URSULA K. LE GUIN was born in Berkeley, California, in 1929, and passed away in Portland, Oregon, in 2018. She published over sixty books of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, children's literature, and translation. She was the recipient of a National Book Award, six Hugo and five Nebula awards, and was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
Gr 7 Up-Ursula K. Le Guin's fantasy (Harcourt, 2006), a companion to Gifts (Harcourt, 2004), chronicles the story of 17-year-old Memer who lives in Ansul, a city overtaken by the Alds. The Alds believe books are evil and have tried to rid the city of all forms of writing. The punishment for having a book in one's possession is death. However, the citizens of Ansul refuse to allow these barbarians to destroy all of their books and secretly bring them to the Oracle House, which has a concealed library that is supposed to be accessible only to Sulter Galva. When Sulter Galva realizes that Memer knows about and has visited the secret room, he teaches her to read. One day the storyteller, Orrec, arrives in Ansul. Both the Alds and the people of Ansul love to hear stories, and Memer is permitted to accompany Orrec when he is invited to perform before the Ald leader. Through this contact, Memer becomes a go between for the two societies, when a rebellion within the Ald leadership occurs and endangers the lives of Ansul's people. Melanie Martinez does a fine job of narrating the tale, but does not employ different voices to distinguish between the characters, which would have made it easier to follow the story. Filled with important political and social themes that are relevant today, this is a valuable addition to audiobook collections.-Kathy Miller, Baldwin Junior High School, Baldwin City, KS Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.
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