Tuesday, August 09, 2005
book thirty-five
The Tombs of Atuan
by Ursula K. LeGuin
Just as Quev predicted, I liked this book very much. Although, it was quite different from what I expected after seeing the SciFi miniseries (I talked about that here.) I knew that Ms. LeGuin had been cut out of the editing process for the miniseries... but I hadn't realized that the content from The Tombs of Atuan had been so thoroughly bastardized.
In the book, Tenar is given to the priesthood at age 5, after being chosen as the reincarnation of the former priestess at the time of her birth. She is "eaten" by the dark spirits she serves, and her name and family are taken from her. She is raised in near-isolation, only associating with other priestess-in-training and their teachers. When she comes of age, Tenar is given the knowledge of the underground labyrinth beneath the tombstones near the temple. She is told that she must never use lights in the maze for fear of angering the gods she serves.
Ged arrives at the temple and Tenar discovers him in the maze. She has him locked up and visits him to try to learn why he risked desecrating the labyrinth. She thinks at first that he is a thief... but she witnesses some of his magic and begins to question her beliefs. Eventually she agrees to help Ged and leads him to the heart of the labyrinth where the gods live and guard their treasure. In the treasure chamber, they find the other half of the rune Ged carries... which made whole, will help protect the kingdoms of Earthsea.
This is a much darker and more powerful story than I was led to believe from watching the miniseries. Now I understand why fans of the books were so put off by the series.
by Ursula K. LeGuin
Just as Quev predicted, I liked this book very much. Although, it was quite different from what I expected after seeing the SciFi miniseries (I talked about that here.) I knew that Ms. LeGuin had been cut out of the editing process for the miniseries... but I hadn't realized that the content from The Tombs of Atuan had been so thoroughly bastardized.
In the book, Tenar is given to the priesthood at age 5, after being chosen as the reincarnation of the former priestess at the time of her birth. She is "eaten" by the dark spirits she serves, and her name and family are taken from her. She is raised in near-isolation, only associating with other priestess-in-training and their teachers. When she comes of age, Tenar is given the knowledge of the underground labyrinth beneath the tombstones near the temple. She is told that she must never use lights in the maze for fear of angering the gods she serves.
Ged arrives at the temple and Tenar discovers him in the maze. She has him locked up and visits him to try to learn why he risked desecrating the labyrinth. She thinks at first that he is a thief... but she witnesses some of his magic and begins to question her beliefs. Eventually she agrees to help Ged and leads him to the heart of the labyrinth where the gods live and guard their treasure. In the treasure chamber, they find the other half of the rune Ged carries... which made whole, will help protect the kingdoms of Earthsea.
This is a much darker and more powerful story than I was led to believe from watching the miniseries. Now I understand why fans of the books were so put off by the series.
Labels: book reports, science fiction
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I'm so glad you liked it! That miniseries was a nightmare, the worst example of homogenized, dumbed-down, missing-the-point, teeveeland suckitude I've seen in a long time. And I watched 'Riverworld'!
The book, though. I still think of it as the first real love story I ever read. The development of Ged's and Tenar's relationship over the course of the novel is a wonderful and rare literary example of a love affair that is no less profound for being completely chaste. When I first read it at age 10, it made a stronger, healthier impression on me about the nature of love than a lot of the idealized, unrealistic pap I've read that passes for writing about love.
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The book, though. I still think of it as the first real love story I ever read. The development of Ged's and Tenar's relationship over the course of the novel is a wonderful and rare literary example of a love affair that is no less profound for being completely chaste. When I first read it at age 10, it made a stronger, healthier impression on me about the nature of love than a lot of the idealized, unrealistic pap I've read that passes for writing about love.
# posted by 
: August 15, 2005 8:51 AM
: August 15, 2005 8:51 AM << Home
