Annals of the Western Shore

'She's showing no signs of losing her brilliance. She is unparalleled in creating fantasy peopled by finely drawn and complex characters... GIFTS has the simplicity of fairy tale and the power of myth' GUARDIAN 'Le Guin is a writer of phenomenal power' OBSERVER Orrec, the son of the Brantor of...

Young Gav can remember the page of a book after seeing it once, and, inexplicably, he sometimes “remembers” things that are going to happen in the future. As a loyal slave, he must keep these powers secret, but when a terrible tragedy occurs, Gav, blinded by grief, flees the only world he has ever known. And in what becomes a treacherous journey for freedom, Gav’s greatest test of all is facing his powers so that he can come to understand himself and finally find a true home.

Memer is a child of rape; when the Alds took the beautiful city of Ansul, they descecrated or destroyed everything of beauty. The Waylord they imprisoned and tortured for years until finally he is freed to return to his home. Though crippled, he is not destroyed. His life still has purpose...

Ansul was once a peaceful town filled with libraries, schools, and temples. But that was long ago, and the conquerors of this coastal city consider reading and writing to be acts punishable by death. And they believe the Oracle House, where the last few undestroyed books are hidden, is seething with demons. But to seventeen-year-old Memer, the house is a refuge, a place of family and learning, ritual and memory—the only place where she feels truly safe.

In this second novel in the Annals of the Western Shore trilogy, Ursula K. Le Guin brings readers a haunting and gripping coming-of-age story set against a backdrop of violence, intolerance, and magic. Ansul was once a peaceful town filled with libraries, schools, and temples. But that was long...

Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel: A young man tries to come to grips with his strange gifts as he sets out on a dangerous journey. Brought up in comfort as a house slave for a great family, young Gavir can recall the page of a book after seeing it once. Sometimes he even “remembers”...

'Le Guin's storytelling is sharp, magisterial, funny, thought-provoking and exciting, exhibiting all that science fiction can be' EMPIRE 'Told with shimmering lyricism, this coming-of-age saga will leave readers transformed' BOOKLIST 'Le Guin is a writer of phenomenal power' OBSERVER 'A tour de...