Rating: 
Summary: Another must-read for lovers of the genre
Review: Those who have begun their journey with this series should most definitely finish it here. (See my review about Tehanu as to why.) The novel provides us with new characters, more great descriptions, and more magic. Having read this as a child, I found the story to be enthralling enough to read until past my bedtime. I found the prince a welcome addition to the world, and I enjoyed all of the scenes within the book. The most important elements for me in any novel are the characters. In fantasy, the most important element is the sense of wonder that the author should instill. If both are present in a fantasy novel, then I feel a sense of fulfillment and enjoyment that lasts for a long while. This book, and the others of the series, left a permanent mark in my memory because they provided both of my favored elements. I think it's time for me to return to Earthsea to revisit that enjoyment.
Rating:
Summary: A good introduction
Review: to high fantasy. If you haven't read this book, go out and buy
it, either in the bookstore, through the mail, on tape, or as an
e-book. I first read it in 1986. It was a good read then. Ms.
Le Guin takes us to Atlantis just before the Fall. What can I tell you about it without giving away the plot? Nothing. Read
this book. GET THEE TO A BOOKSTORE!
Rating: 
Summary: As good as the
Review: Ursula Le Guin wrote this very well.It was extremely interesting ,and very absorbing .The plot is straightforward,and
the characters are wonderful .Despite all this , I must admit that it is slightly confusing ,and I had to interpret a bit for myself ,but I still loved it .
Rating:
Summary: The Child and the Shadow
Review: Whilst I read A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA and THE TOMBS OF ATUAN many times as a child and a teenager, I never read THE FARTHEST SHORE, though I suspect I began it and did not finish. This book is heavygoing, both in tone and subject matter, but utterly rewarding for the engaged reader.The wizard Ged, hero of the earlier novels, but now much wearied by age, accompanies a young prince of Enlad, Arren, in a journey by sea and land into the dark places of Earthsea and the dark places of the soul. Magic and joy in life are being leeched from the land by a malignant being who has found the secret of immortality - at the cost of the denial and ultimate destruction of all life. This novel is probably more explicit than any of le Guin's other novels in portraying her conviction that all serious fantasy is at heart about the journey through the strange foreign lands of the inner soul. The reader is drawn inexorably with Ged and Arren as they try to save Earthsea by travelling into the dark heart of mankind and grappling with the ultimate challenge to selfhood - acceptance of death. Fantasy, le Guin maintains, is not about escape from the self but escape into the self. This philosophy lays the foundation for her serious, thoughtful fantasy, which may disappoint some readers seeking no more than vicarious thrills through daring adventures. The serene, Taoist philosophy permeating the essence of this novel probably has more significance for me now at 23 than it could have at 7 or 13. Yet this novel, though difficult, is still accessible to the perservering younger reader. I hope that for all readers THE FARTHEST SHORE can provide as fulfilling a reading experience as it did for me, and I heartily encourage older readers to seek out le Guin's critical writing on fantasy and on Earthsea (such as LANGUAGE OF THE NIGHT and EARTHSEA REVISITED), which are an enthralling read in themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Overcoming Fear - Maintaining Balance - Restoring A King!
Review: Young Prince Arren of Enlad, heir to the Principality of Morred, sails to Roke, the Isle of the Wise, to warn Ged that the world's magic is disappearing. Word had reached his kingdom from other points in Earthsea, and he and his father had begun to notice signs of this malaise in their own land. Sorcerers, mages, witches and chanters, no longer remember their spells, nor are they able to sing their songs. The names of things are on the verge of being forgotten. Wizards are being maimed and killed in some places. Men and women who have long depended on magic to enrich their lives, seem not to care at all anymore. Roke is "defended," invulnerable, protecting the Masters from harm, so the prince's warning is the first heard on the Island.
Ged, now the Archmage: the greatest wizard of all Earthsea; "the man who had capped the Black Well of Fundaur and won the ring of Erreth-Akbe from the Tombs of Atuan and built the deep founded sea wall of Nepp; the sailor who knew the seas from Astowell to Selidor; the only living Dragonlord," confers urgently with the other Masters. They know the Balance has been disrupted. Whatever balance remains, now resides in Roke when it should lie in the hands of a king. Eighteen years before, the Ring of the King's Rune was returned to its rightful place. This deed improved the world for a while, but it did not bring oneness. There has been no king on the high throne in Havnor for 800 years. Now a king must sit on the throne of Earthsea again, to wield the Sign of Peace and unite the lands and peoples. However, a prophecy must be fulfilled first: "He shall inherit my throne who has crossed the dark land living and come to the far shores of the day." Ged insists on taking action before any more discussion takes place about kings and future. He would go where the trouble is now, immediately, to find the source of the blight. He must find and close the hole in the world that is leeching out the light. Ged will take one companion with him, Arren.
As the two sail south and then west, they discover decay, decline, darkness, forgetfulness. Many people they encounter take drugs to numb, and to let the body be free of the mind. Others seem to have their minds' dimmed without using substances. Clearly, magic and meaning have been drained from the ports, towns, cities and countrysides of Earthsea, as has all sense of well-being and vigor from her people. The dead are mysteriously crossing over under the influence of a vile mysterious creature. Even Orm Embar, the powerful Dragon of Selidor, seeks help from Ged and Arren to rid the world of this insanity.
"The Farthest Shore," the final novel in the initial trilogy, is my favorite. Ged's and Arren's commitment to prevent their world from falling apart, is inspiring and often extremely moving. There is a theme of human development here, a sense of passing on the torch which reminds me of T. H. White's "Once and Future King," with Ged as Merlin, the mentor and tutor, guiding the young king toward his future. Arren is ascending to his power, moving towards his prime, while Ged makes the transition to old age, leaving behind his legacy. Both books focus on peace, unity and harmony.
Ms Le Guin examines the delicate balance between life and death. She focuses on the importance of death and how its inevitability makes life more meaningful. As with the first two books in the trilogy, her approach is influenced by eastern philosophy. The eternal cycle of life, death, the return of the body to the earth, and one's energy to the universe, is part of the natural world which maintains the equilibrium of our planet.
As always, the author's prose is exquisite.
JANA
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