Welcome to Earthsea, where words have power and magic lives. A Wizard of Earthsea: A young boy is born with a special affinity for magic and dangerous ambition. Ged could change the balance of magic forever when his arrogance awakens a darkness from beyond.
The Tombs of Atun: Tenar serves the nameless ones, ancient gods that require sacrifices of the living. When she captures a powerful wizards with stories of the world outside will she be a faithful servant or risk everything to taste freedom?
The Farthest Shore: Magic is dying in Earthsea and there is only one wizard that can restore the balance, but it will be at a great price.
This is among the best fantasy writing I have ever read and I am literally kicking myself (ow!) for not reading it waaaaaaay (ow!) sooner! Le Guin has a deceptively simple prose style. I say deceptive, because she squeezes so much out of her short almost stark sentences. It reads like an oral history passed down through generations and then finally put to paper. This makes it feel like a document discovered about an ancient world and feel timeless. Also, the simple style allows for her to leave a lot between the lines. Words and knowledge are the keys to magic in Earthsea and also in art. Le Guin uses these masterfully to weave her own spells. So these books work as rousing adventures filled with larger than life characters at the same time as being examinations of much deeper themes. She looks at the nature of power, faith, honor, duty, and most of all the idea of balance. She does this without ever having to use long diatribes or give explicit answers. You'll just read wonderful adventures and find yourself asking the questions almost unconsciously. This is a series that should be read and reread over a lifetime, so like the wizard Ged you change along with the story and find new wonders as you grow. If and when you love these tales, continue with Tehanu also Tales from Earthsea also found in YP FIC LEGUIN.
You can check our catalog for The Earthsea Trilogy here.
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