Into the Desert, Across the Ice

by Ursula K. Le Guin

Included in this compilation are Le Guin’s 1987 tale, “Buffalo Gals, Won’t You Come Out Tonight,” a magical story about a young girl who gets adopted by a coyote; the 1985 “She Unnames Them” about Eve’s departure from Eden and how she unnames all of creation upon her exit; and the story, “Sur,” published in 1982, which describes a group of South American women who journey to the South Pole.

89 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2021

About the author

Ursula K. Le Guin published twenty-two novels, eleven volumes of short stories, four collections of essays, twelve books for children, six volumes of poetry and four of translation, and has received many awards: Hugo, Nebula, National Book Award, PEN-Malamud, etc. Her recent publications include the novel Lavinia, an essay collection, Cheek by Jowl, and The Wild Girls. She lived in Portland, Oregon.

She was known for her treatment of gender (The Left Hand of Darkness, The Matter of Seggri), political systems (The Telling, The Dispossessed) and difference/otherness in any other form. Her interest in non-Western philosophies was reflected in works such as "Solitude" and The Telling but even more interesting are her imagined societies, often mixing traits extracted from her profound knowledge of anthropology acquired from growing up with her father, the famous anthropologist, Alfred Kroeber. The Hainish Cycle reflects the anthropologist's experience of immersing themselves in new strange cultures since most of their main characters and narrators (Le Guin favoured the first-person narration) are envoys from a humanitarian organization, the Ekumen, sent to investigate or ally themselves with the people of a different world and learn their ways.

Reviews

[Tessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cried at the first story

[Meli Gass · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for my "SAL Speaker" Book Bingo square. So lovely. Ursula K. Le Guin is such a legend and this book is so beautiful. I will definitely look for more from the Winter Texts publishing company.

[Goran Lowie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Bufallo Gals, Won't You Come Out at Night" is a very sweet animal-focused story. Le Guin cared deeply about animals and our relationship with nature (I highly recommend her collection of non-fiction regarding this, "Cheek by Jowl"), and it shows.

"She Unnames Them" was a cool story, but over before I even realized it had begun.

"Sur" is a classic feminist piece of Le Guin's, focused on an all-female expedition to the Antarctic.

Also included is the poem "The Old Novelist's Lament", a nostalgic piece that feels related to "Sur".