A Wizard of Earthsea

A Wizard of Earthsea (1968) Ursula K. Le Guin

Strangely enough, as much fantasy as I read, I’d never gotten around to reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea Trilogy. I’ve had the books for a couple of years, but for one reason or another, never got around to reading them. It’s a short book, my copy has only 183 pages (same for the reprint I just looked up), so I kept putting off reading it until a time when I needed a short book to read. Well, that time seems to be now.

The first book in the trilogy, A Wizard of Earthsea, tells the story of Ged, known as sparrowhawk, the greatest sorcerer of Earthsea. His youth and education through his young adulthood, as he took his first job as a wizard.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I suppose that I was fearing it was going to be one of those “classics” that I read because it’s supposed to be great, but I just don’t get it. (Like The Last Unicorn.) But no, I really enjoyed A Wizard of Earthsea.

I liked the writing, I liked the story, and I liked the characters. (And I also liked that it was a short book.) I found Sparrowhawk and Vetch to be very interesting, and I liked the way that Sparrowhawk matured. I’m typically not fond of books with bratty teenage characters, but I found Sparrowhawk interesting, and I found his immaturity and faults to be understandable, rather than annoying.

I also enjoyed the fact that I had no idea where the story was going. It’s not often that a story completely surprises me, but as I read, I kept thinking, “I didn’t expect that!” which was fun.

As far as covers, I like the original cover, and I like the cover on my copy (Bantam’s 19th printing), but the current covers? Ew. Why change a very lovely cover for something boring? (The binding on my copy, however, leaves something to be desired.)

I’ve already started The Tombs of Atuan, and have hopes that it will be as good as A Wizard of Earthsea. Even if it is a second book in a trilogy. If, like me, you’ve put off reading the Earthsea Trilogy, do so no longer. It’s an interesting, well-written story. Enjoy!
Rating: 8/10

• Browse the archives:
  
• The Tombs of Atuan » »
• « « Brokedown Palace