Rating: Summary: Bad , Bad , Bad Book ... Review: Look , the trilogy itself was great , mainly because it was very easy to read , and because the stories were fun , interesting and magical. However , Ursula chose to ruin all the fun I had by writing this last novell. It is NOT a fantasy book for the child in every one of us !!! It's NOT an easy read , it's NOT magical , and it certainly gives you the blues. I got into big depression after reading this book mainly because I was expecting one more brilliant performance of Sparrowhawk , who we all learned to love , I wanted one last performance. But instead I got a novell with a crippeled SparrowHawk that deals with child abuse , rape , aging and getting in terms with your past. This novell ruined the whole trilogy for me. If you enjoyed the trilogy , do yourself a favour and don't ruin it for yourself by reading Tehanu.
Rating: Summary: So it not with a bang... Review: ... but with a whimper. The Earthsea trilogy was one of the revelations of my pre-teen years, and I suppose this is one of those lessons of adult life. (You can't go back).
Rating: Summary: Spellbinding Review: Ursula Le Guin weaves her magic again in this book that is completeley spellbiniding especially the end.
If you liked Dune, this book is of the same caliber
Rating: Summary: If you loved the Earthsea series... Review: I fell in love with the Earthsea series by LeGuin.
After _The Farthest Shore_, however, I felt that there were more stories that had to be told. I really feared that The Earthsea Trilogy really was a trilogy and that left me feeling a little empty. A couple years later, _Tehanu_ was published and I grabbed the book off the shelf. I read it in one sitting. Finally, there was closure to everything and that was the most satisfying reading experience I ever had. People say that these books are for young adults. I am hardly a young adult and I still keep Tehanu with me where ever I go.
Rating: Summary: Three were a pleasure...four is a crowd Review: In comparison to the previous Earthsea books, `Tehanu` was rather a letdown. 'A Wizard of Earthsea' and 'The Tombs of Atuan' were stunning, but in this latest work LeGuin's creative genius seems to have reached a low ebb. The plot winds aimlessly with only occasional references to the theme at the core of story; and most of the book is filled with philosophical ramblings and deep discussions that tend to meander in different directions without getting anywhere. Even the ending comes no closer, and this reviewer was just plain confused about the point of the entire book. The resolution, which was all of five pages or so, seemed little more than a means to wrap up the philosophical discussions and put them neatly in their place. Still, for all that, Tenar was a very well-drawn, realistic character, though somehow never managed to hold center stage for long. It was heartbreaking to see what Ged had become, a shell of himself;and Arren is introduced only briefly. However, anyone who was indignant (like I was) when Ged seemed to have forgotten Tenar will have a reason to read this book...though whether the resolution of that relationship was satisfying or not I`d rather leave to others to decide. I guess when you get right down to the root of the matter, what disappointed me most was the total transformation of a world I thought I knew. In the first three books the atmosphere was so innocent, and magic in the air was so tangible one could almost see it. 'Tehanu' just didn`t capture that
Rating: Summary: Subtle, deceptively simple Review: Yes, dragons are involved, but they are mostly symbolic in this short, very easy to read fantasy about many things: child abuse, aging gracefully, regrets, comming to terms with the past, men and women. Ms. Le Guin proves again she is a master story teller. In fact she's so good you may not really grasp the real depth of the tale until the end - or maybe even after the second read. A quietly beautiful book
Rating: Summary: How do decent people behave in the face of injustice? Review: The Earthsea Trilogy was important to me in my teens, but I
haven't felt inclined to return to it; it doesn't seem to have as much to say to a thirty-odd-year-old. Tehanu seems to me be a much more difficult -- and mature -- book. It faces some central questions
of life: What should we do where there is injustice and suspicion? How does a decent person behave when children are abused and old men without power disrespected? When disfigurement makes a child disposable?
Many of LeGuin's books consider the proper actions of people
caught in complex political and personal situations: Malafrena, the Earthsea books, most especially Four Ways to
Forgiveness. Tehanu is the most personal of these books. I'm not sure, but I suspect it will be most accessible to women
who are past their early twenties.
Rating: Summary: Adequate but uninspiring conclusion to an excellent series. Review: I dearly did love LeGuin's Earthsea books, and so was delighted to see a fourth added to the trilogy. Unfortunately, this book does not live up to its predecessors. The first three were written for young adults but reached out to a much wider audience. This one seems to be written for grownups but doesn't carry anything like the same charge. At age 15, 'A Wizard of Earthsea' gave me nightmares for weeks, and 'The Tombs of Atuan' almost broke my heart. This addition to the series just made me shrug. LeGuin's literary prose is as solid as ever, and the characters are sympathetic. But the book takes forever to go anywhere, and then wraps up abruptly with a deus ex machina that I had a lot of trouble accepting. If you've read the rest of the series, you might as well pick this up. If you haven't, I would recommend some other of LeGuin's books to start with -- 'Wizard of Earthsea', 'The Left Hand of Darkness', or perhaps 'Four Ways to Forgiveness'. LeGuin is an excellent but inconsistent author, and 'Tehanu' does not show her at her best
Rating: Summary: very fine Swords and Sorcery Review: A superior and literate fantasy, well constructed; forming an adult completion to the equally
superior but rather lighter Earthsea trilogy. Like all good work, not easy to classify by genre.
Retired ex-wizard faces evil and vengeful opponents; but the real subject(s) are child
abuse, aging, and coming to terms with loss. Very fine.
Rating: Summary: More Eathsea, finally! Review: As a fan of fantasy, I am always on the lookout for new books in series that I have enjoyed in the past.
I was especially happy to find another in the wonderful
series by Ursula K. LeGuin, The Earthsea series.I bought
it immeadatally!
I was not dissapointed. LeGuin is in exellent form with
the last book of the Earthsea series. An exelllent read from cover to cover, with few low spots.
I recommend Tehanu to any and all fans of fantasy.
Dennis B. Eaton-Marks
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