Earthsea Author Ursula K. Le Guin Passes Away

Earthsea novels inspired Ghibli, Goro Miyazaki's Tales from Earthsea

Writer Ursula K. Le Guin passed away on Monday at her home in Portland, Oregon. She was 88. According to her son Theo Downes-Le Guin, she had been in poor health for several months.

Le Guin was the author of more than 20 novels, a dozen poetry books, more than 100 short stories, seven essay collections, 13 children's books, five volumes of translation, and a guide for writers. She is best known for her science fiction and fantasy novels, including her Hugo and Nebula award-winning The Left Hand of Darkness (1969) and the Earthsea series, which she began in 1968 with A Wizard of Earthsea.

Her Earthsea series was an inspiration for Studio Ghibli and Goro Miyazaki's Tales from Earthsea movie (2006). According to Le Guin's blog post about the film, she had initially refused Hayao Miyazaki's request to adapt her story to film, until she saw My Neighbor Totoro. She expressed her disappointment that Hayao Miyazaki was ultimately not involved in the film, as it was directed by his son Goro. On the film itself, she told Goro, "It is not my book. It is your film. It is a good film." She further explained her thoughts on her blog.