Rating:  -
Tehanu was different from all the other Earthsea books, but that doesn't necessarily mean I liked it any less. It seemed so real - I could almost see the dragon Kalessin. It was very odd to see Ged portrayed as a simple man when the previous books make him seem so much more powerful. Tehanu made Ged seem much more realistic to me.
Another issue brought up in Tehanu is the woman's role in Earthsea. Both Tenar and Therru are strong characters. I loved to see women making changes in the society of Earthsea, which before Tehanu put men first and foremost in everything. I can see how people with narrower views didn't like this, though.
If you're looking for a book exactly like the other Earthsea novels, brace yourself; Tehanu is very different. If you don't mind the difference, you'll love Tehanu. It's an exciting and refreshing read.
Rating: -
Far from being a feminist polemic,this book is simply a great tale told from a woman's perspective. Her reflections about the roles of men and women in Earthsea are very similar to what many women think about on a daily basis. I therefore found the book very affirming of my experience and I enjoyed the way it celebrated the daily and seasonal tasks that have so often fallen to women. I loved the first three books as well but knew something was missing for me. It was a relief to find in this book that women also have a valuable place in LeGuin's concept of Earthsea. Although Tehanu is not packed with the kind of dramatic action that marked the first three books in the series, the writing remains beautiful and I found the story very engaging.
Rating:  -
I might have liked this book when I was in college, and I may like when I'm fifty, but I can't say I liked it much at 37. The problem with the book is NOT the feminist message. I was surprised at the almost complete lack of a feminist perspective in the first three books, and was excited to see that Tenar was the protagonist of TEHANU. The problem is that Le Guin goes into a kind of Heinlein mode here, letting the Message overpwer the story. In fact, there is very little story at all. It isn't until the very last chapter that something is actually allowed to happen, but before that happens we are forced to see Tenar and Ged utterly humiliated. So do we "reject" the book, as an earlier reviewer does? Definitely not. This is still a very well-written story (if "story" is what it actually is) that adds depth to the world of Earthsea and deepens our understanding of that world and its people. Hey, it's Le Guin! It's not her best work, but it's vastly superior to the bulk of stuff published under the rubric of fantasy. Fans of Earthsea might want to think of this book as a bridge to TALES OF EARTHSEA and THE OTHER WIND, both of which are inspired and exciting. (I wish, though, that she had made TEHANU a short story and had developed the short stories "The Finder" and "Dragonfly" into full-length novels!)
Rating: -
This book surprised me the first time I read it. It is unlike any other book in the Earthsea series. It was written to express feminism. It is not as much of a fantasy book as realistic fiction. If not for the names, and the ending, I would have thought it was just that.
This book deals with the widowed Tenar, the second Earthsea book told from her point of view. She journeys to visit Ogion, Ged's teacher of wizardry. His death is met by the reappearance of Ged, the Archmage. He is not the only wizard that appears, though, and the other one is not exactly right in his head.
This book is a story of the second half (or third) of the life of Tenar. It has barely any of the wizardry and amazing creatures from the first 3 books. If you want that, you will not like this book. I still liked it though, and recommend it to any Earthsea fan.
Rating:  -
LeGuin manages to destroy EarthSea as a fantasy series in this book, turning it into a social commentary about social responsibility, the dangers women face, the problems of men abusin children, etcetcetc.
The writing itself is decent. Some of the insights are interesting, but most of this has been said before, about real people in the real world, and its rather distressing that LeGuin decided to use EarthSea for this purpose alone.
Furthermore, the story itself is rather drab. LeGuin makes some good points through Tenar- such as the notion of female power as opposed to male power- but makes them in the most awkward manner, through pages and pages of Tenar ruminating.
I was also greatly annoyed by the way LeGuin stripped EarthSea of its haunting, fleeting quality that gripped the reader. A fantasy, not being about real people, has its greatest strength in its setting AND characters as opposed to its characters only. here you have a fantasy devoid of setting and full of character; what you end up with is unsatisfying.
Add to that the flashbang, tacked on and quite tacky ending (in what is basically a description of rape of a woman because she dares be equal) involving an evil mysogenist with cliched characteristics, and you have a book that fails to engage the reader.
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