The Dispossessed

Ursula K. Le Guin
The Dispossessed Cover

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

Savant
1/26/2012
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Synopsis

The Dispossessed is the story of a man who is part Albert Einstein, part Valentine Michael Smith, part Florentino Ariza (anachronistic, yes), with a dash of Howard Roark. Albert-Valentine-Florentino-Howard (Shevek = "Alvanord"?) is an anarchist living on the isolated, oxymoronic, desolate utopia of Annares. He leaves home for the scary(to him)-but-familiar(to us) companion planet, Urras. He has some fine adventures and returns home enlightened and humbled.

Prose Pros

Prose Cons

Overall, I enjoyed the book even though it was a struggle to get through some of the lengthier social passages. I am glad that, on the one hand, I read it at an age where I am old and wise enough to understand and apperciate the social description and commentary, and, on the other hand, an age where I am still young and immature enough to enjoy the mental picture formed by reading about bare-breasted women attending upper-class cocktail parties.