The Birthday of the World and Other Stories
On sale
4th March 2027
Price: £10.99
‘Complex and haunting . . . Remarkable’ Time
‘Beautiful, profound, irresistible’ Robert Silverberg
‘Splendid and necessary stories’ Boston Globe
Ursula K. Le Guin was a writer who, through her many beloved stories and novels, created an ever-evolving universe. In this collection of stories, she returns to these worlds, introducing us to ancient civilisations governed by sun and sea, a planet where women greatly outnumber men and a spaceship where five generations have lived without ever knowing clouds, wind or sky. Together, these stories offer mind-bending, exhilarating alternatives to the ways we choose to live.
From the legendary author of The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed, here are eight stories that define and defy the meaning of connection, oppression, humanity and hope.
‘Beautiful, profound, irresistible’ Robert Silverberg
‘Splendid and necessary stories’ Boston Globe
Ursula K. Le Guin was a writer who, through her many beloved stories and novels, created an ever-evolving universe. In this collection of stories, she returns to these worlds, introducing us to ancient civilisations governed by sun and sea, a planet where women greatly outnumber men and a spaceship where five generations have lived without ever knowing clouds, wind or sky. Together, these stories offer mind-bending, exhilarating alternatives to the ways we choose to live.
From the legendary author of The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed, here are eight stories that define and defy the meaning of connection, oppression, humanity and hope.
Reviews
She is a splendid short story writer ... Fiction, like Borges's, that finds its life in the interstices between the borders of speculative fiction and realism
A beautiful, profound, irresistible collection - eight wise and wonderful stories by one of the great masters of science fiction
One of the few science fiction writers who have made the leap successfully to be considered an important writer, period
Like John le Carre's spy novels or Larry McMurtry's Westerns, Le Guin's work transcends the usual limitations of the genre, and this collection is no exception
Once again, Le Guin's powerful work illustrates that fantasy need not be escapist, that gender studies need not be dry or strident, and that entertainment need not be mindless
Le Guin has a gift, which is to transform words into worlds. That gift has never been more in evidence than in The Birthday of the World
Like a tour of other countries, these splendid and necessary stories will send you back home with new eyes
Pure starlight
Her characters are complex and haunting and her writing is remarkable for its sinewy grace