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booksbooksbooks42's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
billd's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This year I've been focusing on the writing of Ursula K. Le Guin. I've decided that one of my bucket list items will be to try and read as much of her writing as possible. My online book club has various reading challenges and one I've selected is to read 16 of her books. The majority will be in the Hainish Cycle and the Earthsea stories, but I've also picked some of her other books / series. The Complete Orsinia: Malafrena / Stories and Songs is the complete stories of Le Guin's Orsinia collection, as collated by the US Library of Congress. OK, enough of my plans for 2024. 😊
When Le Guin was just beginning to consider a career as an author, the authors that interested her the most were European and Russian authors. But how for a west coast girl to write about Europe? That was her dilemma and it took her a number of years to get into her work. In the meantime, she had Sci Fi short stories and some of her first novels published. But Orsinia was the story she wanted to write. So Le Guin, rather than try to set a story in an existing European country, decided to create her own country and that country became Orsinia, a nation of 10 regions under the influence of the Austro - Hungarian empire. The compilation by the Library of Congress consists of the novel, Malafrena, a chapter of songs and finally a collection of short stories; Orsinian Tales and Other stories. Finally there is an interesting chronology of Le Guin's life; where she lived, when the various novels and other stories were written and published.
So, onto the stories. Malafrena is a town in the southeast of Orsinia. The story follows various people in the Sorde family. Their estate is in Malafrena. The son, Itale, is away at seminary school and rather than move back to Malafrena to help take over his father's estate, decides to move to the capital Krasnoy, where he wants to join the revolution. This causes his father to disown him. The story moves from the estate and the family there and back to Krasnoy where Itale and his college friends try to run a newspaper under the constant overlook of the censors. The story moves around Orsinia as Itale tries to find other people to help with their revolution. He ends up in a prison for a few years in an eastern district, Polana. This allows other characters, sister Laura, her friend Piera and others to develop.
I'm making it sound like a simple story but there are many levels to it. You've got the development of the main characters and their ideas on freedom and thought. You've got various love stories - will they or won't they? And you've got the history of Orsinia going on in the background, placing it within the context of what is happening around it, in Austria, France (the French Revolution). As I got into it, the story became richer and more interesting. It's a different style of writing than I was used to from Le Guin.... different but similar, I guess would be more accurate. Historical fiction vice Sci Fi / Fantasy, maybe.
Then you have the various short stories, all set in Orsinia and many featuring ancestors or children and grandchildren of the characters in Malafrena. They are varied and different; some I liked more than others but all were interesting and enjoyable. Did I have any favorites? Brothers and Sisters, which moved from one family to another and the relationships between the various families was excellent (and in Notes on the Texts portion there is a fascinating portion from one of Le Guin's brothers who talks about the ideas in the story). Imaginary Countries deals with a family closing down their summer home to move back to the city. The interactions between the children and their parents and the feelings about their country home is wonderful. It's a lovely story. Two Delays on the Northern Line was also excellent; a man dealing with the death of his mother and wife and how the end of his train trip seems to solve his emotional loss.
Le Guin is one of those unique writers. There is a sparseness to her writing but at the same time her stories are rich in detail. I always have a reaction to her stories, whether fiction, poetry, Sci-Fi or fantasy. She is equally comfortable writing novels or short stories. Onward to my next story,City of Illusions, back to Sci Fi with #3 in her Hainish Cycle. (4.0 stars)
When Le Guin was just beginning to consider a career as an author, the authors that interested her the most were European and Russian authors. But how for a west coast girl to write about Europe? That was her dilemma and it took her a number of years to get into her work. In the meantime, she had Sci Fi short stories and some of her first novels published. But Orsinia was the story she wanted to write. So Le Guin, rather than try to set a story in an existing European country, decided to create her own country and that country became Orsinia, a nation of 10 regions under the influence of the Austro - Hungarian empire. The compilation by the Library of Congress consists of the novel, Malafrena, a chapter of songs and finally a collection of short stories; Orsinian Tales and Other stories. Finally there is an interesting chronology of Le Guin's life; where she lived, when the various novels and other stories were written and published.
So, onto the stories. Malafrena is a town in the southeast of Orsinia. The story follows various people in the Sorde family. Their estate is in Malafrena. The son, Itale, is away at seminary school and rather than move back to Malafrena to help take over his father's estate, decides to move to the capital Krasnoy, where he wants to join the revolution. This causes his father to disown him. The story moves from the estate and the family there and back to Krasnoy where Itale and his college friends try to run a newspaper under the constant overlook of the censors. The story moves around Orsinia as Itale tries to find other people to help with their revolution. He ends up in a prison for a few years in an eastern district, Polana. This allows other characters, sister Laura, her friend Piera and others to develop.
I'm making it sound like a simple story but there are many levels to it. You've got the development of the main characters and their ideas on freedom and thought. You've got various love stories - will they or won't they? And you've got the history of Orsinia going on in the background, placing it within the context of what is happening around it, in Austria, France (the French Revolution). As I got into it, the story became richer and more interesting. It's a different style of writing than I was used to from Le Guin.... different but similar, I guess would be more accurate. Historical fiction vice Sci Fi / Fantasy, maybe.
Then you have the various short stories, all set in Orsinia and many featuring ancestors or children and grandchildren of the characters in Malafrena. They are varied and different; some I liked more than others but all were interesting and enjoyable. Did I have any favorites? Brothers and Sisters, which moved from one family to another and the relationships between the various families was excellent (and in Notes on the Texts portion there is a fascinating portion from one of Le Guin's brothers who talks about the ideas in the story). Imaginary Countries deals with a family closing down their summer home to move back to the city. The interactions between the children and their parents and the feelings about their country home is wonderful. It's a lovely story. Two Delays on the Northern Line was also excellent; a man dealing with the death of his mother and wife and how the end of his train trip seems to solve his emotional loss.
Le Guin is one of those unique writers. There is a sparseness to her writing but at the same time her stories are rich in detail. I always have a reaction to her stories, whether fiction, poetry, Sci-Fi or fantasy. She is equally comfortable writing novels or short stories. Onward to my next story,City of Illusions, back to Sci Fi with #3 in her Hainish Cycle. (4.0 stars)
tomatoes127's review against another edition
3.0
Ursula Le Guin is primarily known as a writer of Sci fi and fantasy and this collection of stories (1 novel and 13 short stories) rides a delicate line between speculative and historical fiction. Setting the collection in a fictional central European country, primarily throughout the upheavals of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, gives the author the space to explore recurring themes (revolution, frustrated idealism and the lives of ordinary people caught up in history to name a few) within a more real-world setting.
Most of the stories are amongst her earliest works, with the exception of the story "Unlocking the Air", a kind of fond farewell to the setting and among the collections strongest entries. This does mean that the writing isn't as refined as her more popular work. Some of the short stories are spectacular, "The Lady of Moge", "The Fountains" and, "Imaginary Countries" being my personal favourites. However, some of the other stories are less engaging and bring down my overall opinion of the collection. For example, "Conversations at Night" and "The Road East" felt long winded and a tad meandering. Maybe it's just a personal distaste for the kind of sprawling, family saga type stories, that feel a bit detached and impersonal to me with no central emotional focus to latch on to.
The Novel, "Malafrena", sits somewhere in the middle in terms of quality. There are certainly moments of beautiful description and characterisation. Several moments such as the climactic scenes of the main character's arc are brutally well-written. However, the overall story can feel a bit disjointed and rather slow paced. It's meant to be realistic in tone so it makes sense that the characters' lives don't follow simple, heroic arcs and take a while to develop, but it does make it hard to always see "where all this is going".
Overall, this is definitely worth reading for fans of Ursula le Guin, though I wouldn't recommend it as a first or second entry to her work. Fans of historical fiction who want to dip their toes into fantasy (and vice versa) will get a lot out of this. As I said, many of the short stories are fantastic so any fan of good writing will enjoy them.
Most of the stories are amongst her earliest works, with the exception of the story "Unlocking the Air", a kind of fond farewell to the setting and among the collections strongest entries. This does mean that the writing isn't as refined as her more popular work. Some of the short stories are spectacular, "The Lady of Moge", "The Fountains" and, "Imaginary Countries" being my personal favourites. However, some of the other stories are less engaging and bring down my overall opinion of the collection. For example, "Conversations at Night" and "The Road East" felt long winded and a tad meandering. Maybe it's just a personal distaste for the kind of sprawling, family saga type stories, that feel a bit detached and impersonal to me with no central emotional focus to latch on to.
The Novel, "Malafrena", sits somewhere in the middle in terms of quality. There are certainly moments of beautiful description and characterisation. Several moments such as the climactic scenes of the main character's arc are brutally well-written. However, the overall story can feel a bit disjointed and rather slow paced. It's meant to be realistic in tone so it makes sense that the characters' lives don't follow simple, heroic arcs and take a while to develop, but it does make it hard to always see "where all this is going".
Overall, this is definitely worth reading for fans of Ursula le Guin, though I wouldn't recommend it as a first or second entry to her work. Fans of historical fiction who want to dip their toes into fantasy (and vice versa) will get a lot out of this. As I said, many of the short stories are fantastic so any fan of good writing will enjoy them.
gerbilreads's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderful stories set in a fascinating time of history. Pure, unadulterated humanity at its most vulnerable and precious, it was a joy to read and share in their lives.
wigglybones's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
sleepmotif's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thepurplebookwyrm's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Rounding it up because... Well, it's LeGuin. 😆 Okay no, in all honesty, my rounding up the star rating is me genuinely acknowledging the quality of what she accomplished with this collection of stories, even though it wasn't a personal favourite.
It wasn't a personal favourite largely because this is essentially literary fiction, with a sprinkling of speculative and historical world-building, what with these stories all taking place in the fictional East-European country of Orsinia. Now I can and do enjoy literary fiction from time to time, absolutely. Just... Not quite this kind. Or at least, not that much.
The book essentially contains a full-length novel - Malafrena or The Necessary Passion - and short stories that take place in different periods of Orsinia's History. The former, I believe - and from reading LeGuin's own introduction - is meant to emulate/pay homage to classical European literature - of the 19th century specifically, given the vibes I got out of it? And in that respect I sincerely think she succeeded - which is precisely why I wasn't ultimately that into it. 😅 I dare say some of the short stories worked better for me overall. My favourites were:
- The Barrow
- Ile Forest
- Conversations at Night
- The House
- Imaginary Countries
- Unlocking the Air
That being said, and to be perfectly clear, I didn't quite dislike Malafrena either. It was above average, right. But it didn't grab me. Additionally, depression fog and inattention made reading this all the harder, unfortunately. 😅 Still, I always get a sense of comfort from LeGuin's style and stories, and that's largely what kept me going. So on a purely personal level, this was about a soft 7/10 for me, but at a certain remove I think it deserves more of a soft 8/10. So I settled on a 7.5/10 to split the difference. 😌
PS: also giving myself a pat on the back for the fact I have finally read all of LeGuin's published fiction (I think). 💪
PPS: as to theming... Well, it's classic LeGuin really, but with less regard towards anthropology stricto sensu, or things like gender, or sex- and race-based oppression. Theming around politics, freedom, human agency, etc... Is at the fore-front of these stories.
It wasn't a personal favourite largely because this is essentially literary fiction, with a sprinkling of speculative and historical world-building, what with these stories all taking place in the fictional East-European country of Orsinia. Now I can and do enjoy literary fiction from time to time, absolutely. Just... Not quite this kind. Or at least, not that much.
The book essentially contains a full-length novel - Malafrena or The Necessary Passion - and short stories that take place in different periods of Orsinia's History. The former, I believe - and from reading LeGuin's own introduction - is meant to emulate/pay homage to classical European literature - of the 19th century specifically, given the vibes I got out of it? And in that respect I sincerely think she succeeded - which is precisely why I wasn't ultimately that into it. 😅 I dare say some of the short stories worked better for me overall. My favourites were:
- The Barrow
- Ile Forest
- Conversations at Night
- The House
- Imaginary Countries
- Unlocking the Air
That being said, and to be perfectly clear, I didn't quite dislike Malafrena either. It was above average, right. But it didn't grab me. Additionally, depression fog and inattention made reading this all the harder, unfortunately. 😅 Still, I always get a sense of comfort from LeGuin's style and stories, and that's largely what kept me going. So on a purely personal level, this was about a soft 7/10 for me, but at a certain remove I think it deserves more of a soft 8/10. So I settled on a 7.5/10 to split the difference. 😌
PS: also giving myself a pat on the back for the fact I have finally read all of LeGuin's published fiction (I think). 💪
PPS: as to theming... Well, it's classic LeGuin really, but with less regard towards anthropology stricto sensu, or things like gender, or sex- and race-based oppression. Theming around politics, freedom, human agency, etc... Is at the fore-front of these stories.
lindcherry's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.0
beardybot's review against another edition
3.0
I struggled with Malafrena. It lacked that individual substance that makes a story its own. At times it read so close to Middlemarch I had to check which book I was reading. At others, it was just words. Many beautiful, but without the spirit I'd expect from Le Guin.
Orsinia is a fictional Central European country, and Malafrena covers the early 1800s and occupation by the Austrian empire. The trials of landed country families provide a backdrop to fomenting rebellion in the city. There's not much more to say, except that it took a long old time to get through.
After Malafrena, the Orsinian Tales were a breath of fresh air. Character, time, and place were impeccable, throughout the centuries. These small stories were solid, and grounded, and so much bigger than they were. The loss that pervades through many of them feels almost personal. Brilliant, and immensely satisfying.
Orsinia is a fictional Central European country, and Malafrena covers the early 1800s and occupation by the Austrian empire. The trials of landed country families provide a backdrop to fomenting rebellion in the city. There's not much more to say, except that it took a long old time to get through.
After Malafrena, the Orsinian Tales were a breath of fresh air. Character, time, and place were impeccable, throughout the centuries. These small stories were solid, and grounded, and so much bigger than they were. The loss that pervades through many of them feels almost personal. Brilliant, and immensely satisfying.
loonyboi's review against another edition
3.0
I have already reviewed [b:Malafrena|118017|Malafrena|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1202353428s/118017.jpg|1642576] separately, so this review applies to the other contents of this volume. I didn't love Malafrena, but I admired the crap out of it. That basically applies to the rest of the book. You get songs, stories and what amounts to a coda to the country of Orsinia. It's not my favorite Le Guin work, but I'm very glad I read it.