[scottbcovert]

"But the highest praise I can give The Left Hand of Darkness is that Le Guin captures the texture of life. This book is full of little moments, bits of sensation and emotion, that show what it feels like to be alive, day after day."

Well put; this was one of the things I enjoyed most about the book as well. I began reading fully expecting to be immersed in the Gethenians' world and their foreign culture, just as Mr. Ai did at the start of his journey. By the end though I realized Le Guin had used these "aliens" to show Mr. Ai and the reader what it truly meant to be human.

The fact that some others here feel that LHoD was not Le Guin's best work makes me excited to read her other books!

[icebraining]

> By the end though I realized Le Guin had used these "aliens" to show Mr. Ai and the reader what it truly meant to be human.

Telling lies to show the truth, as she puts it in the introduction: http://theliterarylink.com/leguinintro.html

[kaycebasques]

I read The Dispossessed about 5 years ago and didn’t have any strong reactions from it. Then I read LHoD a few months ago and was blown away. So much so that I’m curious to go back to The Dispossessed and see if my opinion of it radically changes this time around.