Book Review: The Other Wind

The Other Wind by Ursula K. Le Guin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The final venture in the Earthsea series, this continues after the subtle events of Tehanu bringing together many of the characters and themes from the previous books in the series. Ursula Le Guin's strength is beautifully written mythic prose, contemplative and reflective of our own worlds and the issues and problems we struggle with. The main theme is that of humanity.

The world of Earthsea of course differs hugely from our own, yet the struggles are the same - power struggles, love, grief, loss, trauma, belonging or not belonging. It is the differences between our world and Earthsea that forces us to re-consider and re-evaluate how and why we approach these universal themes in the way that we do.

Alder realises that although he is tormented by his wife's death, banishing his grief causes him to loose a vital aspect of himself. Tehanu is haunted by the past and by her disfigurement and fear of fire, yet without her past she would not be as strong as she is. Tenar has lived through various incarnations, each adding to and enhancing her understanding of the world and the different cultures of Earthsea. Sparrowhawk has lost his wizard's power, yet he has found peace and the companionship of Tenar. Everything comes with a cost, yet without our range of experiences, we are not whole.

This is a story about succeeding against the odds, battling against the challenges life throws at us, of acceptance and compassion. In the story we see the characters draw together, learning from one another and their shared experiences, and all are changed as a result. It is this spark of humanity that underpins all of Le Guin's work, the examining of the human condition through the altered lense of other worlds, reflecting ourselves back at us, for better or for worse.

View all my reviews