The short version first . . .Actually it is the longer version from the one associated with the Worlds of Exile and Illusion compendium which was what I read. . .You find yourself emerging from darkness and unconsciousness into a world of light, trees, and lifeforms. You can’t remember your name, how you got here, and what was in the past. All you know is you are here as a blank slate of a person, a true Homo tabula rasa. This is condition the antagonist of Ursula K. Le Guin’s City of Illusions finds himself. He has total amnesia, no home, no companions, no food, no water, and very little hope. He is befriended by the indigenous population who teach him the ways of the forest, the companionship of the hearth, and the beginnings of to whom he is indebted for his survival and continued existence. The new friends name him Falk and a young girl named Parth helps to train him in things academic of sorts, while Jove helps him learn skills along with others who teach him a form of fieldcraft suitable for survival from the land. In the teachings, Falk learns of a city called Es Toch, and he discovers that others similar to himself may be found there. And thus begins Falk’s quest to find the “fabled” city and perhaps the answers to his questions about his true identity and his true self. Since he looks physically different than the others who befriended him, he is anxious to see if there are others like him in Es Toch.The majority of the first half of the book covers Falk’s trek to the west to find Es Toch. Before setting out, Falk was taught the use of implements that might help him in his quest. He received a laser gun considered essential in his survival training. He learned how to construct shelters from available materials at hand as well as methods of starting fires for warmth and cooking. He also learned about the use of snares and other means of capturing small animals to eat. As he works his way west, he encounters both more primitive cultures and cultures equivalent in technology to his adopted folk but far more primitive in social graces. Falk eventually meets up with a Wanderer, named Estrel, a girl with a keen sense of survival as well as how to deal with an individual like Falk. They share the journey west together, becoming closer as the miles and time pass. In their travels they cross through the Kansas Enclave, Mzurra Clan, and Basnasskan Tribe. The reader may see similarities with Earth locations in North America during this journey, and if one makes notes as one reads, these locations might be topics for a note or two. They certainly were for me.Falk and Estrel eventually make it to Es Toch, and the reception is far from friendly. Torture, both mental and physical, are the norm from the beginning of their time there. Falk and Estrel are separated early and are never really re-united in any true sense of the word. For reasons beyond understanding, after the torture and mistreatment, Falk is summarily accepted with what amounts to open arms. This behavioral change completely and diametrically opposed to that received on his initial entry into the main part of the city while welcomed, leaves Falk with misgivings and concerns about a return to “the initial ways of things.” His jailers and torturers now give Falk food, water, clothing, a private room, and basically what amounts to a “vacation” of sorts, all alone initially. Soon after the shift in behavior, Falk is introduced to a person quite similar to himself in physical characteristics (eyes, skin color, etc.) but several years younger. The child, named Har Orry, calls Falk Prech Ramarren, a type of honorific. Furthermore, Orry treats him with respect and honor. Falk takes this situation in stride, but a bit taken aback as the attitude toward his presence appears to have been totally changed, admittedly for the better, but still inexplicably changed. It is clear that there is an undercurrent of ulterior motivation, but it is unclear what that motivation might be. It is less apparent in the characters, but more an undertone of the story as it develops from this point forward.As the story progresses, Falk discovers that he is indeed one of two survivors of a space vessel that crash-landed on the planet. The other is the boy, Har Orry. Falk realizes also that he is truly Prech Ramarren, the navigator of a ship, Alterra, on a mission of exploration from the planet Werel. They also discover that the planet beneath their feet is Earth, the planet that was the object of their exploration voyage. The Alterra was apparently shot from the sky by a race known as the Shing, the Es Tock citizens. In the process of learning these things, it becomes apparent that Werel was a member of the League of Worlds which used instantaneous communications devices called ansibles to communicate between worlds. In fact, Chapter 7 of , provides a brief summary of the contents of the first two books of the compendium are summarized into a cohesive lead-in to the current read. So what are the connections? What do the citizen of Es Toch expect from Ramarren? What do they expect from Ramarren? Are the Shing involved in some way? All becomes clear in the story, but it is probably not so clear that it turns out as you expect it will.Highly recommended, City of Illusions is fully deserving of my 5 stars as well. If anything brings the first three books together pleading to be called a series or cycle, it is Chapter 7 of this work. It clearly sums up the works as part and parcel of a unified exploration by a group called the League of Worlds who share common philosophy, common threats, and a diverse but similar (up to a point) biology. City of Illusions is a fitting culmination to the impressive first three books of the “Hainish cycle.” These works all demonstrate the story telling excellence that has become a hallmark of the writing of Ms. Le Guin. As a set of books to inaugurate the reader’s opportunity to read the “Hainish” cycle, the compendium Worlds of Exile and Illusion more than a great story, it is a window into the genius that is the writing and storytelling of Ursula K. Le Guin. Her numerous Nebula and Hugo Awards for excellence in science fiction writing are truly deserved. Just read this omnibus presentation for examples of works that won both of these awards as well as launching her career. You will come away from the experience in awe of her writing and in admiration that you have read some of the best “hard science” fiction you have ever enjoyed. Truly a brilliant read!! Review of City of Illusions by Ursula K. Le Guin by Richard Buro is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.Based on a work at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16052381-worlds-of-exile-and-illusion.Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at https://www.tor.com.
Like the rest of the early books in the Hainish series, this one has a very familiar tone and plot. We have our isolated, alienated protagonist on his quest for one single goal through an unpredictable world which he cannot comprehend, making strangely disconnected romantic liaisons on the way, and constantly lost in thought about how human relationships are supposed to work.But of all the series, this book uses these recurrent themes in the most interesting and naturalistic ways. The first half of the book, where the post-apocalyptic theme is most prominent, is the stronger portion. LeGuin gives us many brief vignettes of our protagonist's journey across the world, each one different in tone, each one modifying the character's overall experience and giving new insight to his fundamental quest of self-discovery.Every encounter seems to reveal some aspect of the madness of humanity, but always remembering that in our mad obsessions and unpredictability lie also our wisdom, our unique experiences--something to be learned. It seems telling that LeGuin's standard character psychology of an emotionally stunted paranoid works best in a story about a complete amnesiac lost in a post-apocalyptic world of deadly dangers, but kudos to her for writing to suit her habits; it's a trick more writers should use.The dystopian aspect comes on rather suddenly and completely changes the tone of the story, almost as if each half were a separate short piece loosely connected, except that the first half does not have a conclusion without the second to cap it. The dystopia of hidden psychics bears a definite resemblance to Slan, though LeGuin's is a more subtle and practised hand.This latter arc is fairly exciting and interesting, but has less of the unique vision. Its tone of oppressive confusion is also somewhat repetitive, and might have benefited from the character actively switching between options rather than sitting inactively avoiding either one. The character does eventually come to a conclusion, but it would have helped the depth of the conflict if the character had more actively explored the sides rather than sitting and ruminating.Then again, a lot of LeGuin's conflicts play out internally as struggles within the characters' minds. This is not a bad method, but I think such conflicts play out better when such conflicts are clearly demonstrated by the character's actions and patterns of speech and behavior, bolstered here and there by a thought, rather than descending entirely into the character and leaving the plot behind for the period of digression.But despite these caveats, I found this the most varied and imaginative of LeGuin's books, with a truly engrossing combination of verisimilitude and hallucinatory imagery from the cusp of madness. I look forward to more LeGuin in the future, especially if this work is an indication of her evolution as a writer, who here seems almost to have found her ideal voice, if sometimes fleetingly.
What do You think about City Of Illusions (1970)?
City of Illusions was my favorite of the trilogy (Rocannon's World and Planet of Exile.) Like the others, it's about a journey of sorts, and starts off slow and gradually builds in intensity. But to me it was also the most mature work of the three, dealing with themes of illusion, dissolution, and dystopia. We begin with a madman, or child-man, in the woods who has no memory of his past, and who is taken in and cared for by a forest family. After he recuperates, the patriarch of the family has an inkling that this yellow-eyed stranger has a Destiny to fulfill, and indeed he does. Setting off across what is probably a dissolved and broken USA, he seeks the city of Es Toch, the capitol of humans' enemy, the Shing.In other reviews I've seen some discussion that Le Guin's characters are not relatable or likeable, and that they bear some resemblance to LotR. Indeed Tolkein wrote in much a similar style of emotional distance, and like countless other stories, the Hero's Journey is reenacted here (see Joseph Campbell for a fuller discussion). But I also think that the fact that you have to scratch under the surface for the characters' emotions makes it more interesting, not less. And for me, the formalism lends the story an epic quality, almost more high-fantasy than sci-fi.Le Guin's best work? Likely not. There's a reason The Left Hand of Darkness is the classic. But definitely worth a read. Like the other Hainish cycle novels, this one can be read as a stand-alone for those not wishing to toil through Rocannon's World or Planet of Exile, which are certainly less polished.
—Samantha Waxman
Le Guin is a master at taking a workaday story of a protagonist suffering from acute amnesia (sound familiar?) and turning it into a focused think-piece on self awareness and discovery of who we really are. It took a long time in the narrative to get to the core premise, but when it was revealed, it made me put the book down for a minute to really contemplate Le Guin's theme.In one of Joan Didion's essays she opines, "We are well advised to keep on nodding terms with the people we used to be - whether or not we find them attractive company." As we age, and our memory of our former selves goes through a constant revision, it can become difficult to relate to that other manifestation of ourselves. So if we have all the memory of our old self removed, and we are told by a third person about the individual that we used to be (and that "person" sounds like someone we wouldn't necessarily like) - how do we know who we really are, anyway? Is this starting to sound like The Fixx's song "Are We Ourselves?" I'm feeling that, too. So I suggest reading this short book, enjoy where Le Guin takes you on the introspection, and then watch this old-school video and remember where your old self was when you watched it for the first time:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mP8Pe8...
—Brian
Imagine an Earth so far in the future that the Age Of Cities, of interplanetary exploration and the League of Worlds, is more than a thousand years in the past. Imagine an Earth where mankind lives in the spreading forests, plains and wildernesses, in small communities that have no way of communicating with each other. Now imagine a man - with yellow eyes : non-human? - who arrives at a Forest settlement, with no memory of his past or origins. Brought back to life and educated in the ways of the community, he is given the name Falk. In time, he and they realise that his inner drive is to leave the Forest to discover who he really is.There is only one place on Earth where he can find out what he needs to know : Es Toch, the one city, home to The Shing, the alien species whose invasion brought man's civilisation to an end and exiled him to his own wild places. Es Toch, 'The Place of the Lie', for all Shing are supposedly liars, though they have one overriding law - 'thou shalt not kill' which they apply to all creatures.'City of Illusions' is a novel of two halves. The first is Falk's odyssey across the vast wildernesses, the strange communities he encounters, the people he meets, friends and foes. It is LeGuin's great strength that she can weave a completely believable world, with enough description to draw you in, but not so much that it kills the narrative flow. And so we journey with Falk, meeting believable characters set in a believable world : there is a religion, essentially Taoist, for the Book, the Canon, opens with the first lines of the Tao Te Ching; there is surviving technology by which homes can be heated, music played, insulating materials woven into clothing that can withstand the harshest winters; but no radio, no TV, no phone system.The second half is completely different. Arrived at Es Toch, the glittering, shimmering jewel of a City, Falk finally learns the truth. Or does he...? Full of psychological drama, with subtle twistings this way and that, LeGuin has us - along with Falk - doubting the truth of our own senses, as he grapples with illusion and reality, truth and lies, always on edge, always guarded against 'mindspeak'. Who are the Shing, really? What do they want... ...from him? But ultimately - who is he?So far, so breathtaking. However, it's not a perfect novel by any means. Relationships are left dangling, loose ends unexplored, and the sudden ending hints of a 'to be continued' narrative; although the novel is part of The Hainish Cycle, there are particular elements in this novel that do not re-occur - The Shing, for example. Then there is the relationship between Falk and his companion Estrel - it's left completely unresolved.LeGuin's writing is always high quality, and in the process she creates authentic and self-consistent milieus. For that reason alone, this novel deserves at least 4 stars, and I've deducted one only because I felt just a tiny bit 'cheated' at the end, that the novel didn't quite fulfil the promise which its brilliant first half promised.
—Chris Rigby
