The Farthest Shore is the last of three books making up The Earthsea Trilogy.

In each one Ged is a major character, though The Tombs of Atuan is told from the point of view of a young woman as she approaches adulthood. Each of these volumes received important literary awards, and each is as interesting, profound, and artful as the last.

A Wizard of Earthsea shows how, as a boy, Ged discovers and deals with his shadow, a dark force he releases into the world. By confronting this shadow, he leams how to be an adult. The Tombs of Atuan follows the maturation of Tenar, a young woman who is trained as a priestess in a society that has become increasingly sexist. Though issues of gender are kept in the background, they are central to understanding Tenar's situation. Men are rigidly associated with being and women...