Reviews

A Wizard of Earthsea is unlike other Earthsea books in that it's wildly expansive, moving at a breakneck pace and constantly inventing newer, more exotic, and more thematically dense problems for its flawed heroic protagonist, Ged, to resolve. Ursula K. Leguin uses Ged to both encompass and subvert the monomythical hero, transforming conflicts that would typically resolve themselves through violence into opportunities for Ged to transcend the dominance/dominated binary. This is not to say that violence does not occur in this book or that the book frames violence as entirely unnecessary, but instead that it is utterly unconcerned with violence as a kind of end point to a conflict, imagining a more lasting or thorough solution to social or interpersonal problems than the end result of whoever's the strongest. Ged's method of success always involves achieving greater knowledge of the problem, and sometimes involves altering circumstances such that domination through violence is made impossible. Even regardless of the laudable philosophical outlook A Wizard of Earthsea exemplifies, especially as a YA novel, this leads to a more creative and interesting narrative in general, because it ensures two things: all major problems have to be resolved creatively and also have to synchronize with the series' core themes, both of which are qualities which make for a good book.

lizlav1230's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

fainne's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

majaadriana's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

kylegach's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

ceciliabereadin's review against another edition

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I love the concepts and Ursula K Le Guin as a whole but the writing style in this book is not for me. I can objectively see that it is well done. I’m finding it hard to create a mental picture of anything I am reading, which is the main thing that makes reading fun for me.

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