Ursula le Guin was born in California, USA in 1929.

Her books - including A Wizard of Earthsea and The Left Hand of Darkness - have been described as masterpieces.

Yet she battled prejudice all her life from the literary elite.

On the line from Paris, British musician Kate Stables tells Matthew Parris about her love of le Guin's books.

And Arwen Curry is in San Francisco. She knew the author and made the film The Worlds of Ursula K Le Guin with the strapline 'A Wizard's Work is Never Done'.

Produced at BBC Bristol by Toby Field and Miles Warde

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2020.