The Earth colony of Landinhas been stranded on the planet Werel for ten orbits, each of which is sixty Earth years long. As Werel once again enters its fifteen-year-long winter, the lonely and dwindling human settlement is joined by the nomadic hilfs, an indigenous humanoid people who only settle down for the cruel cold spell. The hilfs fear the Earthmen, whom they call farborns, regarding them as witches and avoiding interaction with them. Although both populations share a common genetic heritage in the Hainish people, the differences are believed to be significant enough to prevent interbreeding. But hilfs and farborns also share common enemies: the hordes of ravaging barbarians called gaals and the eerie preying snow ghouls. As the winter dangers approach, a visit from the curious young hilf Rolery to the human colony becomes a sign of coming changes.
Will they join forces or be annihilated?
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"Beautiful story about the fragility of human existence and the vastness of Winter, which lasts for 15 terrestrial years... Perfect for reading in December. " — Barberry (5 out of 5 stars)
"Beautiful story about the fragility of human existence and the vastness of Winter, which lasts for 15 terrestrial years... Perfect for reading in December. "
“Le Guin writes in quiet, straightforward sentences about people who feel they are being torn apart by massive forces in society—technological, political, economic—and who fight courageously to remain whole.”
“As good as any contemporary at creating worlds, imaginary or our own…Le Guin writes with painstaking intelligence. Her characters are complex and haunting, and her writing is remarkable for its sinewy grace.”
“This book is performed quite well…Hoye and MacDuffie give formidable performances.”
" As a writer and thinker, Le Guin gets better the older she gets, so may she live to be 210. Her early work, like this novella, isn't bad by any means, simply not as good as the later stuff. "
" Part of Hainish cycle. This section mostly war and seige of city. "
" Simple straight-forward story. Not bad, not terribly exciting. Felt more like a short story than an actual book but was interesting none-the-less. Concept was not new, although at the time it was published it may have been. "
" A great two-hour read. Why did I stop reading Science Fiction? "
" I really liked the story, but I wish the story had not ended where it did. "
" 7/09 One of LeGuin's Other World Series. Short. Well written and a plot that moves forward but the subject mater wasn't too exciting. Abandoned earthlings stranded on a planet with pre-wheel residents must join with locals to fight off invading barbarians. "
" Good, but I would have liked a bit more action. "
" A nice war story. Reads like a movie. "
Ursula K. Le Guin (1929–2018) was an American author of novels, children’s books, and short stories, mainly in the genres of fantasy and science fiction. She has also written poetry, literary criticism, and essays. She was widely recognized as one of the greatest science fiction writers in the history of the genre. She won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards on several occasions, as well as the National Book Award, the PEN/Malamud Award, and many other honors and prizes. In 2014, she was awarded the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
Stephen Hoye has worked as a professional actor in London and Los Angeles for more than thirty years. Trained at Boston University and the Guildhall in London, he has acted in television series and six feature films and has appeared in London’s West End. His audiobook narration has won him fifteen AudioFile Earphones Awards.
Carrington MacDuffie is a voice actor and recording artist who has narrated over two hundred audiobooks, received numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards, and has been a frequent finalist for the Audie Award, including for her original audiobook, Many Things Invisible. Alongside her narration work, she has released a new album of original songs, Only an Angel.
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