Presenting Ursula Le Guin (Twayne's Young Adult Authors) [Hardcover]

Suzanne Elizabeth Reid (Author)

Book Description

Series: Twayne's Young Adult Authors | Publication Date: February 1997

Young Adults Authors SeriesSeries Editor, Patricia J. Campbell, winner of the ALAs Grolier Award for distinguished achievement with young people and books. She is a columnist for Wilson Library Bulletin and Horn Book.This popular series responds to the growing stature of adolescent literature and fills a critical gap in evaluating the new genre. This unique series provides:-young readers with the means to get to know their favorite authors as real people-teachers and librarians with insights and background material for promoting and teaching mid-grade and young adult novels.This gracefully written and perceptive book opens up the writers world to the reader, telling of the author's childhood and family, and how events have shaped Le Guin's writing. We learn of her parents' work with Native Americans and its influence on Le Guin's views on human nature and the natural world as expressed through her science fiction and fantasy fiction.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 121 pages
• Publisher: Twayne Publishers (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805746099
• ISBN-13: 978-0805746099
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,400,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Usually clear, insightful criticism of a major author, August 20, 2005

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DE (CT, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Presenting Ursula Le Guin (Twayne's Young Adult Authors) (Hardcover)

Writing literary criticism of the work of living authors presents numerous challenges to a scholar. Theories of interpretation abound, and readers may dismiss valid criticism simply because they dislike its approach or technique. In addition, authors vary widely in their accessibility and helpfulness to scholars, and while no authors should automatically be granted the last word on their own work, it is easy for a critic to take a wrong turn on the basis of biographical misinformation and bias. Further, the full range and hence significance of an author's work may not yet be apparent, and a future book can often render criticism outdated or laughable in its newly visible short-sightedness after the fact. Reid almost always succeeds in steering clear of these failings, while providing insightful readings of Le Guin's work, biographical details which illuminate characters, settings, themes and authorial obsessions. Fortunately, too, Le Guin herself has much to say about her work, and about fantasy and fiction generally, and Reid makes good use of the author's own criticism. The Twayne series in general consists of readable, accessible works of criticism, without a marked bias toward a particular pet theory. This book achieves what all worthwhile criticism should ultimately aspire to accomplish: to send its readers back to the primary text with renewed perspective, insight and appreciation.