no surprises to this book, besides the conspicous lack of attention to details and the poor writing. Another thought for you to consider- since the ending is so completely obvious to just about everyone, is it really necessary to use foreshadowing to "tempt" us toward the conclusion?
5)Problem-solving. How does Ged solve every problem that he faces? With magic, of course. Magic that we never see him learn. It always does seem convenient to have a main character who is a wizard, because it's no longer necessary to actually figure out how things get solved- just write "Ged waved his hand a bit and all the bad things went away."
6) Useless information packed into the corners. It's often good to have information about the character aside from what is absolutely required to keep the story going. In this case, the author WAY overdoes this. Example: He finds an otak somewhere, who then follows him around. Nevermind that it was specifically mentioned that otaks DON'T like people. But it did anyway, because Le Guin wanted Ged to have some worthless, helpless little creature randomly decide to follow him around so it could lick his face later on in the book and wake him up, even though there was no reason for a lick to have done that.
Overall, I say read this book if you want to, since a ton of people seemed to like it, but my personal opinion is that it is one of the most pointless books I have ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Simple yet elegant. Le Guin's writing is economical - sparse on the descriptions but it's more than adequate. Refreshing change from the typical Anglican sword-and-sorcery settings, with dark-skinned islanders as the main focus and the Caucasians as the far-off enemies. Ged is an endearing and interesting character. We recognize his mistake when he leaves Ogion, and sympathize with his realization of his foolish pride and it's terrible price. The magic system LeGuin has created is interesting and consistent. The lore is intriguing and helpful. The first in a wonderful series.
Rating:
Summary: a master piece
Review: this is a classic! very stylish not to be missed highly recomended. the best of fantasy up there with lord of the rings
Rating:
Summary: The Spiritual Grandparent Of Harry Potter
Review: Ursula K. Le Guin's A Wizard Of Earthsea, the first book in her long standing Earthsea Trilogy, is the spiritual grandparent of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Indeed this story about a boy training at a school for wizards, who will one day go on to become the greatest wizard of his age, seems like a somber older adult version of Rowling's beloved story. Certainly the implications of magic and the responsibility of having such powers are given greater weight in Le Guin's story. Sparrowhawk becomes a wizard's apprentice after the wizard reveals Sparrowhawk's true name. Later, Sparrowhawk having been sent to a school for wizards, unleashes a terrible apparition of evil during a prideful contest with another student. His quest to destroy the apparition makes for a compelling right of passage story. Preston McClear...
Rating:
Summary: An extraordinary tale
Review: Storytelling never loses its place at the forefront of this, the first book of the Earthsea Trilogy. This series has always been one of my favorites ever since I read it. Ms. Le Guin creates a believable world with characters that ring true on every page and the way she discusses and develops the importance of language and words in these novels is not only unique but powerful. Please read this series. You will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: A great work of classical fiction. Must read for all science fiction and fantasy fans.
Rating:
Summary: The best Book
Review: This book is by far the best book I have read in my life, and I had thought that I had read the best book "A Christmas Carol" before this one, after reading this one i realized that this could be a verry intresting book for everyone to read.
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