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writes of the proud cruelty of power, of how hard it is to grow up, and of how much harder still it is to find, in the
world's darkness, gifts of light.
Young Gav can remember the page of a book after seeing it once, and, inexplicably, he sometimes "remembers"
things that are going to happen in the future.
As a loyal slave, he must keep these powers secret, but when a terrible tragedy occurs, Gav, blinded by grief,
flees the only world he has ever known. And in what becomes a treacherous journey for freedom, Gav's greatest
test of all is facing his powers so that he can come to understand himself and finally find a true home.
"Powers is rich with action, with battles, escapes, strategy, and skulduggery, but it has a still, quiet place at its
heart, a place of moral complexity." —Sarah Ellis, The Globe and Mail
"In her facility in world-making and her interest in human nature, Le Guin stands above almost all of what's out
there. Her exploration of identity and power, of social structures and the meaning of freedom, can only enrich
her readers. Gav's vulnerability and his slow recognition of his real gifts make him both familiar and admirable,
like any child who struggles to know one's strengths and place in the world. This is a good, long trek of a
fantasy." —Deirdre Baker, Toronto Star
"With compelling themes about the soul-crushing effects of slavery, and a journey plotline that showcases Le
Guin's gift for creating a convincing array of cultures, this follow-up to Gifts and Voices may be the series' best
installment." —Jennifer Mattson, Booklist
The Annals of the Western Shore Trilogy includes:
Gifts
Voices
Powers
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Creators
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Series
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Publisher
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Starred review from July 19, 2004
Le Guin's (the Earthsea Cycle) fantasy, a brilliant exploration of the power and responsibility of gifts, begins as 16-year-old narrator Orrec reflects upon recent events. Emmon, a runaway Lowlander, comes to Caspromant, where Orrec's father is Brantor, or "master." Orrec and his childhood friend, Gry, from neighboring Roddmant, explain to Emmon the history of the Uplands, where various family lines live side by side, each of them with a hereditary "gift." Gry and her mother have the gift of calling animals to the hunt; for Orrec's family, the gift is "undoing" (which can cause instant death with just a glance). Orrec explains to Emmon that these act as defenses, "That's what the gifts are for, the powers—so you can protect your domain and keep your lineage pure." The teen wears a blindfold because he believes his gift is "wild," that he could cause destruction unwittingly. Le Guin insightfully chronicles the hero's gradual awakening to the other consequences of gifts and the pressure on each generation to manifest them. "By not using my gift, by refusing it, not trusting it—was I betraying it?" Orrec asks himself. Gry discovers she has the ability to train animals and refuses to use her "gift" to call them to the hunt; she wonders aloud to Orrec, "I wonder if all the gifts are backward.... They could have been healing, to begin with." And what of Orrec's mother's skill for storytelling, which she cultivated in her son? Should that be discounted because she is a Lowlander? As Le Guin poses these questions, she also explores universal coming-of-age themes, examining one's identity and falling in love. Emmon, as outsider, offers the protagonists another perspective—and an alternative. This provocative novel may well prompt teens to examine their own talents, and to ask whether they simply accept those "gifts" assigned to them by others or whether the "gifts" are their true passions. Ages 12-up.
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