The Wind's Twelve Quarters - by Ursula K Le Guin (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"Splendidly intricate and hugely imaginative tales." --Newsweek

The recipient of numerous literary prizes, including the National Book Award, the Kafka Award, and the Pushcart Prize, Ursula K. Le Guin is renowned for her lyrical writing, rich characters, and diverse worlds. The Wind's Twelve Quarters collects seventeen powerful stories, each with an introduction by the author, ranging from fantasy to intriguing scientific concepts, from medieval settings to the future.

Including an insightful foreword by Le Guin, describing her experience, her inspirations, and her approach to writing, this stunning collection explores human values, relationships, and survival, and showcases the myriad talents of one of the most provocative writers of our time.

The stories included in the collection are:

Semley's NecklaceApril in ParisThe MastersDarkness BoxThe Word of UnbindingThe Rule of NamesWinter's KingThe Good TripNine LivesThingsA Trip to the HeadVaster than Empires and More SlowThe Stars BelowThe Field of VisionDirection of the RoadThe Ones Who Walk Away from OmelasThe Day Before the Revolution

From the Back Cover

The recipient of numerous literary prizes, including the National Book Award, the Kafka Award, and the Pushcart Prize, Ursula K. Le Guin is renowned for her lyrical writing, rich characters, and diverse worlds. The Wind's Twelve Quarters collects seventeen powerful stories, each with an introduction by the author, ranging from fantasy to intriguing scientific concepts, from medieval settings to the future.

Including an insightful foreword by Le Guin, describing her experience, her inspirations, and her approach to writing, this stunning collection explores human values, relationships, and survival, and showcases the myriad talents of one of the most provocative writers of our time.

Review Quotes

"[Le Guin] wields her pen with a moral psychological sophistication rarely seen . . . she writes fables: splendidly intricate and hugely imaginative tales." -- Newsweek

"Like all great writers of fiction, Ursula K. Le Guin creates imaginary worlds that restore us, hearts eased, to our own." -- Boston Globe

"Le Guin's prose is so very luminous and simple, and she always tells the truth, and when I'm with her people, I'm with living people, on worlds as solid and real as my own. Le Guin has a gift, which is to transform words into worlds." -- Molly Gloss

"Delicious . . . her worlds are haunting psychological visions molded with firm artistry." -- Library Journal

"Ursula Le Guin keeps getting better and better." -- Chicago Sun-Times

"A collection that begins with a fine story and gets better and better." -- Dallas News

"[Le Guin's] knack of translating recognizable states of mind into fantastic action brings her close to the old fairy tale field. She is the ideal science fiction writer for readers who ordinarily dislike science fiction." -- The Atlantic

"Le Guin's prose breathes light and intelligence. She can lift fiction to the level of poetry and compress it to the density of allegory." -- Jonathan Lethem

"[Le Guin] examines the most public of politics and the most intimate of emotions, constantly challenging her readers to reconsider what it means to be human and humane." -- Mary Doria Russell