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Voices (Annals of the Western Shore)
 
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Voices (Annals of the Western Shore) (Hardcover)

by Ursula Le Guin (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 384 pages
  • Publisher: Orion Childrens (4 May 2006)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1842555073
  • ISBN-13: 978-1842555071
  • Product Dimensions: 22 x 13.8 x 3.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 382,282 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Emika Currie, St Augustine's High, TEEN TITLES

'I liked this book - it was quite unusual so I found it hard to put down.'


Review

'Le Guin's crystalline prose and her ability to dramatise political and spiritual issues of our time are unequalled... as an allegory about hor freedom can be snatched from political oppression, Voices is execellent.' (Amanda Craig THE TIMES )

'she remains effortlessly at the top of her game...Voices, the second book in her Annals of the Western Shore Trilogy about a master poet and his animal-charming wife, is a marvellously thoughtful and intelligent piece of fiction... Le Guin's writing is spare and humane, her imagination forceful and dramatic.' (Tim Martin Independent on Sunday )

'will not disappoint Le Guin's many fans. Nobody is better able to describe ancient secret places and the sense of mysterious power they convey.' (UNDERCOVER (HEYWOOD HILL BOOKSHOP )

'Lyrical, elegant and thoughtful... A fantasy that rattles with topical resonances. Le Guin's prose is as fine here as anything she has written in the past' (Susan Elkin SCHOOL LIBRARIAN )

'[The Earthsea Cycle] established her as a classic storyteller... Again Le Guin has created a complete world, places with their own cultures and traditions and memorable characters.... Some thought-provoking issues arise regarding war and peace, forgiveness and revenge and the value of the written and spoken word' (Audrey Baker INIS (Ireland) )

'captivating sequel to Gifts, the second in the Annals of the Western Shore trilogy, a fantasy series that resonates prophetically with the state of many communities in today's war-torn globe.' (Elaine Williams TES )

'I liked this book - it was quite unusual so I found it hard to put down.' (Emika Currie, St Augustine's High TEEN TITLES )

'Le Guin uses her talent for description and language to portray a society where education is discouraged, books are feared and women ignored. Her tale celebrates the power of knowledge and of reading. The other two books in the series will be a must.' (WRITE AWAY )
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Customer Reviews

4 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, 13 Jan 2007
By TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)   
A companion novel to Le Guin's GIFTS, VOICES looks in on the life of a teen growing up in a city controlled by an enemy people. Memer has never known a life when hostile soldiers didn't patrol the streets and the possession of a book was not a crime punishable by death. The invading army believes that written words are evil, and that the city of Ansul is full of demons. But Memer knows that the Waylord, the man who raised her after her mother's death, has a hidden library in his house. There, he teaches her to read, and then, to use her understanding to help the city face its greatest crisis.

For a novel that has a lot to do with story-telling and reading, VOICES has more action and excitement than readers might expect. The arrival of Orrec, a great storyteller (and the narrator of GIFTS), rekindles the courage of Ansul's people, and they attempt to rebel against their oppressors. Memer finds herself caught in the middle, torn between her loyalty to the Waylord, who wishes to find a peaceful solution, and her hatred for the soldiers who destroyed so many things that she treasured. With many twists and turns along the way, VOICES delivers a conclusion that is both satisfying and unpredictable.

Perhaps the strongest element of the novel, however, is the way it moves from black and white to shades of gray. Orrec believes that all people have some good in them, and as Memer is forced to get to know the invaders she despises, she realizes that they are not all terrible and cruel. Some of them are simply different, and unable to understand her way of life. The message seems to be that it is far better to reach an understanding with others, even if you dislike them, than to take revenge. In a time when cultural and religious clashes make news almost every day, this should hit home with many readers.

VOICES is not a perfect book. It slows down a little more than I'd have liked before reaching its conclusion, and Memer was not as active in those events as I expect from a main character. But those flaws are minor compared to everything else about the novel: the distinctive setting and culture, the vivid language and personalities, and a voice that suggests, softly, without preaching, that there is more than one way to win a war.

Reviewed by: Lynn Crow
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The power of words, 31 Aug 2007
By Mikko Saari (Tampere, Finland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Voices (Annals of the Western Shore) (Paperback)
This book is a return to the Western Shores, the setting of Gifts. While the main characters from Gifts make an important appearance, this is an independent story. Starting with Gifts is a good introduction to the world, however.

Voices is the story of Ansul, a city under the rule of oppressive enemies and Memer, a halfblood child born under the enemy rule. The Alds are cruel masters, who despise reading and books - not a good thing for the people of Ansul, known for their wisdom and their books. Memer learns dangerous secrets, when the arrival of storyteller Orrec Caspro sets big wheels in motion.

Le Guin portrays both the people of Ansul and the Alds rather well. The Alds are more than illiterate idiots. It's a very beautiful and touching story and I enjoyed it a lot. Voices may be written for young adults, but it won't disappoint an older reader either. Le Guin is a master of her trade.
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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Atuan revisited, 1 Dec 2006
Firstly, this is a great book, in and of itself - elegant, simple writing, good storytelling, real issues.

It also interested me though as part of the process that reading Le Guin's books has been over the years. This has been watching and experiencing the author changing and developing in perceptions of society, particularly a deeper and more subtle appreciation of feminism. In her recent additions to Earthsea, Le Guin has been uncovering the prejudices she didn't realise she had in writing the original trilogy.

Voices revisits some of the elements of The Tombs of Atuan and inverts them. There is an ancient mysterious power existing in the dark underground and it is still terrifying but no longer evil. The young woman through whom the power acts is acclaimed and grows into this role rather than learning to repudiate it. Thus Le Guin reflects on how the earlier book encoded Cixous type divisions.

As I say however, it's a really good book anyway without reading psychoanalytic feminist literary theory into it :-)
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars An Outstanding Sequel
I read and deeply enjoyed Gifts - the first in a new cycle of novels by master Fantasy author LeGuin. Voices is its superb successor. Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2006 by A. Weston

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