Gifts - Annals of the Western Shore, Book 1

Ursula K. Le Guin

Orion Childrens

2005

288 páginas

9h 36m

ISBN-13: 9781842554982

Orrec, the son of the Brantor of Caspromant, and Gry, daughter of the Brantors of Barre and Rodd, have grown up together, running half-wild across the Uplands. The people there are like their land: harsh and fierce and prideful; ever at war with each other.

Only the gifts keep the fragile peace. The Barre gift is calling animals. The women of Cordemant have the power of blinding, or making deaf, or taking away speech. The Rodds can send a spellknife into a man's heart. The Callems can move heavy things - even buildings, even hills. The Caspro gift is the worst and best of all: it is the gift of undoing: an insect, an animal, a place...

Orrec and Gry are the heirs to Caspro and Barre. Gry's gift runs true, but she refuses to call animals for the hunt. Orrec too is a problem, for his gift of undoing is wild: he cannot control it - and that is the most dangerous gift of all...

GIFTS is Ursula Le Guin at her best: an exciting, moving story beautifully told.

Resenhas (1)

4 (Muito bom)

This is the first book I read by the author - I am a fan of fantasy so someone recommended it. I think I started the book with high expectations. The beggining was a bit dull and it was hard for me to keep up with all the names. When I started to understand better the world and the characters, I was hooked and the rest of the reading was very pleasant. One of the themes is the comming of age of one of the main characters, Orrec, and it is interesting to see his development, from boy to man, in this land where violence is the rule and hard work, part of daily life. Besides the expectations from his family, society, and himself, Orrec also needs to deal with the gift, the powers passed from generarion to generation that make each one know their place in society.