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The Other Wind (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 6) By Ursula K. LeGuin ( Ace )
Release Date: 2003-09-30
Average Customer Rating:
List Price: $7.99
Price: $7.99
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Product Description
THE NEW EARTHSEA NOVEL--NOW IN MASS MARKET
World Fantasy Award Winner--Best Novel
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Amazon.com Review
The greatest fantasies of the 20th century are J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea Cycle. Regrettably, the Earthsea Cycle has not received the fame and sales of Tolkien's trilogy. Fortunately, new Earthsea books have appeared in the 21st century, and they are as powerful, beautiful, and imaginative as the first four novels. The fifth novel and sixth book of the Earthsea Cycle is The Other Wind. The sorcerer Alder has the power of mending, but it may have become the power of destruction: every night he dreams of the wall between the land of the living and the land of the dead, and the wall is being dismantled. If the wall is breached, the dead will invade Earthsea. Ged, once Archmage of Earthsea, sends Alder to King Lebannen. Now Alder and the king must join with a burned woman, a wizard of forbidden lore, and a being who is woman and dragon both, in an impossible quest to save Earthsea. Ursula K. Le Guin has received the National Book Award, five Nebula and five Hugo Awards, and the Newbery Award, among many other honors. The Other Wind lives up to expectations for one of the greatest fantasy cycles. --Cynthia Ward
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 Deep and Profound! ( loveisthekey )
It's been a few years since I read all the books in the Wizard of Earthsea series to my son, but I remember the depth of the characters as though yesterday. Deep, heavy stuff that leaves you enriched and changed for having read it.
These books are labeled 'young adult' but deep and profound enough to be appreciated by adults.
Another reviewer compared them to The Lord of the Rings. I disagree. While Tolkien deserved all the credit he got for being the first to create a lush, intricate universe and bring it to life, it is ultimately an action story. Le Guin's ability to develop strong, complex characters far surpasses any mere action story. Her characters and their experiences reach deep into your soul and do not let go.
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 The Other Wind - Ursula K. Le Guin
Writing Style - 3/5
Characters - 3
Storyline - 3
Resonance - 1
The Not-Too-Revealing Synopsis:
The divide between life and death is not as it should be. A minor magic artisan - a layman really - finds that he has some inexplicable connection to the portents and sets off in search of aid from the skilled and learned of Earthsea.
The Review
Note - I did not realize this book was part of a series until after I had finished it and was looking at online reviews. So take my views with that in mind.
This was a very pleasant, curious read. Characters, newly introduced seemed like old friends and the land, despite the detailed map in the beginning did not seem all too foreign. The mystery, the plot itself, unraveled slowly and cast a foreboding aura on all that transpired, putting the reader in the same mind set as the characters themselves. This was a quick read, an easy read, an enjoyable read and an entirely forgettable read. I would not recommend this book (particularly not without having read the previous works).
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Fascinating ( temple2 )
For many years I didn't pick up LeGuin's Earthsea cycle. What a mistake! The entire series is first rate, a cut above the usual fantasy novels.
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Absolutely one of my most favorite book sieries.
I'm just putting in a good word for one of my most respected authors. I've read most of her books, and this is one is the one that sucked me in the most out of all of them.
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Not my cup of tea ( joshie78 )
While I really loved the original Earthsea trilogy, both as a kid and as an adult, this book (and "Tehanu") were a bit disappointing. I had a hard time deciding on whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars and in the end went with 3. I can't pick out anything technically wrong with the book, but it failed to draw me in. Despite being relatively short, it took me months to finish this book. Nothing much was really happening, so I didn't feel at all compelled to see what happened (or rather, didn't happen) next.
This novel didn't have a plot so much as a theme, and LeGuin used some familiar and some new characters to explore that theme. If that's the kind of book you like, then you'll probably love "The Other Wind". However, I read fiction (and fantasy in particular) for engaging and thrilling stories. That type of story was lacking here.
I still think LeGuin is very talented, but as she has matured as a writer she now seems to prefer writing a type of book that I do not prefer to read.
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