"In this stellar collection...Ursula K. Le Guin makes a triumphant return to the magic-drenched world of Earthsea."* Featuring a new Earthsea novella, two original stories and two classic tales, plus new maps and a special essay on Earthsea's history, languages, literature and magic, this is "a major event in fantasy literature" (Publishers Weekly, starred review). "A writer of depth who recognizes that not all fantasy venues are created equal...Le Guin's combination of opaque simplicity and transparent complexity, the quotidian and the miraculous, as well as her sharp and subtle characterizations, make for stories that stand shoulder to shoulder with ancient archetypal fairy tales and fables." (Washington Post Book World)