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The Word for World Is Forest cover art

The Word for World Is Forest

By: Ursula K. Le Guin
Narrated by: John Skelley
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Summary

When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters.

Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back.

"Le Guin writes with painstaking intelligence. Her characters are complex and haunting, and her writing is remarkable for its sinewy grace."—TIME magazine
©1972 Ursula K. Le Guin (P)2024 Recorded Books
Adventure Hard Science Fiction Space Opera
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Profile Image for Dr Lizard

Effortless

Le Guin deftly propagates an effortless and (so far) timeless character study that’s both tight and fulfilling in such short space of time. An organic mixing pot of sci-fi and identity.

Works like this can often be dated by the way they examine or deal with contemporaneous social issues. Le Guin, with preternatural skill, has given us a story that is not only relevant to the time is was written (80s), but somehow remains relevant to the social world we inhabit today.

John Skelly was on point throughout. Excellent range, consistency in characters, emotional intonation etc.

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Profile Image for Tina McCloskey

loved it

The story very well shows the colonial mindset. but in an enjoyable way. It's amazing to me how Ursula created Davidson in the 70s and he's exactly just like trump followers today, the language they use and their mentality. wish we had an empty island to put them on

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