The Unreal and the Real: Selected Stories Volume One: Where on Earth
This two-volume collection contains 41 of the author’s personal favorites among her short stories, plus introductions giving some idea of the criteria for selection. The first volume, Where on Earth, employs largely terrestrial settings (although seen through the author’s rather original vision); the second, Outer Space, Inner Lands, reaches farther afield in both fantasy and sf. Only “Buffalo Gals, Won’t You Come Out Tonight” and “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” are among the author’s well-known classics. On the other hand, read “Hand, Cup, Shell” or “The Matter of Segri.” Then consider that there may really be no such thing as minor Le Guin, particularly if one is disposed to savor a command of the English language that remains nearly unequaled in the ranks of English-language sf and fantasy. Equally good as an introduction to the author’s short fiction or to fill in gaps that may remain in larger collections. --Roland Green