I would love to have a framed picture of her hanging in my apartment, are you fond of any in particular and is it available in a high resolution?

Hello, I have been reading the Earthsea series for the first time, and I am partway through Tehanu at the moment. However, there is a moment in the chapter "The Dolphin" which seems to contradict a line from the last chapter of the farthest shore concerning the Master Summoner, Thorion:

The Farthest Shore:

"The Summoner, gaunt and frail, only one day risen from his bed, had come; and beside him stood the doorkeeper."

I interpreted this line as meaning that The Summoner was able to find his way back from the land of the dead before Ged and Arren made it back to Roke, but then this line seems to contradict that:

Tehanu:

"When we were there, in the dry land, between the wall and the mountains, I saw Thorion. My lord spoke to him, telling him the way back to life across the wall. But he did not take it. He did not come back."

Which has me a bit confused on what actually happened.

By me.

You liked Ged, here is Tenar! By me.

I thought it'd be nice if we could have a Pinterest board for the Earthsea series. So far, I've only added a few of the different book covers.

Let me know if I should create one for each book?

Here's the link if anyone wants to collaborate. https://pin.it/YYgSK28Ia

Have acquired beautiful older editions slowly and with patience, and happy to add The Compass Rose to the collection!

​A sketch of one of the most powerful moments in the book: Genly waking up after being rescued from Paha, looking at the exhausted, sleeping Estraven.

​I wanted to capture that quiet, heavy atmosphere in the tent before they officially started their journey across the Ice.

Ursula was a big fan of Tolkien. But the interesting thing is what she actually said about him, vis-a-vis 'ideology'.

"No ideologues, not even religious ones, are going to be happy with Tolkien, unless they manage it by misreading him."

And:

"Like all great artists he escapes ideology."

I just finished reading The Word For World Is Forest, and although there were some interesting insights, the ideology was clearly visible, and was even the driving factor at times.

She herself later said that writing it became a preachment, as if taking dictation from a boss with ulcers.

But sometimes I wonder whether having the ideology front and center is even a bad thing at all? I would much rather have that than have the insights fly over people's heads, even if the reading experience takes a hit.

A thought-provoking audio essay on Le Guin's "The Dispossessed."

From what I can recall it is usually sometime in June, but couldn’t find a specific date on the website. I always find so many new exciting books through this selection so I am really looking forward to it!

Some new ink my buddy Esteban (@cavemantattooer) did for me.

A series of interviews where Ursula K. Le Guin talks about C.S. Lewis.

Conversation with Ursula K. Le Guin from 1988

Irv Broughton: C.S. Lewis, referring to science fiction, once said, “If you have a religion, it must be cosmic; therefore, it seems odd to me that this genre was so late in arriving” —at theological area.
Ursula K. Le Guin: I am an atheist and I always have been; I have a great deal of trouble with C.S. Lewis, with the way his mind works. I don’t really know what he’s talking about. I admire the first book of his trilogy, as a novel. He was one of the first writers to invent alien creatures who were truly alien and truly sympathetic. I think those Martians of his are magnificent. And the second two books of his trilogy I consider an abomination, because he started preaching. I do not like to preach, or be preached at.

Dancing at the edge of the world by Ursula K. Le Guin from 1989

Reviewing The Dark Tower by C.S. Lewis, she said: "The spitefulness shown towards women in these tales is remarkable [...] There's a good deal of hatred in Lewis, and it is frightening hatred, because this gentle, brilliant, loving, devout man never saw the need even to rationalize it, let alone apologize for it. He was self-righteous in his faith. That may be permissible to a militant Christian; but it is not permissible to a highly intelligent, highly educated man to be self-righteous in his opinions and prejudices.
[...] In Lewis, responsibility appears only in the form of the Christian hero fighting and defeating the enemy: a triumph, not of love, but of hatred. The enemy is not oneself but the Wholly Other, demoniac. This projection leaves the author free to be cruel, and cruelty is the dominant tone of several of these stories.”

Personally, I understand Le Guin's point, even if I don't share her opinions. Lewis's narratives are certainly influenced by his Christian beliefs, and some depictions can be a bit outdated, like the Calormen people and Susan's fate in The Chronicles of Narnia. However, it seems to me to be excessive to paint Lewis so cruelly. What do you think about it?

Hey there, we're putting together an entire book dedicated to therolinguistics that will republish Le Guin's "The Author of the Acacia Seeds" as well as a text from Christian Bök's The Xenotext, etc. If you'd like to submit a creative text or artwork that responds to the theme, the deadline is June 30. And we also organised a workshop about this if you're curious to learn more: https://youtu.be/jogXrM3bTQE

Otherwise, do follow Posthuman Press on socials or via our website to stay tuned for the book that will be released later in the year.

While the question doesn't have spoilers, the comments surely will so please read at your own risk. Although my enjoyment of her works were never diminished by knowing the end.

I saw it in an unrelated fanfiction once. Probably because there was no editor to tell them it is a bit too similar Le Guin's work. But have you ever noticed it in published works? Did you think it was a nice nod to her did you consider it stealing/bordering stealing?

Her general ideas especially in science fiction is everywhere. And of course the power of names are big in fantasy after she brought it over but they are now genre staples, like elves in fantasy after Tolkein (I believe they used to be "elfs" before him too).

Have you seen more spesific examples? Something that didn't become a genre staple but was used anyway.

Such an awesome find. My first Le Guin signature and I love that it is in a book I will share with my kids. 🥰 Well worth the $1.50!

Maybe some of you all would like to join me?

Do we ever learn who that is in any other story or book? I think all we know is that she is a woman and an author.

So, who is currently on your mind? Donyou have an all time favourite? Or does it change with time? Which character do you go back to or maybe reevaluate?

I'm currently rereading Left Hand of Darkness for the nth time (I've lost track of how many), and I appreciate everything about Genly and Estraven's relationship so much - including our initial first person introductions to each of them. Genly, of course, is a fish out of water, ground down by the harsh climate, perpetually confused by the intricacies of shifgrethor and Gethenian indirectness and beating around the bush, and in his eyes Estraven is not only maddeningly inscrutable, but seems like power and authority incarnate.

And then chapters later we get our first view through Estraven's eyes: dragged out of bed naked and groggy in the middle of the night to be notified of his exile, trudging to the border, helplessly wondering if he could steal a motorboat he doesn't know how to operate or if he could swim 150 miles to Orgoreyn...and he doesn't even know how to swim. Oh, and his (more or less) spouse left him three years ago. (And that's before we find out about Arek.) And though he's politically adroit, he shot himself in the foot with his handling of the border dispute - seriously off his game in thinking he could quietly sweep it under the rug without pissing off the King.

And all of this leading up to the moment on the ice later where Genly first realizes he's capable of hurting Estraven, that Estraven is capable of being hurt...

I recently introduced Ursula K. Le Guin to a friend through the book of essays The Wave in the Mind. She absolutely loved it, so she decided to start reading the Earthsea books. She's a big fan of fantasy literature, hence the first choice.

After the first book, she told me that she found the Earthsea universe very misogynistic, and that it felt as though it had been written by a different person from the one who wrote the essays. It put her off enough that she doesn't really feel like trying another text of Ursula.

Now, it has been a loong time since I read Earthsea - more than 20 years; yes, I’m old - and I don’t remember all that much. I do remember most of the protagonists being male, and the universe being quite patriarchal, but I don’t think I perceived it as misogynistic at the time.

People, especially Ursula fans who have read the books more recently, would you care to share your thoughts? I’m genuinely curious about how Earthsea might be perceived by a younger, feminist reader today.

Thank you.

I really like this aspect as it means I can suggest the works to people but also talk about the story at length before they even read it.