A Wizard of Earthsea is a fantasy novel by the American author Ursula K. Le Guin, first published by the small press Parnassus in 1968. It was the first novel set in the fictional archipelago Earthsea and it inaugurated the so-called Earthsea Trilogy (1968 to 1972). It features the adventures of a budding young wizard named Ged. The tale of Ged's growth and development as he travels across Earthsea continues in The Tombs of Atuan and The Farthest Shore, set a few years and about two decades later.
In 1987, Locus ranked The Wizard of Earthsea number three among the 33 "All-Time Best Fantasy Novels", based on a poll of subscribers.
The Earthsea series has won numerous literary awards including a 1979 Lewis Carroll Shelf Award for A Wizard of Earthsea, one of seven added to the figurative bookshelf that year.
Read more about A Wizard Of Earthsea: Inspiration, Plot Summary, Major Characters, Translations, Adaptations
Famous quotes containing the word wizard:
“The obvious parallels between Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz have frequently been noted: in both there is the orphan hero who is raised on a farm by an aunt and uncle and yearns to escape to adventure. Obi-wan Kenobi resembles the Wizard; the loyal, plucky little robot R2D2 is Toto; C3PO is the Tin Man; and Chewbacca is the Cowardly Lion. Darth Vader replaces the Wicked Witch: this is a patriarchy rather than a matriarchy.”
—Andrew Gordon, U.S. educator, critic. “The Inescapable Family in American Science Fiction and Fantasy Films,” Journal of Popular Film and Television (Summer 1992)