<P> It has also appeared as an independently published, 31 - page hardcover book for young adults in 1993 . </P> <P> It was republished in the second volume of the short - story anthology The Unreal and the Real in 2014 . </P> <P> The only chronological element of the work is that it begins by describing the first day of summer in Omelas, a shimmering city of unbelievable happiness and delight . In Omelas, the summer solstice is celebrated with a glorious festival and a race featuring children on horseback . The vibrant festival atmosphere, however, seems to be an everyday characteristic of the blissful community, whose citizens, though limited in their advanced technology to communal (rather than private) resources, are still intelligent, sophisticated, and cultured . Omelas has no kings, soldiers, priests, or slaves . The specific socio - politico - economic setup of the community is not mentioned, but the narrator merely explains that the reader cannot be sure of every particular . </P> <P> Self - admittedly, the uncertain narrator reflects that "Omelas sounds in my words like a city in a fairy tale, long ago and far away, once upon a time . Perhaps it would be best if you imagined it as your own fancy bids, assuming it will rise to the occasion, for certainly I cannot suit you all ." The narrator even suggests that, if necessary, the reader may include an orgy in their mental picture of Omelas . </P>

The ones who walk away from omelas from the wind's twelve quarters short stories by ursula le guin