– Customer review on 06/07/2007

The first in the classic Earthsea series, this follows the story of Ged, fated to be one of the greatest wizards of Earthsea, from his earliest childhood as a wild, unkempt boy with a natural talent for magic, to his subsequent tutelage by the mage Ogion, to his traveling to the wizard’s island of Roke, where he polished his craft and inadvertently set loose a Gebbeth; a shadow-monster bent on destruction that scars Ged and escapes. Ged journeys to rectify the evil that he unleashed, as well as learning truths about himself.

This is a wonderful book, very powerfully written with vivid descriptions and strong, human characters. The world of Earthsea is also very intricately designed, as is the magical system that Ged is trained under; the power that real names hold is especially fascinating, and has been copied numerous times by inferior fantasy writers. The language used is very beautiful and adds a lot of dimension to the story, which moves along at a very good pace and certainly keeps you gripped until the end. A true fantasy classic and one of the few that deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Tolkien; very highly recommended.

– Customer review on 14/05/2007

This book is another epic work by the master of high fantasy Ursula Le Guin and tells the tale of a boy chosen and taught the secrets of the warp and weft of life and his quest for mastery of the world through the mastery of himself. In the style of Tolkien this is a masterfully crafted book that will grip the reader from start to finish

– Customer review on 06/03/2007

Easily the best of this series of books. A Wizard of Earthsea is the story of a young boy named Ged, who becomes a wizard.

Earthsea is a world of island archipelagoes, so a lot of boating and shipping goes on. Everything has a public name and a secret name, as knowing the names of things can give them power.

Ged, or Sparrowhawk must master magic, fight demons, and work out what his role is in life.

– Customer review on 05/01/2007

I read this as a child and have re-read it many times as an adult. It's not as simple as good and evil but more about balance and un-balance. Everything we do has consequences. As a young man Ged lets free forces of destruction through pride and then must learn how to control himself and face his own demons.

– Customer review on 08/06/2006

Read this and you will get the rest in the series. A fantasy classic that probably inspired J.K. Rowling, with a young nobody who discovers his gifts of wizardry and goes off to become a great wizard if fate will let him.