Le Guin, Ursula Kroeber, 1929-, American writer, b. Berkeley, Calif.; daughter of anthropologist Alfred Louis Kroeber. Possessing a keen eye for physical and cultural detail, she uses science fiction to explore contemporary society. A prolific writer of both adult and children's fiction, she gained fame beginning in the 1960s with her series of books about beings from Hain, including Rocannon's World (1966), The Left Hand of Darkness (1969), The Dispossessed (1974), and The Telling (2000). She is also known for her cycle of Earthsea books, such as A Wizard of Earthsea (1968), The Tombs of Atuan (1971), Tehanu (1990), and Tales from Earthsea (2001). Le Guin is also an essayist and poet.