Tehanu

“Tehanu” est le quatrième tome du cycle Earthsea d'Ursula K. Le Guin, également connu en français sous le nom de cycle de Terremer.

Publié en 1990, près de vingt ans après le tome précédent, le roman reprend cependant le récit directement après l'épilogue de The Farthest Shore. Le vieux mage Ged et le jeune prince Arren sont de retour de leur terrible voyage : Arren va monter sur le trône sous son nom véritable, Lebannen, tandis que Ged, privé de sa magie, va s'exiler. Dans le même temps, Tenar, l'héroïne du deuxième tome The Tombs of Atuan, désormais veuve d'un fermier, recueille Therru, une fillette gravement brûlée et maltraitée par sa « famille ».

Le roman met en scène les retrouvailles entre Ged et Tenar, des années après leurs aventures dans The Tombs of Atuan. Tenar n'est plus la grande prêtresse de sombres divinités, et Ged n'est plus mage, même s'il conserve encore le titre honorifique d'archimage, le temps que les maîtres de Roke désignent son successeur. D'une certaine façon, le roman nous parle du temps qui passe, des vies qui avancent pour le meilleur et pour le pire, de la nostalgie d'une époque révolue.

Surtout, Ursula K. Le Guin propose un récit profondément féministe qui aborde les questions de la place des femmes dans la famille et dans la société, du rapport au pouvoir et de la domination masculine. Elle le fait avec talent, finesse, mais sans concession. Elle offre ainsi de la fantasy engagée, à la fois intelligente et divertissante.

J'ai l'impression que chaque tome de ce cycle est meilleur que le précédent, c'est en tout cas le cas pour l'instant. Il ne me reste désormais plus que deux livres à lire dans ce cycle, un recueil de nouvelles puis le roman final de la série. Je vais m'y mettre très vite !

Sad how alot is revealed only at the end, instead of a bit of reveal around two-thirds so you could see the exploration of a particular reveal. Plus so many things were going on I had to backtrack at times to see where the point of view changed. I feel a bit of a traitor for saying such about Ms Le Guin's work.

I do feel that the overall presentation was much the same as the previous three books so it seems to be a good match for the series.

I enjoyed it. Slow burn but I enjoyed the second book of the series more than the first and third so I was more than happy to see Tenar again. And to see a relationship that should have happened in the first place...but it wasn't the right time, I will admit. I read this by ebook, as my library had the first three by audio book. I will take a break from this series for now.

Some days, we're just happy being around the house, in the yard, simply enjoying the beingness of being. the joys of being ourselves, the pleasure of being in our lives. Such was most of the experience of reading Tehanu for me. Simple joys, the delight of existence. yes, there is story, drama and excitement, the usual, but somehow it wasn't overly important. The mere existing within the book was enough. A relaxed casual joy. Soothing in its simplicity. A different enjoyment, one less pressured. perhaps it is me, but I found such simple pleasure sustaining, comforting, and relaxing.

My only complaint is with foolish publishers who insist on not marking the book's place in the overall series. Had I known it was book 4, I might have made the effort to acquire books 1 to 3 in order to read the series in sequence. Now I am unlikely to do that, or read the rest of the series, as I don't care to read what I already know something about, know how it turns out, nor to read incomplete series. Why publishers do this is an amazing mystery.

Very good book. While a break in theme and pacing from the other Earthsea books, Tehanu is still steeped in Le Guin's signature writing style that says so much using such simple, elegant language. It's a thoughtful book dripping with insight, wisdom, and philosophy. It wrestles with questions of gender and identity, while rounding out the world of Earthsea, giving the perspective of the ‘ordinary folk'.

Don't expect a page turner. But do expect gentle, kind wisdom and thoughtfulness.