Earthsea: The First Four Books

A Wizard of Earthsea * The Tombs of Atuan * The Farthest Shore * Tehanu

One of the cornerstones of fantasy storytelling and an acknowledged influence on the writing on JK Rowling, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Margaret Atwood, Stephen Fry, Patrick Rothfuss and almost anybody who has written in the fantasy genre over the last 50 or so years.

Ged is but a goatherd on the island of Gont when he comes by his strange powers over nature. Sent to the School of Wizards on Roke, he learns the true way of magic and proves himself a powerful magician.

And it is as the Archmage Sparrowhawk that he helps the High Priestess Tenar escape the labyrinth of darkness. But over the years, Ged witnesses true magic and the ancient ways submit to the forces of evil and death. Will he too succumb, or can he hold them back?