The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas: A Story

Ursula K. Le Guin

Feb 2017 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

“Ursula Le Guin is more than just a writer of adult fantasy and science fiction . . . she is a philosopher; an explorer in the landscapes of the mind.” – Cincinnati Enquirer

The recipient of numerous literary prizes, including the National Book Award, the Kafka Award, and the Pushcart Prize, Ursula K. Le Guin is renowned for her spare, elegant prose, rich characterization, and diverse worlds. "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" is a short story originally published in the collection The Wind's Twelve Quarters.

Ratings and reviews

I love how detailed the story is. The author describes everything so beautifully that you can see the whole image in your head and it makes you question yourself. It is easy to give an answer when you are simply reading a story but when you actually come face-to-face with the situation, you are not able to make a decision easily or might decide on the opposite what you are thinking now. As the author said, the book is simply a question, the answer is what the readers come up with and I am thinking of that.

I read this book based on a recommendation of a boy band's leader in which they used this book as the inspiration for their song. I read this book with a clump in my chest, knowing the condition of the child. In the song, Spring Day by BTS, it is more like a continuation of what they can do to help the child - it was presented in the music video as a pair of unwanted shoes which tied up on the branches of a tree, longing for its freedom. It was a brilliant combination, it gives you more feels with the song

This short story was my first time reading Ursula LeGuin. The story begins with an eloquent depiction of this ideal little town preparing for a festival. Everything seems perfect, yet there is mention of imperfections, but they are depicted as minor and not having serious negative consequence. The juxtaposition of this pristine society created by LeGuin to its deep, dark, hidden secret is a clear parallel to humanity's natural tendency to establish a sense of superiority at the expense of another person or group. LeGuin had no spefici injustice for her story, which is part of its beauty. This story can be applied to a wide ovarievariety of situations with which we are all familiar. With a lot of the tensions going on right now relating to race/gender/sexuality/politics/nationality, this short story felt particularly poignant.

About the author

Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (1929-2018) was a celebrated author whose body of work includes twenty-three novels, twelve volumes of short stories, eleven volumes of poetry, thirteen children’s books, five essay collections, and four works of translation. The breadth and imagination of her work earned her six Nebula Awards, seven Hugo Awards, and SFWA’s Grand Master, along with the PEN/Malamud and many other awards. In 2014 she was awarded the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, and in 2016 she joined the short list of authors to be published in their lifetimes by the Library of America.