(Series: Hainish Cycle)
My Rating:
Plot Tease
Genly Ai is an emissary from the human galaxy to Winter, a lost, stray world. His mission is to bring the planet back into the fold of an evolving galactic civilization, but to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own culture and prejudices and those that he encounters. On a planet where people are of no gender—or both—this is a broad gulf indeed...
Book Review
Left Hand of Darkness (LHoD) is now one of my favorite scifi books of the 20th century. It initially appears to be a typical encounter-the-aliens book, but you will be surprised. The characters are gripping, managing to blur stereotypical gender images in an amazingly realistic way.
The main character is Human, but his contact throughout the novel is a Gethenian named Estraven. S/he is a layered personality with a poignant history: both of which reveal themselves over time. The reader is given pieces and clues, but denied the full picture until literally the last pages of the book and then it hits you like a ton of bricks. Estraven stole my heart. I want to cry and smile and ALL THE EMOTIONS.
I will admit wanting to hit Genly Ai over the head more than once while reading LHoD. He survives on Winter clinging to a Me-vs-Them ideology that is frustrating at times. But as he is faced with the reality of Winter and a life-threatening journey, Genly evolves. Le Guin's writing defines his voice so clearly, that you can hear the desperation in which he clings to his old ways. Contrasted with Estraven—and vice versa—the character becomes a real, emotional human being full of contradictions and struggles.
It would be impossible to end this review without commenting on the relationship of these two vivid characters. I won't say much, so that it will all remain a surprise. However: these two travel between bitter 'enemies' to very close friends (and back again, at times). The tension Le Guin builds is fantastic, and it kept me reading even when I was angry with the narrator. There are so many emotions to be felt at the end of this book! Le Guin's character development is masterful.
I would recommend The Left Hand of Darkness to anyone who loves classic scifi, thrives on character development or enjoys strange twists. Le Guin builds a rich, unique society around the Gethenian's strange physiology that prompts a lot of thought. It is, at its core, unlike any other book I have read.
"A man wants his virility regarded, a woman wants her femininity appreciated, however indirect and subtle the indications of regard and appreciation. On Winter they will not exist. One is respected and judged only as a human being. It is an appalling experience." - LHoDCost: New $10.88/Used $5.76 (This book is not yet available on Kindle.)
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It's an interesting bit of masochism, when you're frustrated with a character (particularly if it's the protagonist/narrator), but I typically take that as a sign of solid writing. If the author can get me pissed off at someone, it means I think of that character as a real person; which, in my opinion, is one of the most important jobs any writer can do.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. Le Guin does a great job of eliciting emotion, but keeping you reading even when you want to strangle her main characters.
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