The Lathe of Heaven

Written by Ursula K. Le Guin

Narrated by Suzanne O'Malley

Many dream of changing the world. But George Orr's dreams do change it—for better or for worse. George consults a psychotherapist who promises to help him. But the scientist has his own plans for George and his dreams.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Blackstone Audio
• Release date: Apr 7, 2010
• ISBN: 9780786113033

Ursula K. Le Guin

Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (1929-2018) was a celebrated author whose body of work includes 23 novels, 12 volumes of short stories, 11 volumes of poetry, 13 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 joined the short list of authors to be published in their lifetimes by the Library of America.

Reviews for The Lathe of Heaven

[brian3gunderson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an interesting exploration of how dreams and other parts of our psyche affect the waking world and vice versa. For me, the distinctions between the two main foils seemed a bit too blunt at times, but, once I finished the book, I feel like it all worked together well, with kind of a dream-like quality. And why wouldn't it? Le Guin is a skillful author.

[comixminx · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great, absorbing book with a central hook concept that I liked a lot. Very odd though how it really reminded me of Philip K Dick, which is not something I would ever have expected UKlG to do: uncertain world, ever changing due to a mental ability? check. drugs? check. manipulation by hearty person who is sure of themselves? yup. Hmm, odd.

[suzemo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this book a lot - it's a bit of Monkey's Paw, a bit of Fisherman's Wife, and a whole lot of thinking.

George Orr is a dude. A completely normal 50th percentile all over, totally forgettable normal dude. He isn't blindingly intelligent, he doesn't have a large or strong personality, and yet he's changing the world - changing reality, over and over again. The best part is - no one knows.

He dreams intense ('effective') dreams sometimes, and his dreams are true. And they change the world. As it is, as it ever was.

He goes to see a shrink, who doesn't just (eventually) believe him, but tries to use George's dreams to make the world a better place (but not just for humanity, he also decides to further his own gains). George's position also gets better, though it does not make him happy. The problem is, one must be careful what one wishes for.

George has a hard time accepting reality as *real.* He created it, right? How real is real? How much control do we really have? What will it take to make everything break? How much better, or even how do you even make things better? What will the mind accept and what will it create? This is a delightfully juicy psychological book.

[fuzzi_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

George Orr is trying to not sleep and dream: his problem isn't nightmares, per se, but that what he dreams becomes reality...and no one else notices how the world changes daily......except Dr. Haber, who, while insisting he is trying to cure George, seems to have an ulterior motive behind his manipulation of George's dreams...This was my first time reading a book by Ursula K. LeGuin, and I was suitably impressed: while much of this book has a slightly dated feel, reminding me of a good episode of The Twilight Zone series, it does not get bogged down with archaic language and situations. Enjoyed, will consider reading more books by this author. :)

[eleanor_eader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Thought-provoking sci-fi, written with a clever turn of phrase and use of imagery… the diffident protagonist, George Orr, is having dreams that shape reality, an anomaly nicely at odds with his personality, since he is so passive that his waking life has little impact on anybody. Dr Huber (whose name is impishly close to hubris) has his own agenda for Orr’s dreams, directing and shaping the world through use of his specially developed device, the ‘Augmenter’. I was particularly impressed by the changing realities, especially the last one, and delighted with the aliens that Orr brings into being; and with the uncertainty of whether or not the aliens - indeed, any of the events surrounding Orr – ever existed before he ‘dreamed’ them up.I found the exposition slightly overwritten in this short novel, which otherwise had some fantastic dreamy prose, but the story within is fascinating, as is the relationship and differences between Huber and Orr.

[bacillicide · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was fascinating! It was super short, but so, so interesting. This is actually my second dip into Ursula K. Le Guin's work, and my favorite. The Dispossessed didn't really leave me wanting to read more of her, but this one certainly did. My mind = blown.

[auntmarge64 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In Portland, OR, in the near-future (our near past - this was written in 1971), George Orr discovers his dreams are changing reality and turns to drugs to quell them. He is sent to a psychiatrist, whose response is to start experimenting with George's dreams to design his own utopian world. With reality changing every day, but his memories encompassing all the realities simultaneously, George desperately searches for some way to stop the doctor, to whom the authorities continue to send him. LeGuin makes George's experience quite vivid for the reader, who soon finds herself unable to put the book down until George either succeeds or fades into madness, and the world into chaos.

[pyobon · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Engaging but sort of quaint: it reminded me of H.G.Wells

[littlepiece · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I've read many of LeGuin's books, but this one is by far my favorite. Younger readers should probably start with the Earthsea books and Annals of the Western Shore, but for adults I suggest starting here.

[laphenix · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Leagues away from what I typically pick up, I can’t pretend to grasp all the ideas broached in this dystopian novel. Though the writing style I’ve come to associate with dystopias is unvarying, the beautiful imagery, often lucidly symbolic, make this book more accessible. Written 40 years ago, the themes and setting don’t feel dated, and indeed the ideas addressed are ones society still weighs today. Le Guin’s choice to set the novel in a real location makes the city’s state in the different continua seem more realistic and plausible. Le Guin’s novel is a stirring and engaging read.

[dogbrain_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

dreaming mt hood into visibility, and getting rid of cars downtown!

[tatiana_g_29 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Would you like to play God?Would you like to shape the world to your liking? Maybe to rid it of war, overpopulation, hunger, racial prejudice, decease? To make it into your own idea of Heaven?Well, the two main characters of The Lathe of Heaven have different opinions on this subject. George Orr, who possesses a unique ability to change the world by dreaming about, seemingly, the most mundane things, wants this power to be gone, he is sure the events should take their natural course, no matter how dire the consequences are to the humanity. His doctor, William Haber, thinks it is his responsibility to make this world a better place. He is adamant he will achieve his goal of a perfect society! And he will use Orr's ability as a means to his megalomaniac ends. Does it matter that people in his utopia are all of a battleship gray color? That sick people are euthanized? Not to Haber, as long as it is for the common good.The Lathe of Heaven was the first Le Guin's book that tickled my visualization "powers," which are very modest, to put it lightly. My imagination went in overdrive picturing our planet changing - billions of people disappearing, landscapes transforming, climate adjusting - all retroactive results of Orr's unconscious dreaming. This story would make a visually stunning movie a la Inception, only a million times better, because Le Guin explores much cooler ideas of fatalism, equanimity, and God complex.4 stars because it took so long to come up with the idea how to fix Orr's dream problem. I had the solution the moment I knew what his complaint was and I don't understand why Orr himself never thought of it. A bit of a weak plotting there.Besides this minor issue, the novel is just immensely exciting and imaginative.

[crazybatcow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a re-read of a book I read many years ago. I remember thinking over the past decade or so that this book had always been one of my favorites. I won't say that I was disappointed by my re-reading, because really, I wasn't. But the writing is much drier and much more "distant" than I remember it being. I didn't care about the characters at all, and I couldn't figure out why Orr wouldn't just dream his own dreams - of course, now I know it's because of the time when this novel was written - when individuals believed the medical profession/government/powers-that-be were "right", regardless. Anyway, I still LOVE the concept behind the book (wouldn't that be so cool?), but the writing of it, or the standards of the era within which it was written... not so much.Originally I gave this 5 stars. Now, as an adult, I'd give it 3.5

[jimmychanga · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good fast read. I liked the premise and the beginning/middle but then the ending it gets a little too confusing for my taste. I liked some of the philosophy behind it, though the book is driven more by characters and action (as it should).

[santhony_35 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Despite reading well over a thousand books over the years, many of them science fiction, I somehow neglected Ursula LeGuin. I attribute this to being an early Lord of the Rings fan and viewing her Wizard of Earthsea series as a cheap imitation. As a result, I pigeonholed her as a second rate fantasy author and failed to discover her numerous, outstanding science fiction works.After reading her Left Hand of Darkness and Worlds of Exile and Illusion, both of which I enjoyed very much, I began to actively seek out her work, hence my exposure to this very short novel (actually more of a novella). Those seeking hard science fiction may be disappointed, as her focus is more sociological and anthropological than with technology, space or time travel.This short work, set in a depressing dystopian American near future, features George Orr, a dreamer, but not your average, run of the mill dreamer. George’s dreams have the ability to change reality. When George thinks he is insane and struggles to avoid sleep, he is directed to Dr. William Haber, a specialist in dreams and sleep disorders who soon discovers a way to profit from George’s abilities, by directing his dreams. But dreams are tricky and Dr. Haber’s suggestions and direction do not always lead where he thinks. For example, a suggestion to dream of world peace results in intergalactic war.I’ve seen reviews which attribute political and abstract interpretations to this work, and such may have been the author’s intent. For me, however, the short work was a highly entertaining and thoughtful essay which highlights the futility and hidden dangers inherent in trying to exert control over matters incapable of being controlled.

[theboylatham_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Seven out of ten.

One man dreams - except everything he dreams seems to come true. This gives him the power to change the world if the dreams can be controlled but for each problem he tries to solve by his dreams there are unaccounted for side-effects. The idea is excellent and sums up a lot of the things people do which has unforeseen consequences - do the ends justify the means?

[maowangvater · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

George Orr is having disturbing dreams. He’s so afraid that he’s trying not to sleep. He borrows his friends’ Pharm cards to keep himself drugged up enough to stay awake. It doesn’t work, and after the inevitable crash, he’s sent to Dr. Haber for Voluntary Therapeutic Treatment. It’s either that or he goes to jail. Dr. Haber is a dream specialist and he has a wonderful new machine, the Augmentor that he wants to try on his new patient. Combined with hypnosis he sure he can cure George of the idea that George’s night fantasies can somehow change reality. His first hypnotic suggestion to George is to dream of a horse. When George wakes up the picture of Mt. Hood in Dr. Haber’s office has changed to a picture of a horse. George is not at all surprised that this has happened. Dr. Haber won’t say anything. After a few sessions Dr. Haber suggests that it would be good for George to dream of a bigger office for the doctor, one with a real view of Mt. Hood. It’s a small thing, but what happens when Dr. Haber suggests that George dream of a world without the problem of overpopulation is not.

[jimmaclachlan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved both the book & the movie. The idea of a man that could change the world was unique the way she presented it. The few characters were perfect to drive her point home. Tremendous power that was so powerless. Unforeseen consequences mixed into a chaotic theory that defied harnessing. The understated humor that ran through out the book was just perfect! It wasn't a funny book, but had it's moments, enough to lighten the overall depressing world & main character.It was an eclectic blend of elements that made for a wild ride.

[cbjames_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K Le Guin is science fiction, but it's a science fiction of ideas, of what if's, not of technology and alien planets. There are aliens and technology in the novel, but they are beside the point really. This is a fable, like so many episodes of The Twilight Zone, a story about the improbable designed to tell us something about the every day.In The Lathe of Heaven, George Orr has dreams that come true. His dreams come true, and he is the only one who notices the changes they make in the world around him. To stop his dreams he has been taking overdoses of various drugs which is a crime punishable by forced visits to a psychiatrist in Le Guin's anti-utopian future. The bulk of the novel is made up of Orr's sessions with Dr. Haber. Dr. Haber does not try to cure Orr. Instead he tries to use his power to improve the world, to clean up pollution, reverse global warming, stop war. These all sound like good ideas, but it never works out that way in fiction, not for long. Soon Dr. Haber is creating a stifling, controlled society, where the individual is sacrificed for the greater good. George Orr tries to rebel but how can he when Dr. Haber has gained control of his dreams.I found The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin to be entertaining and surprisingly pertinent to today's world. Considering the book was written in 1971 this is not exactly good news, but it is a very good book. Even if you're not a fan of science fiction there is much to enjoy in The Lathe of Heaven. I'm giving it five out of five stars.

[zathras86 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've always enjoyed Le Guin's work for both her unique writing style and her incredibly creative imagination, and I wasn't disappointed here. It was refreshing to read a book set on Earth, albeit a dystopian future Earth.As the main character and his psychiatrist slowly repair the world using the power of his dreams, the story carries us through a fascinating exploration of the nature of reality. Worked into this framework are a few cautionary tales about where current society might end up if we're not careful, but also a few cautions about wishing things were too different - because even in reshaping reality, the rules of reality still apply. In other words, be careful what you wish for.Le Guin's own imagination is displayed in full force here, and the result is very enjoyable. This is not her best book, but it is very good.

[systemicplural · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A captivating read. A dream psychologist is tempted by the power of having a subject whose dreams become reality. Explores the impossible nature of a perfect utopia and how life is a balance rather than an ideal. Taoist quotes that start chapters are very fitting for the books subject matter. The technology, psychology and sociology are somewhat out of date but the concept is timeless.This particular quote stood out to me. It's not relevant to the main subject matter of the book, but it captures so well for me that moment of meeting someone you are deeply attracted to;"An irrelevant and poignant sensation of pleasure rose in him, like a tree that grew up and flowered all in one moment with its roots in his loins and its flowers in his mind. 'Hello,' he said again."

[abras_30 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A book about a man whose dreams alter reality? I was skeptical. I heard plenty of good things about this book and found it on several "Best Of Sci-Fi" lists but it just didn't seem like my kind of book. The main plot line, mentioned above, seemed like a good one, but my inner skeptic instantly recognized that it could be easily corrupted by poor writing. My mind raced with visions of religious symbolism, tedious philosophizing and page after page of vague, long-winded prose.In case you haven't guessed by the four star rating, I was sorely mistaken. The story turned out to be a lot more grounded than originally expected. It follows an ordinary man --in the future, yes, but still a very plausible and "normal" future-- who struggles with his reality-changing dreams. He ends up at a psychologist's office with hopes of curing or at least controlling these kinds of dreams. The psychologist, however, has different plans. Once he learns of his patient's extraordinary ability he starts trying to change the world for the better. I'll leave the plot synopsis at that so as to avoid spoilers.This book manages a nice balance that is rarely achieved. The action moves along at a steady pace but never at the expense of deeper discussion, and vice versa. Thus it avoids becoming a "yawn-fest," the kind of book you're forced to read at school; nor does it ever seem like a cheap thriller that stays on the sales charts for a few weeks then dies, never to be heard from again. As it grows older it is likely that many will label it as a classic sci-fi book, and I am hard pressed to disagree with that attitude. It has a certain timelessness that will keep it relevant, as well as an air of excitement that I am sure will convince people to actually, you know, read it. Little is more tragic than a good book that no one has ever read, after all.

[sturlington_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In a near-future decimated by climate change and overpopulation, a perfectly ordinary man discovers an extraordinary talent: whatever he dreams becomes real. His efforts to escape what he considers his curse land him in the clutches of a psychotherapist, who uses a machine of his own invention and hypnosis to control the dreams and attempt to solve the world’s problems. What results is a bizarre merging of the “real” world with the infinite worlds of dreams until the two can no longer be told apart and all worlds are on the brink of the void. This is a fascinating novel that explores the unknown power of our dreams, the dangers of playing god and the possibilities of infinite worlds.

[donna47_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very good. Very interesting concepts

[barakketh · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Quite enjoyed reading this piece, Le Guin has some very interesting ideas and is always a pleasure to read.

[bluesalamanders · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

George Orr's dreams change reality. He is sent to a psychologist with a specialization in sleep and dream disorders and for the first time in his life, he has hope that he'll be able to stop his "effective dreaming", which is a responsibility he does not want. Instead, the doctor starts using his dreams to change the world. But dreams aren't as easy to control as the doctor would like to believe...I was expecting another book as dense and difficult as The Left Hand of Darkness, but Lathe of Heaven was both shorter and much easier to read. That doesn't mean it was less powerful or fascinating, however.

[shawjonathan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My copy of this was a long way from new when I bought it in Hiroshima: it had done time in the Roswell Public Library, New Mexico, and a bookshop in Missouri. Published in 1971 and set in the late 1990s, it makes much of the Greenhouse Effect, quotably if not always in line with currently favoured scenarios:"'It's raining already.' In fact it was, the endless warm drizzle of spring -- the ice of Antarctica, falling softly on the heads of the children of those responsible for melting it."The book, contrary to my expectations of Le Guin, is pretty much hard science fiction, the science at its centre being oneirology, the study of dreaming. But it's also got plenty of environmentalism, multiple realities and, in the end, aliens worthy of Doctor Who. Excellent, intelligent SF without pretensions, which makes me keen to read more of St Ursula.

[kaelirenee · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A coworker recommended I read some of Le Guin's work, and with how many books I recommend, I feel generally compelled to read recommendations.This novel started out following my normal fiction interests-dystopias. It seemed like this was going to be a good psychiatrist dystopia, which was great because aside from 12 Monkeys, I don't think I've ever seen or read a psychiatric dystopia. Haber was an interesting character, a typical researcher who convinces himself that what he's doing is fo the good of all. And the entire book, I was wondering along-is this bad to happen-aside from the self-serving things Herber did...is it really that bad? And it was a very good internal conflict. I was glad Orr was never completely certain about it either.The plot was good enough for me to ignore the awful grammar (she dangles quite a few participles in her novels, which is kind of distracting after a day of proofreading papers). Then came the aliens. Aliens, really? But I paused, reminded myself that one of my favorite books (Ender's Game), also has aliens and it was a great book despite them (in case you hadn't noticed-I don't like aliens in books-I think they are a lazy plot device either used to indicate xenophobia or to ameliorate guilt of slaughtering a bunch of them). This was also a good book despite the aliens-though not great. It is an interesting concept and an interesting book, though it's best NOT to read it with the intention of reading a couple of chapters each night before bed. I had to read the whole thing in one night, hoping that my dreams would be a little more normal than Orr's.

[clong_818048 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is really quite an amazing story, although I found the ending to be a bit of a disappointment. It tells about a man whose dreams reshape the world, the psychiatrist who sees his patient as a tool to make the world a better place, and the young woman who keeps running into the dreamer in each remake of the world. The writing is good, the characters sympathetic (even the "bad guy" doctor), interesting ethical questions are raised, and the plot never becomes predictable. As noted above, the ending left me a little bit disappointed. It was almost as if, after creating a compelling storyline, Le Guin couldn't really find a compelling way to wrap it up. I read it in two nights. It's well worth your time.

[ragwaine · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Cool, weird, better than I thought it would be and more original too.