The Tombs of Atuan

, #2

Mass Market Paperback, 180 pages

English language

Published Sept. 1, 2001 by Aladdin Paperbacks.

ISBN:
978-0-689-84536-9
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Goodreads:
13662

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4 stars (28 reviews)

The Tombs of Atuan is a fantasy novel by the American author Ursula K. Le Guin, first published in the Winter 1970 issue of Worlds of Fantasy, and published as a book by Atheneum Books in 1971. It is the second book in the Earthsea series after A Wizard of Earthsea (1969). The Tombs of Atuan was a Newbery Honor Book in 1972. Set in the fictional world of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan follows the story of Tenar, a young girl born in the Kargish empire, who is taken while still a child to be the high priestess to the "Nameless Ones" at the Tombs of Atuan. Her existence at the Tombs is a lonely one, deepened by the isolation of being the highest ranking priestess. Her world is disrupted by the arrival of Ged, the protagonist of A Wizard of Earthsea, who seeks to steal the half of …

56 editions

A Word of Warning

4 stars

This was technically a reread for me, but the last time I read it, the century had not yet turned—and in any case, I remembered nothing about it, other than something about a cave.

The Tombs of Atuan is quite good, but I see why it is, perhaps, less popular than some of Le Guin’s other works. It’s a sequel to A Wizard of Earthsea, but where Earthsea is practically a fairy tale in tone, stylized and sonorous (which is an endorsement, not a criticism, by the way), Atuan is more directly a “fantasy novel.” It is not, however, a comforting one, not one where all the pieces fall together nicely, everybody’s problem is solved, the main characters fall in love, and so forth.

It is a story of beginnings, I think: first of the protagonist’s life as Arha, and then, the re-beginning—or perhaps better said, the resumption of …

reviewed The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin (Earthsea Cycle, #2)

A word of warning

4 stars

Content warning Literally quotes the ending (and of A Wizard of Earthsea)

reviewed The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin (Earthsea Cycle, #2)

Tombs of Atuan

3 stars

As with Book 1, this suffers from audiobook narration that is not terribly engaging by today's standards.

That said, it takes a really long time to figure out how in the heck this is part of Ged's story. And, understanding some time has passed since we saw him last, he doesn't at all feel like the same person. It would have almost felt more satisfying to me as something that happens in Earthsea, sure, but wasn't part of Ged's tale, because it feels so disconnected.

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