The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition (Earthsea Cycle) Hardcover – Illustrated, 30 Oct. 2018

I've enjoyed the Earthsea stories for a long time, and have previously read the six major books (five novels and one collection of short stories) in the cycle, plus two short stories which originally pre-dated the first novel. They've all been collected together in this handsome volume, together with two stories from much later (one of which first appeared last year after the death of the author), and the text of a lecture by le Guin about her creation.Having the complete collection in one place is satisfying, although - as other surprised reviewers have pointed out - it makes for a hefty book of just over a thousand pages. The illustrations in this edition are a nice touch although - perhaps inevitably for someone who's conjured up their own pictures of the people and places in the story - they didn't always align with my imagination (I thought the dragons in the pictures had very small back legs, for example).After having read some of the comparisons of the quality of the UK and US edition of this book, I ordered the latter (which is slightly more expensive, but has a dust jacket), and received it just after Christmas. I took great pleasure in reading through the whole collection, reminding myself of the quality of the writing and how it was used to create a fascinating, detailed world of profound and stimulating beauty.

Stunning. My local bookstore owner will be very jealous that I’ve got a copy, after our recent conversation about Earthsea and how much he wants this edition of the series.

Beautiful book with nice illustrations but it is very very heavy.

This year I went to WorldCon in Dublin, and was there when Charles Vess got not one, but two, Hugos! I also went to his talk about his life and art, so I was delighted to get the illustrated Books of Earthsea. I've loved Earthsea since I discovered The Wizard of Earthsea in the school library when I was 14, so this has been a very long term fandom, and it's a pleasure to see the stories illustrated so beautifully.

This beautifully presented book is just such a thing. LeGuin was a singular writer and Earthsea has no peers. Charles Vess is a lauded illustrator and artist and rightly so. The pairing has resulted in one of the finest books I posess. The book is finely made from the robust yet stylish dust-cover to its fabulous illustrations. I cannot praise it too highly.

You can never have too much Earthsea or LeGuinPrefer this edition to gray covered otherwise illustrated version.Curiously search required ‘Vess’ to bring up on Amazon. Still some bookshops shelve ‘LeGuin’ as ‘Guin’ strange people.

I was very sad to hear from the child I gave this book to as a Christmas gift that it has fallen apart. It was meant to be cherished for many years, it didn't last two months.

The box could've fit 4 books in it, and had no packing to stop it rolling around. So came damaged. Very well made book. Terrible service.