Ursula K LeGuin (placeholder)

She could potentially be my favorite author ever. It would be so fun just to pick her brain for an hour or two.

It would be delightful to meet Ursula LeGuin, but I have no idea what I would say to her, except that she is one of the living writers I admire the most. Her father was an anthropologist of note and her mother wrote one of my favorite childhood books: Ishi, Last of His Tribe. I see many of her books as quite anthropological and appreciate the social science aspects of her novels. I appreciate the novels in which she experiments with setting up societies differently to try to address inequities of class (The Dispossessed) or gender (The Left Hand of Darkness) but resists the impulse to make these societies utterly utopian by also exploring some of the limitations of these supposedly egalitarian societies. I respect her courage, her commitment to social justice and her ability to make me think differently about the world.

The Earthsea Trilogy is a perfect set of fantasy novels which I found very inspiring. For me they were the kinds of books you get in-a-warm-place feelings from. Excellent.

When I was attending the University of Oregon, she gave a lecture. Afterward, I introduced myself and had her sign one of my favorite books, “The Lathe of Heaven”. Ursula K. LeGuin, is both an amazing writer, and an articulate speaker. I respect her for her creative abilities and her political views.