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I did not expect Le Guin's early entries in the Hainish cycle to be as interlinked as they are (at least, as interlinked as may be given the vast amounts of time and space that occurs between each of them), considering that I started with The Dispossessed, Left Hand, and The Word for World, in that order, none of which have the same kind of thematic and situational throughline that these three novels have.

Of the three, I enjoyed Rocannon's World the most, I think, given its more traditional hero's journey with fantastical elements based on a science fiction premise, much in the same vein as Robert Heinlein's Glory Road. It may be something in the simplicity of the narrative, with a hint of the larger intergalactic struggle, both of which build in intensity to the climax, that I enjoyed most. Planet of Exile was interesting as a story of two dying and incompatible cultures, one old and the other new(ish), coming together so that both can survive, even though their combination means that each will be lost and become something new. A similar scenario at the individual level presents itself as the ultimate struggle in City of Illusions (which is inaptly named, though not opaquely so), wherin the main character has to reconcile himself -- or himselves, rather -- through losses and resorations of memory, the lies and misleading truths of those around him, and the ultimate responsibility he has for the survival of the civilization that struggled so hard to endure in Planet of Exile. As one might expect, Le Guin threads all these stories with elements of the dualism and (communal) anarchism for which she is so well known.

While none of the novels in this volume supplants The Left Hand of Darkness as my favorite of the Cycle, they are all worth reading for their own sakes. I highly recommend reading them in a volume like this one that collects all three, given that they are more connected than the other novels of the Hainish Cycle (at least, that I have read so far).

This book grips you right away – not so much like a runaway rollercoaster, but more like a grandfather who has worked his whole life in the field might grip the hand of a grandchild as they cross a road, firmly but not unkindly, if a little too tight.

I am largely unfamiliar with Russian/Eastern European fairy tales and folklore. What little I've encountered has been filtered through English (or other Western European) writers, and a lesser amount from general cultural osmosis. There are many recognizable elements from the Germanic, French and English folk tales I am grew up with and have studied – customary ingredients from Tolkien's "soup," as it were – but they are combined with other components and assembled in different ways so as to be fresh and interesting. Arden does a great job of weaving those elements around a compelling narrative, creating a story that moves at an even (almost inexorable, but in a good way) pace.

I will definitely pick up the sequel.