Book Review: The Dispossessed lovingly sinks deeper into layers of meaning, providing more sustenance as the chapters go by. Since Le Guin belongs to the canon of great SciFi writers, the reader knows that this is not going to be the simple tale it seems at first. She's built two worlds, one an anarchist, communal society (think maybe something like Abnegation from Divergent) that barely survives in its inhospitable climate, having only the barest contact with the other world, its home planet, which is a paraphrase and extrapolation of Earth, circa 1975. The Dispossessed is told through two timelines in alternating chapters, appropriate when the main character is a temporal physicist. One timeline looks at the 170 year history of the communal society through the main character, the other looks at the home planet with its great competing countries like the great competing countries of today. Le Guin is determined to write a serious book, a novel of ideas, discussing socio-economic-political concerns through the plot (it won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards). As a result it can a bit talky, or even quite talky in spots. But the reader cares, not because it's so important to the reader, but because it's so important to Le Guin, and we like her characters. One of her strong points is that nothing is ever black and white, only infinite shades of gray. There is no cloying perfection. Although it's clear where her biases lie, she shows strengths and flaws in all the systems presented, and in all the characters. Politically committed readers will have their beliefs tweaked. The Dispossessed is not a speedy read, heavier on ideas and character development than plot, but it's always intriguing and makes the reader think, even if it's light on the thrills; for some the ending will be underwhelming. The novel is part of Le Guin's Hainish cycle of books. [4★]
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