Ursula K. Le Guin was born in Berkeley, California, in 1929. Her novels include Rocannon's World, Planet of Exile, City of Illusions, and The Left Hand of Darkness. With the awarding of the 1975 Hugo and Nebula Awards to The Dispossessed, she became the first author to win both awards twice for novels.

Her most famous work for young readers is the Earthsea quartet which has been translated into many languages all around the world. She has won the highest children’s award in the US, the Newbery Medal.