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 enlarge | Author: Ursula K. Le Guin
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
Category: Book
List Price: $17.00
Buy New: $6.98
You Save: $10.02 (59%)
New (4) from $6.98
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 140058
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 512
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.5
ASIN: B00181SOU8
Publication Date: September 1, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-8 of 8 | | « PREV | | |
 Courtesy of Teens Read Too September 3, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I kept glancing back at the cover when I started reading Ursula K. Le Guin's POWERS. It sounded so different from the EARTHSEA series that it didn't even seem like the same author. It was much longer and more personal than anything I had ever read from her before. But, as I read on, a lot of what I loved from older books, like the descriptions and the colorful characters, gradually surfaced here.
Set in a world much like Ancient Rome or Greece, this five-hundred page epic follows Gavir, a bright young boy who was stolen as a baby and sold into slavery. Unlike most slaves, Gav is comfortable and happy. He lives with a wealthy family along with his older sister, Sallo. Despite hearing rebellious talk from other slaves and seeing hints of cruelty from freemen, Gav is fiercely loyal to his house and city. His impeccable memory makes him the perfect candidate to be a future teacher for his house. He also has another remarkable ability, the power to see snippets of the future and the past. Unfortunately, his gift does not warn him of the tragedy that is to come. His trust in his masters is betrayed and, mad with grief, he flees home. As always, Ursula K. Le Guin tackles hard subjects such as slavery, culture clashes, and the definition of freedom in this coming-of-age novel.
Though it starts slowly initially, once it picks up POWERS will have readers engrossed. Magic takes a backseat in this fantasy. Here the adversaries are not magical, rarely evil, and purely human. One of the strongest points in this novel is that all characters big and small are well thought through and carefully drawn. The kind and brave aristocratic son Yaven, the hermit Cuga, and the charismatic rebel slave Barna are just a few.
Ursula K. Le Guin has delivered yet another thought-provoking and engaging novel. While not packed with duels and dragons, the latest edition to the ANNALS OF THE WESTERN SHORE series (following Gifts (Annals of the Western Shore) and Voices (Annals of the Western Shore)) has its own share of adventure and heartache.
Reviewed by: Natalie Tsang
 As a stand-alone novel, Powers is weak... August 15, 2007
7 out of 12 found this review helpful
I like Ursula Le Guin as an author. This was the first book I read in the Annals of the Western Shore series. It read as a complete novel (I never felt like I had to have read the earlier books) but, as a novel, this one seemed weak. It may be that I really did need to read the earlier books. I'll leave that assessment to other reviewers.
In Powers, a young slave and his sister are mistreated, brutalized, and ... treated like slaves. Through death or wiles, escape is possible. Outside this community, slaves find that there is another life. The slave becomes the non-slave, but there are those who remember that past life, and they carry the sword. That collision seems ready for the next book. Thus, this one feels like only a portion of the story.
The detail in the book, of the lives of slaves, and the misogynistic society that is portrayed, reminded me of author Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. The book is written from the perspective of a slave who has memories only of a slave's life. The world seems fair because that is all he knows.
I'm not sure I'll track down the other books in this series ("So many books, so little time..."). I will pay attention to the views of my fellow reviewers. Let me know whether I should read the books before, or the (predicted) book after.
And if you liked this book, consider picking up The Handmaid's Tale, or Oryx and Crake, also by Atwood.
Le Guin has kept her golden touch August 11, 2007
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
I read Le Guin's young adult classic, "The Wizard of Earthsea" long ago as a teen. A generation later, she is still writing young adult fiction that refuses to condescend. Like Tolkien, she is able to create a world that is unique, yet mirrors our own. I hope that a new generation will discover her ability to take them on a journey of self discovery and growth. At age 51, I had to keep reading this book until I finished at 1:00 a.m. The slavery/freedom theme of this third book is timeless and compelling. Best to read the entire trilogy in order: "Annals of the Western Shore". Start with "Gifts". This is demanding stuff- not for 10 year olds, and not for lazy readers.
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