What's the Name of That Book??? discussion

There was this book I read in school (it might have been YA or more, it wasn't the easiest book for a kid to read) and it was about this young boy who had some kind of powers and ends up going to a monastery. His shadow is a really big theme to the book and the word shadow might have even been in the title. The shadow was evil. Also another theme in the book were raven birds. He does leave the monastery after he learns enough and goes to fight whatever this evil thing is. I know it's vague but it was a difficult book to read and I want to find it and read it now that I'm older. It is not a long book either.

That sounds so familiar. Maybe it's something by Victor Kelleher.

Or, more likely than Kelleher is Ursula Le Guin. I'm pretty sure the main character Ged had a shadow in one of the Earthsea books, but I can't remember which.

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin is the one with the shadow in it. It is generally for middle school or older, I think.

I thought it kind of sounded like A Wizard of Earthsea too.

In the Hall of the Dragon King I think has a boy that grows up in a monastery, if it isn't Le Guin.

Oh Gosh--does the main character have a younger brother who was supposed to go to the monastery instead of him? There was some sort of trick in the beginning that that monks got the main character to go instead. There are other kids at this monastery place and they are really miserable but the kid finds away to break out?

This sounds like a book I've been looking for that's been driving me crazy!

Brandon, are you still looking for this? Was it anything mentioned?

No response, moving to Abandoned.