Part of Series
Outer Space, Inner Lands includes many of the best known Ursula K. Le Guin nonrealistic stories (such as "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas," "Semley’s Necklace," and "She Unnames Them") which have shaped the way many readers see the world. She gives voice to the voiceless, hope to the outsider, and speaks truth to power—all the time maintaining her independence and sense of humor. Companion volume Where on Earth explores Le Guin's satirical, risky, political and experimental earthbound stories. Both volumes include new introductions by the author. This volume includes the following stories: The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas (1973) Semley’s Necklace (1964, 1975, Hainish Cycle) Nine Lives (1969, 1997) Mazes (1975, 2003) The First Contact with the Gorgonids (1991) The Shobies’ Story (1990, Hainish Cycle) Betrayals (1994, Hainish Cycle) The Matter of Seggri (1994, Hainish Cycle) Solitude (1994, Hainish Cycle) The Wild Girls (1994) The Fliers of Gy (2000) The Silence of the Asonu (2000) The Ascent of the North Face (1983) The Author of the Acacia Seeds (1974) The Wife’s Story (1982) The Rule of Names (1964, Earthsea) Small Change (1981) The Poacher (1992) Sur (1982) She Unnames Them (1985) *Jar of Water (2014) [ * "Jar of Water" does not appear in the 2012 Small Beer Press edition(s) of this work, but was added to the combined volume later released by Saga Press / Simon and Schuster.]
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.
