A.G. Robertson reviewed The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. Le Guin (The Earthsea Cycle, #3)
What is death without life.
5 stars
Fantastic exploration of death and life.
Paperback, 272 pages
English language
Published Sept. 1, 2001 by Aladdin.
The Farthest Shore (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 3)
4 stars
(37 reviews)
not my fav book by my fav author
3 stars
this and the first Earthsea book are really just not my cup of tea
prince lucija is reading reviewed The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. Le Guin (The Earthsea Cycle, #3)
about death
5 stars
This book has a strong message about the necessity of death, imagining what happens when immortality is possible.
Derek Caelin reviewed The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. Le Guin (The Earthsea Cycle, #3)
Wonderful
4 stars
I listened to the audiobook version of this story, which was narrated by Rob Ingles. Many years ago he performed the Lord of the Rings; it was a wonderful surprise to hear that old favorite voice retelling this story. Perhaps because of this narration I felt there were echoes of Tolkien's work. An old wizard, a rising king, a long journey.
I loved the characters, particularly Ged. The idea of a great person who is also extremely humble, a sorcerer who loves to sail — I appreciate the juxtaposition.
I could also see a bit of Le Guin's interest in the Tao Te Ching seeping into the story. When Ged and the other characters discussed leadership, they depicted Lao Tzu's ideal of a sovreign who did very little and allowed people to govern themselves. Strange to have a story of the ascendency of a King to play upon anarchistic themes.
When one door is closed many more are open
4 stars
Content warning mild spoilers inside
A lovely third instalment of the Earthsea series, and a good handoff from it being all Ged's story to broadening out. A few off notes though:
- I found the emphasis on restoring the King to bring back order off-putting and at odds with the gentle daoism infusing everything else about these books.
- Arren seems to go awfully quickly from doubting naif to ready to be crowned. I liked how much Ged's ascendancy was about time, effort and learning from his own mistakes, and Arren's feels rushed by comparison.
- This may be the most extreme of the Earthsea books so far for just lacking female characters.
I gather that the later books were in part a deliberate effort by an older Le Guin to fix some of the deficiencies of the first 3, especially around gender (even in Tombs of Atuan, I found Tenar more a captive who has things happen to her than a full actor). As much as I did enjoy this one, it's made me look forward to those even more.
Review of 'The Farthest Shore (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 3)' on Goodreads
5 stars
Sometimes a person dies, and yet they still live. While at some level this novel is another wonderful yarn about wondering the Earthsea and discovering its wonders, on another, it explores what it means to let the person everyone knows us as die, to allow another one to be born. The cyclical ebb and flow of selfhood is continuous, and we see one cycle of it here, not writ large, but writ small, in the lives of two people. The sea and the self, so deeply intertwined for the people of Earthsea, has lessons for the reader as well.
This quote is a stunner, and one of my favorites from any of LeGuin's books.
"You will die. You will not live forever. Nor will any man nor any thing. Nothing is immortal. But only to us is it given to know that we must die. And that is a great …
Sometimes a person dies, and yet they still live. While at some level this novel is another wonderful yarn about wondering the Earthsea and discovering its wonders, on another, it explores what it means to let the person everyone knows us as die, to allow another one to be born. The cyclical ebb and flow of selfhood is continuous, and we see one cycle of it here, not writ large, but writ small, in the lives of two people. The sea and the self, so deeply intertwined for the people of Earthsea, has lessons for the reader as well.
This quote is a stunner, and one of my favorites from any of LeGuin's books.
"You will die. You will not live forever. Nor will any man nor any thing. Nothing is immortal. But only to us is it given to know that we must die. And that is a great gift: the gift of selfhood. For we have only what we know we must lose, what we are willing to lose... That selfhood which is our torment, and our treasure, and our humanity, does not endure. It changes; it is gone, a wave on the sea. Would you have the sea grow still and the tides cease, to save one wave, to save yourself?"
Victor Hugo Kebbe reviewed The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. Le Guin (The Earthsea Cycle, #3)
Review of 'The Farthest Shore' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Another excellent book by [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg]. Here she brings a more adult Ged/Sparrowhawk to the narrative, a fantastic unfolding of what she accomplished in the previous two books. You can notice the growth of the character Ged, now in his winter and on the edge of the land without sun.
In a similar manner to the second book, [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146], Ged gets to the aid of another character, the immature and passionate Arren/Lebannen, teaching him important lessons about life and death.
The end of the book is impressive, showing how [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg] knows how to keep the pace, style and the raise an amazing climax such as seen in the previous books, [b:A Wizard of Earthsea|13642|A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353424536s/13642.jpg|113603] and [b:The Tombs of …
Another excellent book by [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg]. Here she brings a more adult Ged/Sparrowhawk to the narrative, a fantastic unfolding of what she accomplished in the previous two books. You can notice the growth of the character Ged, now in his winter and on the edge of the land without sun.
In a similar manner to the second book, [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146], Ged gets to the aid of another character, the immature and passionate Arren/Lebannen, teaching him important lessons about life and death.
The end of the book is impressive, showing how [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg] knows how to keep the pace, style and the raise an amazing climax such as seen in the previous books, [b:A Wizard of Earthsea|13642|A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353424536s/13642.jpg|113603] and [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146]. A classic, and a must read for all fantasy fans.
Victor Hugo Kebbe reviewed The Farthest Shore by Ursula K. Le Guin (The Earthsea Cycle, #3)
Review of 'The Farthest Shore (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 3)' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Another excellent book by [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg]. Here she brings a more adult Ged/Sparrowhawk to the narrative, a fantastic unfolding of what she accomplished in the previous two books. You can notice the growth of the character Ged, now in his winter and on the edge of the land without sun.
In a similar manner to the second book, [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146], Ged gets to the aid of another character, the immature and passionate Arren/Lebannen, teaching him important lessons about life and death.
The end of the book is impressive, showing how [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg] knows how to keep the pace, style and the raise an amazing climax such as seen in the previous books, [b:A Wizard of Earthsea|13642|A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353424536s/13642.jpg|113603] and [b:The Tombs of …
Another excellent book by [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg]. Here she brings a more adult Ged/Sparrowhawk to the narrative, a fantastic unfolding of what she accomplished in the previous two books. You can notice the growth of the character Ged, now in his winter and on the edge of the land without sun.
In a similar manner to the second book, [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146], Ged gets to the aid of another character, the immature and passionate Arren/Lebannen, teaching him important lessons about life and death.
The end of the book is impressive, showing how [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg] knows how to keep the pace, style and the raise an amazing climax such as seen in the previous books, [b:A Wizard of Earthsea|13642|A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353424536s/13642.jpg|113603] and [b:The Tombs of Atuan|13662|The Tombs of Atuan (Earthsea Cycle, #2)|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1166571534s/13662.jpg|1322146]. A classic, and a must read for all fantasy fans.
Subjects
- Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic
- Juvenile Fiction
- Fairy Tales & Folklore - General
- Children's 12-Up - Fiction - Fantasy
- Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)
- Magic
- Classics
- Juvenile Fiction / Classics
- Fantasy fiction
- Fiction