Paperback, 192 pages
English language
Published May 19, 2008 by Scribner.
“The Lathe of Heaven” ; 1971 ( Ursula Le Guin received the 1973 Locus Award for this story) George Orr has a gift – he is an effective dreamer: his dreams become reality when he wakes up. He is aware of his past and present, two or more sets of memories, although the people around him are only aware of the current reality. This science fiction story is set in Portland, Oregon, in/around the late 1990s - early 2000s. Orr begins to take drugs to suppress dreams but eventually he is sent to a psychotherapist, Dr. William Haber, who has developed an electronic machine, the Augmentor, which records the brain patterns of a person as they dream. When Haber realizes that he can use Orr's unique ability to change their world, the consequences are both beneficial and frightening, both locally and globally. Orr seeks out the help of a civil …
“The Lathe of Heaven” ; 1971 ( Ursula Le Guin received the 1973 Locus Award for this story) George Orr has a gift – he is an effective dreamer: his dreams become reality when he wakes up. He is aware of his past and present, two or more sets of memories, although the people around him are only aware of the current reality. This science fiction story is set in Portland, Oregon, in/around the late 1990s - early 2000s. Orr begins to take drugs to suppress dreams but eventually he is sent to a psychotherapist, Dr. William Haber, who has developed an electronic machine, the Augmentor, which records the brain patterns of a person as they dream. When Haber realizes that he can use Orr's unique ability to change their world, the consequences are both beneficial and frightening, both locally and globally. Orr seeks out the help of a civil rights lawyer, Heather Lelache, who attends a treatment session, and sees Portland change before her very eyes as Orr awakens. In a strange turn of events, Heather helps Orr by putting him in a dream state where Orr can undo some of Haber's actions. The result – Aliens on the Moon land on Earth ! A special affinity exists between George Orr and the Aliens, who seem to understand his unique gift. Ultimately Haber decides to impose Orr's brain patterns on his own, so that he can bring about world-wide changes. Orr and Heather feel the chaos and a sense of a void as Haber dreams. Orr rushes back to Haber's office and turns off the Augmentor. The world returns to April 1998.
A few aspects of the story will strike 21st century readers as quaint, naive, or dated. For example the reliance on hypnosis as a foolproof method of making people dream whatever you want them to dream. However, this is a minor quibble, and the overall story arc is truly haunting, thought-provoking, and unsettling. It's sweet and beautiful in places, too. No wonder it's a classic.
This story is personal and universal, small and gigantic, grounded and fantastical, dystopian and optimistic. It directly combines two very human mysteries: how much power should one person wield, and in a word that gave us something we wanted, how much would have to change for that to happen? Highly recommended.
A critique of utilitarianism, an exploration of a different type of hero, an alt universe 1984 with a more hopeful ending. I had difficulty getting into it but by the midpoint I was hooked.
Genre: Science Fiction Quality: Professional bakery Note: Written in 1970's Issues: A bit of a slog at the start, a little dated
The idea of this book is intriguing, though it seemed improbable that it would be interesting over the full 150 pages. It speaks for Le Guin's writing and story construction that it actually works quite well. The only disappointment is that one of the central plot points, namely the aliens, is never fully resolved, though many possible explanations are hinted at.
Content warning Major ending questions, minor thematic spoilers
This was a rather neat read about the potential of dreams. What if your dreams had the power to change reality? It sounds good in theory, but in practice it can easily lead to chaos—something the main character, George Orr, uniquely understands. Forced to attend therapy for what people assume to be some sort of mental affliction convincing Orr that his dreams become real, he is thrown in with Dr. Haber, a psychiatrist assigned to Orr to try and help him overcome his problems. In so doing, however, Haber figures out that Orr isn’t crazy, and starts manipulating him and his dreams for his own purposes.
For a short book, this one sure covers a lot of ground. Lots of philosophical thoughts about the rights of man to interfere in destiny, the corrupting influence of power, and general thoughts on the importance of human connection in one’s life are all present in this book. Whether or not you subscribe to the idea of some sort of cosmic balance, it’s telling that (thematic spoilers here) every time Haber tries to make Orr dream something good for humanity, Orr dreams up a monkey’s paw version of the wish.
It's an older book so some parts definitely feel their age, but overall I really enjoyed thinking about the implications of having a power like Orr’s. I was left with some nagging questions in the end (major ending spoilers here) (did Orr create the Aliens or just ship them in from another reality? How did Haber, and to a lesser extent Heather, resist Orr’s reality changes so completely?), but I think it’s left open on purpose to allow you the space to come to your own conclusions.
This was a fun read, and I’ll likely seek out more from this author in the future.
Overall, this was an interesting short novel. While deceptively simple, the premise makes you think about a lot its concepts, including dreams, reality, and the power to change it. The characters lead the conflict- there is an abusive relationship at its core as one takes advantage of the other. That was disturbing but the main character is a little too passive in working to get out of it.
For a full review, check out my blog: strakul.blogspot.com/2023/08/book-review-lathe-of-heaven-by-ursula.html
Le Guin has become on of my favorite writers and this book validates her place again.
I saw the PBS miniseries decades ago and was curious to finally read this. It's well-written but relies heavily on the premise, to the detriment of the plot. Overall, the story is an interesting metaphor.
this one left me feeling pleasantly dazzled, thinking - she's just so smart. the ecological awareness, talking about the greenhouse effect and pollution and climate change and sea level rise and the private car economy - all in 1971. politically astute observations and commentary. emotional intelligence, empathy. the speculative premise as a way to examine human behavior and the nature of reality. she does it all.
A unique but also totally Le Guin experience. Very thoughtful, philosophical, and quiet.
The character of George was such an interesting choice. The way he thinks of himself and the way others talk about him was a study in what our culture values in people and men in particular. His calm strength puzzles everyone.
I also loved the exploration of what can we or should we do to make the world a better place. For me, Le Guin took this question even further than most, questioning the idea of purpose at all never mind what our purpose might be. Captured best in this conversation between Haber and George:
“But in fact, isn’t that man’s very purpose on earth—to do things, change things, run things, make a better world?”
“No!”
“What is his purpose, then?”
“I don’t know. Things don’t have purposes, as if the universe were a machine, where every …
A unique but also totally Le Guin experience. Very thoughtful, philosophical, and quiet.
The character of George was such an interesting choice. The way he thinks of himself and the way others talk about him was a study in what our culture values in people and men in particular. His calm strength puzzles everyone.
I also loved the exploration of what can we or should we do to make the world a better place. For me, Le Guin took this question even further than most, questioning the idea of purpose at all never mind what our purpose might be. Captured best in this conversation between Haber and George:
“But in fact, isn’t that man’s very purpose on earth—to do things, change things, run things, make a better world?”
“No!”
“What is his purpose, then?”
“I don’t know. Things don’t have purposes, as if the universe were a machine, where every part has a useful function. What’s the function of a galaxy? I don’t know if our life has a purpose and I don’t see that it matters. What does matter is that we’re a part. Like a thread in a cloth or a grass-blade in a field. It is and we are. What we do is like wind blowing on the grass.”
The story got a bit goofy at times, like with the aliens who feel especially of the era. Le Guin is also both forward thinking and dated, as when she notes the housewives coming to the store for home goods… But you can always count on her for something thought provoking.
Other favorite quotes:
… his own mind was so resistant to such divisions that he was slow to recognize them in others. But he had learned that they existed. He had grown up in a country run by politicians who sent the pilots to man the bombers to kill the babies to make the world safe for children to grow up in.
“Then this world will be like heaven, and men will be like gods!”
“We are, we are already,” Orr said, but the other paid no heed.
He stood and endured reality.
Mom said it was my turn on the lathe of heaven!
It's funny how of all the books I've read by Le Guin, the one that's set on a baseline plausible Earth-in-my-lifetime would turn out to be the weirdest. Also funny how in what starts as a pretty reasonable extrapolation from 1971 to ~2000 has one repeated glaring error: multiple references to the perfect cone of Mount St. Helen's.
Against that background, we get a story of a man running away from his dreams because they give him a power he doesn't understand and can't control. And another man who wants to channel that power, setting up a modern Daoist fable about the hubris of trying to control too much.
Not really as good as the other titles I've read by this author for a few reasons. It could maybe have used another 50 pages to flesh some things out. Nevertheless this book has a lot of fun details that makes it a satisfying read.
it's definitely soft SF that's From Its Time. kind of reminiscent of Phillip K. Dick's stuff, except the main character was actually likeable. Love how the continuum-shifts were treated narratively.
De novo a Ursula Le Guin faz uma ficção cientifica muito maneira, divertida e ilustradora de ideias filosóficas. O tipo de livro que dá vontade que todos os livros de filosofia fossem ficções bem escritas.
Esse livro é meio que um Inception ao contrário, o personagem principal tem sonhos que afetam a realidade de volta, e um médico que trata ele quer usar esses poder para resolver os problemas do mundo. É muito legal, por que mostra como certos problemas fazem parte do que nos faz humanos, e que talvez certas utopias (sonhos) não necessariamente fossem boas soluções.
Mas o mais legal é a forma como a realidade e os sonhos do personagem principal se misturam, e como com mudanças graduais, o mundo cada vez mais absurdo do livro é facilmente aceitável.
Muito legal.
