The Left Hand of Darkness

Jensly Ai, envoy of the League of Worlds, goes to the ice-bound planet Gethen to persuade its rulers to join a growing intergalactic civilization. But the locals don’t trust Ai—because he’s a man, while all Gethenians are hermaphrodites who change their sexual role as needed. To succeed in this mission, Jensly must overcome not only a chain of intrigues, conspiracies, and betrayals, but also the gap between his own views and the traditions of an unknown yet intriguing culture. “The Left Hand of Darkness” is a classic of science fiction and a continuation of the Hainish Cycle, in which serious questions of psychology, society, and humanity are presented against the backdrop of an alien world.