Ursula K. Le Guin's cerebral fusion of science fiction and a thought-provoking exploration of two very different ways of organizing society is absolutely one of her best books!
Shevek is a brilliant physicist, working on a new theory that may be as transformative and foundational as the work of Einstein. In pursuing his theory, he discovers that his dry homeworld of Anarres is not as free as he believed it to be. His society of anarchists has grown rigid, bureaucratic, and resistant to change in the years since the revolution.
In order to pursue his work, he must leave Anarres and be the first to travel back to the deeply unequal, capitalist planet of Urras. Will Shevek succeed at completing his theory and igniting the fires of change? Or will he be consumed in the struggle for freedom?
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