Cheek by Jowl
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| |||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £0.55
Trade in Cheek by Jowl for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.55, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Learn more
|
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
By M. A. Krul
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
"Cheek by Jowl" is a short collection of speeches, worked out into essays, delivered by the world famous science fiction and fantasy author Ursula le Guin. The essays connect two themes close to her heart: first, the legitimacy and importance of fantasy as a genre and respecting it on its own terms, and secondly, literature for children and young adults. She defends both categories (and their overlap) passionately, refuting the usual charges of childishness, escapism, 'genre fiction' being inherently inferior, and so forth. The main part of the book is taken up by the title essay, a lengthy analysis of the role of animals in children's and young adult literature and what this tells us about the moral and imaginative meaning such literature can have for us, with reference to everything from Black Beauty to Alice in Wonderland. Although most of the essays are fairly brief and not very 'deep', Le Guin's comments on fantasy and imaginative literature generally are often accurate and well phrased. Interesting for people who enjoy young adult novels past that age and/or those who want to read Le Guin's ideas on literature. For more of the latter, see also "The Wave in the Mind" (The Wave in the Mind: Talks and Essays on the Writer, the Reader, and the Imagination).
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.5 out of 5 stars
8 reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
vintage Le Guin
8 Mar 2010
By Lyle Bjork
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Le Guin continues to write lucidly, perceptively and with her trademark combination of gentle humor and firm opinions in this series of essays on writing for children (of all ages). The title essay is an expansion of previous lectures and essays and makes me want to head for the children's section of the library to reread old classics and get acquainted with new ones. The first essay on fantasy writing for children is succinct, the essence of how she writes, and should be required reading for everyone.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
I ;ve read it four times.
23 Sep 2009
By Ann C. Byrne
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
You may or may not be enthralled by LeGuin's fiction, but this engaging collection of her thoughts on fantasy, the imagination, children's literature (she lists some of the best!!!) and the Young Adult category devised by publishers ("require a ptotagonist who is over 12 and under 20:") is worth every penny you pay for it. Make sure your kids have been exposed to the masterworks (and I do not exaggerate) on her list. Ann of Rhode Island
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great insight
4 July 2009
By M. Tonatiuh Moreno Ramos
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Ursula K. Le Guin is not only one of the greatest writers of our time, but also a very aware of why and what she writes, and this collection of essays and lectures proves it.
I found this book enlightening and informative. The short essay "A message about messages" helped me clarify some doubts I had as a narrator myself, and "Cheek by jowl: animals in children's literature" (the longest chapter) made want to read some of the books reccommended in it. Overall, the books makes you ponder about the value of fantasy and the so-called "realistic" literature, and what role does meaning play in that.
I liked the fact that she chose a painting from my country to exemplify some concepts and to illustrate the cover!
It disaponted me a bit that I already had read some of the chapters, but I think is an advantage to have them all complied.
Ursula must be the wisest fantasy writer alive.
I found this book enlightening and informative. The short essay "A message about messages" helped me clarify some doubts I had as a narrator myself, and "Cheek by jowl: animals in children's literature" (the longest chapter) made want to read some of the books reccommended in it. Overall, the books makes you ponder about the value of fantasy and the so-called "realistic" literature, and what role does meaning play in that.
I liked the fact that she chose a painting from my country to exemplify some concepts and to illustrate the cover!
It disaponted me a bit that I already had read some of the chapters, but I think is an advantage to have them all complied.
Ursula must be the wisest fantasy writer alive.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 8 reviews
4.5 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
