Review: Ursula K. Le Guin Short Fiction

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These two books are beautiful. Combined, they’re over 1500 pages of short fiction by the talented Ursula K. Le Guin. I admit up front I haven’t finished them both, it’s just too much to try to get done during this holiday season (because, let’s be honest, Le Guin should be savored), but I had to let you know about them in case you’re looking for a great gift for your SF-loving friends.

THE UNREAL AND THE REAL is a collection of “best of” short stories selected by the author, old and current. THE FOUND AND THE LOST is a collection of all of Le Guin’s novellas.

Even if I had read every single story, I wouldn’t have room (or the time) here to tell you about each one. But, hey, this isn’t some anthology of a variety of current authors, this is stuff all written by the incomparable Le Guin. Her prose is beautiful. The themes of her stories are memorable and complex. Her characters are well-drawn and interesting. The settings are haunting. She is a grande dame of SF.

From the dustcover of THE UNREAL AND THE REAL:

“Ursula K. Le Guin has collected her iconic stories into one volume. For more than fifty years Le Guin’s stories have shaped the way readers see the world. Her work gives voice to the voiceless, hope to the outsider, and speaks truth to power. Le Guin’s writing is witty, wise; both sly and forthright. She is a master craftswoman. This selection of thirty-nine stories is compiled into two parts, the nominally realistic and the fantastic, selected and organized by Le Guin herself. The first part, ‘Where on Earth,’ focuses on Le Guin’s interest in realism and magic realism and includes many of her satirical, political, and experimental earthbound stories. The companion part, “Outer Space, Inner Lands,” includes Le Guin’s best-known unrealistic stories.”

If you love her novels, these are must-reads.

Find the other volume here:
THE UNREAL AND THE REAL – Amazon