Tales From Earthsea: The Earthsea Cycle, Book 5

To her much-loved Earthsea novels Le Guin appends five tales that, she states, "will profit by being read after, not before, the novels." One of them, a novella, is set during a dark era, some 300 years prior to the novels' time, when it is dangerous to practice sorcery. This richly told narrative provides background to the novels as it tells of a search for identity, a romance, and the beginning of a school for magicians. Of the other stories, one is about the wizards who taught the wizard who first taught Ged; one is a timeless love story; one a tale set when Ged was archmage of Earthsea; and one a bridge between Tenahu and a forthcoming novel, The Other Wind. It has been years since the last Earthsea book, but Le Guin hasn't lost her touch. She draws us into the magical land and its inhabitants' doings immediately. Earthsea mavens must rejoice, and relative newcomers will profit from the Earthsea history and two new maps that round out the book.