The Lark: A True Story Based on Pure Fantasy

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Top Reviews Most recent Top Reviews. There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. Karl Janssen Top Contributor: This book bears little resemblance to those other two novels, begging the question whether the trilogy is really a trilogy at all. The story does not take place on the prairie, but mostly in the deserts of Colorado and Arizona. Later it moves on to urban locales and becomes the sort of big-city drama that Frank Norris or Theodore Dreiser might have written.

I absolutely loved O Pioneers! When we first meet Thea Kronborg, she is 11 years old. The daughter of a Methodist minister, she resides in the small town of Moonstone, Colorado. The general consensus among the townsfolk is that Thea is brighter and more intelligent than her local peers and is destined for great things.

She is a talented pianist and practices diligently to perfect her craft. In her later teen years she begins taking on students of her own. The book follows the progression of her musical career and her struggle to become not just a professional musician but a true artist. Cather is known for her depictions of rural and small-town life. As a setting, Moonstone is certainly not without its charms, but compared to the locales of other Cather novels it's neither as realistic nor as inviting.

She seems hell-bent on populating her Colorado town with a host of real "characters," and she devotes way too much effort to delineating all their peculiar personal quirks. Too her credit, however, the depiction of small-town life in this book is at times refreshingly less than positive. For the purpose of the story, Moonstone is to some extent a prison from which the heroine must escape. One interesting touch is that year-old Thea has a year-old boyfriend who's just waiting for her to come of age so he can take her as his bride.

In very few words Cather expressed some truly profound insights into human nature. The Song of the Lark, on the other hand, is needlessly and tediously verbose, belaboring every point it makes. Here she does so little with so much. After sitting through the umpteenth music lesson or yet another interminable dinner conversation, the reader begins to feel like he's reading the same chapters over and over again. Early in the story Cather goes to great lengths setting up Thea to be the ultimate independent woman, so when a man finally enters her life it ends up being a major disappointment.

It's difficult to see what exactly she sees in the guy, because every time he shows up in the narrative he's a harbinger of boredom. The stiff, unrealistic dialog prevents the reader from identifying or sympathizing with the main characters, as does the fact that they all seem to carry on this strange, sexless existence for decades. Early in the story I really cared about Thea and rooted for her to achieve the success she deserves, but by the end of the book I couldn't care less about her.

The epilogue is one of the book's more moving passages, primarily because Thea is largely absent from it. Cather is a great writer, but this is not a great book. If it didn't have her name on the title page it would be virtually indistinguishable from a host of other mediocre melodramas published during this era. Kindle Edition Verified Purchase. The Song of the Lark is the self-portrait of an artist in the making. The story revolves around an ambitious young heroine, Thea Kronborg, who leaves her hometown to go to the big city to fulfill her dream of becoming a well-trained pianist.

Her voice is discovered to be her outstanding genius, the piano merely a talent. In her rich prose Willa Cather accurately and memorably portrays the struggles of an artist-in-the making and the characters that are part of Thea's story, from her early roots in a small Colorado town to her performance at the Metropolitan Opera. Every so often, I like to read classics that I missed. I'm glad I chose The Song of the Lark this time. I've recently reread Cather's great Prairie Trilogy: While the third of these is usually considered Cather's masterpiece--and is, indeed, wonderful--I love this book best.

It's the story of an artist's life, from obscure beginnings to great success and fame. The heart of the book is Thea Kronburg's sojourn in Panther Canyon, in Arizona, where she finds her purpose and motivation by communing with the artfully decorated pottery left by the ancient native cliff dwellers. I've been there; if you have, too, you'll find this a brilliant evocation of the place in a much more pristine period.

Not to be missed. One person found this helpful. I am not sure if it is required to read the series in order. The story primarily sets mostly toward the end of 19th Century. Thea has musical innate talents such as her proficiency in piano but specially her voice. She has big dreams in life but will struggle much in life to attain the pinnacle in her artistic career as a soprano. Despite being alienated from the world in that little town, Thea will encounter loyal, caring friends who will help her achieve her goals.

Professor Wunsch is her first piano professor who will inculcate the importance of learning German and the love of music. At the young age of 15, she will move to Chicago where she will encounter one of the best teacher in music who will discover her voice. There are a few similar aspects from "My Antonia".

The first being the beautiful landscape descriptions. Despite my enjoyment, I thought they were more special and personal in "My Antonia". Here, the descriptions seemed a little detached and distant maybe because they mimicked this uncertainty and struggle Thea was going through at the time. I felt, at times, that these beautiful analogies and reflections kept one going around the bush and rendered one impatient. Nonetheless, the narration was poetic and symbiotic with nature.

My favorite landscape description was of the Panther Canyon. The second similar element was the issue of discrimination among the different nationalities. It is clearly noted how some European immigrants would not mingled with the Mexicans. One of the primary theme discussed in this novel was the idea of innate talent and the sacrifices it demanded to become a true artist.

It would be a life long mission.

How I Picked This Top 10 Science Fiction Short Stories List

Thea was defined by her career endeavors and her struggles rendering her self-centered and alienated from others. In his day, author Will Jenkins, pen name Murray Leinster, wrote some incredible stories - in the good sense, not the bad sense - not the least of which was his most famous, First Contact , and arguably his most fun, A Logic Named Joe. If you love creative, entertaining and fascinating stories about early computers and their effects on society, then you might think A Logic Named Joe belongs on this list instead of Pipeline to Pluto , and you'd be right.

It should be here. But I chose Pipeline to Pluto , because while more understated, it's more of a human story, with a larger-than-life lesson, and - are you sensing a trend - it's got a grand old twist. It's simply a more impressive literary feat. Pipeline to Pluto is a highly detailed and convincing tale of space travel.

It's anything but a space opera filled with glamour and adventure, though. The story describes a prosaic world of blue-collar transportation - freight, in fact. Like much Golden Age science fiction, the story, told through fast-paced narrative and dialogue, isn't concerned with conveying a political viewpoint or defending a special interest group. It's concerned with ideas: It's the good-guys vs.

It's essentially modern and optimistically heroic. It's righteous in a good way. It's better than T And all of this won't make any sense to you unless you read it. Suffice it to say that if stories like Pipeline to Pluto were written today, I'd be out there reading them instead of writing this. And it's not just because there's a [spoiler alert: This list wouldn't be complete without Flowers for Algernon , but I almost left it out. This Hugo-award-winning short story and literary classic is simply amazing. Unfortunately, it almost didn't make it onto my list of best science fiction short stories of all time, because I couldn't read it.

I have no spine when it comes to Nazi stories, stories about human lab experiments, and stories about mental disability.

The 50 Best Fantasy Books of the 21st Century (So Far)

This one is not a Nazi story, but it has two out of three, and that's enough for me. But my husband insisted that if I wouldn't read it, at least it should go on this list. And so here it is. If you're stronger than me, and if you didn't already read it in school, read Flowers for Algernon. It's one of the few science fiction stories that have become famous in the mainstream, and with good reason. So what do you think about my selections? What are your favorite short stories in the science fiction genre, past or present? Please leave a comment and, if you feel like it, say why you think it's the best.

See the author's disclosure regarding compensation for this article. Sign in or sign up and post using a HubPages Network account. Comments are not for promoting your articles or other sites. Sprague de Camp -- that last one being MY fave time-travel novella. Great list, but misses a lot of classics. A Canticle for Leibowitz, perhaps because of the irony involved.

I like Nightfall as the premise is outstanding, but it is indeed a few page story pulled out to I enjoyed this hub and your selection of short stories. Of these authors however I only know Asimov and Heinlein. The trouble is I mainly read science fiction novels and not short stories. My favourite Heinlein novel and the first I ever read was "Glory Road" and I must have read it four times now. I found "Stranger in a Strange Land" heavy going from about half way through.

I do like H G Wells eg. Time Machine and Edgar Rice Burroughs, but my favourite SF short story writer is Robert Silverberg though I can't tell you the names of any of his short stories off hand. One of his novels was Lord Valentine's Castle. I'm so happy it led you to some fun reading. Here's to the forgotten and the underdogs of SF! And if you come across anything else you think should be on this list in your reading travels, do post!

Thanks for a great list! While I'm sure many would opt to select different stories, this list is a great jump off point for someone like me who has always cradled an affinity for science fiction but hasn't dabbled in the classics that set the stage for today's storytelling.

Dune initially lured me into the realm of sci-fi, which I re-read every two years or so because of its richness, but branching off into the classics seems all the more intriguing after today. Hmm, it's been quiet here for a while, so I thought I'd update with some of my latest reads. I just read two short stories from the Golden Age: I sure wanted to like 'em. Both failed to be sufficiently "ooh, wow, YEAH!

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Thank you so much for buying my book, Steel Engineer, and even being the first to review it! Since I've had this book up for quite some time and it's made very few sales, I'd say you're right, my pricing is unrealistic. But you're correct, this is a different economy. I just went and changed the price to be more competitive.

Sorry you just missed the good price As for my name I'm a big one for pen names and have to admit I have quite a few. Indeed, sometimes I think I decided to be a writer because it was the only legit way to have lots of cool pseudonyms! That was before the Internet, of course!

I do have relatives from way-back in the Ukraine, I believe. And, this is a very good read. You write science fiction the way it ought to be written. Good sci-fi always has some wit, some theory, and some of the unexpected. The author name is Karen Kolodenko, not Chris Teldon Female writer using male name to bypass gender bias of sci-fi readers.

Either way, very good short story. I think you will get more sales with a lower price. It might bring some sales. Peace and best wishes. PS- -enko is Ukrainian. I'm living in Kiev, so I know all about -enko and -chuk. The politicians nowadays need good Ukrainian names to win elections. Thanks for following up, Steel Engineer. Yeah, Connie Willis isn't known for action-based stories. She's more character-based and about shifts in paradigms and often bridges science fiction and fantasy.

I find her very re-readable, but my husband does not. He is the major sciencefictionite around these parts and would put together a completely different list, I think, and include A Martian Odyssey. Well, I made a third effort to read Connie Willis' book today. I realized it was work. She does a lot of explaining through thoughts Not so much action.

And, the sci-fi aspects are not that convincing. I will try some other stories. But, I plan to abandon page much sooner if it is not interesting. You're right - A Martian Odyssey was life-changing and society-changing and a true "first. I think I need to give it another read and come at it with expectations not so modern.

I bought Connie Willis' book, 12 stories, through your link. The preceding had no Kindle versions. I'll let you know later what I think. Hubbers should shop first for another hubber's link I'm looking forward to reading some of the books on the list again. There is a short story called Slow Birds by Ian Watson from I think about that I read about 10 years ago and just can't get it out of my head. I agree with theframjak about "Nine billion names". Never read the "Last Question" by Aasimov.

Another thing for my "to do" list. What a great list. I agree with many, my favorite remains Flowers for Algernon but I have read almost everything in your list. Some of these I had forgotten about! I agree with your comment on Heinlein though- I remember Stranger in a Strange Land and liking it hey- it was the 60s but the rest of his stuff I could do without.

You have inspired me to do more Golden Oldies on my blog. We really do need to pay homage to the older writers and introduce the young uns to them. What an interesting list! I love science fiction stories and the passing of Bradbury was just tragic and all too soon, a great light gone out in the literary sky. I had a top 50 list, but it was more than 10, words. So I decided to just make a top 10 list.

Another issue with modern "science fiction" is the inclusion of fantasy elements and the repeat titles of a current story line until the old master has degenerated it completely series like Ringworld, Dune. Nice list ive only read one of these Farewell to the Master and enjoyed it so will look into the rest of the list. This hub is all about the old SF masters, and I honestly meant to keep it that way.

But then, under the influence of a lot of caffeine, I decided it would be very, very wrong not to self-promote my brand new short story ebook available for purchase on Kindle:. It's not hard sci-fi - in fact, it's fairly squishy.

But some of you might recognize the occasional gentle bow to some of the Golden Age greats Flowers for Algernon is a definite classic - I think it captures the hopes and frustrations of intellect in a way that few other works can match. Just out of curiosity, have you read Heinlein's "Starship Troopers"? I, too, tend not to enjoy Heinlein much, but "Starship Troopers" seems to be far more realistic and "grounded" than most of his other works.

It gets a bit melodramatic in a few places, but still a good read. Why not expand it to a Top Twenty or Top Thirty list? I know that I - at least - would also enjoy reading your Hub on that topic, too. Let me be one of the crowd who will lambaste you for not putting Nightfall in the top spot in SF short stories. It should be there. It has all the elements including, as you so aptly point out, the wonderful surprise ending. Asimov should have left it at that. He should have resisted the temptation to turn it into a novel.

It came out while I was reviewing, and I read it and was disappointed, especially after the nice, tight writing and great plot of the original. I absolutely agree with including By His Bootstraps. An excellent time-travel paradox story. Clark's The Star comes to mind as another story that would have qualified for this list, as does R. And read Flowers for Algernon - the original.

It's not gruesome, though it is sad. There is, particularly toward the end, a sensitive sort of reverie, a bittersweetness. In a way, it is a sort of paradigm for Alzheimers disease now, as Charlies watches his gifts slip away from him.

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Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. HubPages and Hubbers authors may earn revenue on this page based on affiliate relationships and advertisements with partners including Amazon, Google, and others. To provide a better website experience, hobbylark. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so. For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: I based inclusion on whether or not many of these factors were to the story's credit: I read the story with one exception.

I loved the story. The story was fun to read. It wasn't depressing with one exception. The story stayed with me - I thought about it for a long time - either in my nightmares or giggling about it spontaneously at work. The story was well-written. I was either not aware of any major writing flaws or I got a shiver of delight at the way the words are written. The story gripped me and didn't let go. I never thought, "I've got to go get my laundry out of the dryer" in the middle of it.

The story made me feel a sense of wonder. Even decades after it was written, in the age of the iPad and Android and suchlike. The story is important. It did something new that changed the way science fiction was written afterward, or it changed society. Best Science Fiction Stories of All Time These are the best science fiction stories of all time, according to somebody who spent much of her life thinking that science fiction sucked.

Disclaimer This might be obvious, but these are ten of the best science fiction stories ever in my own opinion. Short reviews of the stories and why I Iiked them. Best Science Fiction Stories Ever: Time in Advance by William Tenn Note: Daisy, In the Sun by Connie Willis Connie Willis, speculative fiction novelist and author of tragic science fiction Passage and comic science fiction To Say Nothing of the Dog , is one of the most popular modern science fiction authors writing today.

Nightfall by Isaac Asimov I'll probably be lambasted for not putting this one in the number 1 spot. Contains the short story, Nightfall. The novel of the same title is a different book. The Lady Who Sailed the Soul, Cordwainer Smith Under the pen name Cordwainer Smith, Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger wrote a series of related short stories taking place in a futuristic world that is drawn with an eerie combination of cool, clinical precision and fairy tale lyricism.

The Lady Who Sailed the Soul. Pipeline to Pluto by Murray Leinster In his day, author Will Jenkins, pen name Murray Leinster, wrote some incredible stories - in the good sense, not the bad sense - not the least of which was his most famous, First Contact , and arguably his most fun, A Logic Named Joe.

Contains Pipeline to Pluto. What Do You Think? What is your favorite science fiction short story of all time? Do you like the science fiction short stories published today? I love the science fiction short stories being published today. The sci fi short stories of today are all right, I guess. I read 'em, anyway. I dislike the short stories published in the science fiction genre these days. I'll be happy if I never read another vampire story again!

I dislike the stories today: What are you talking about? Vampire stories aren't science fiction. But anyway, yeah, the stories these days suck. Here's what I think about modern short speculative fiction: The writing's good, but the stories are bad. No, actually, the stories are good, but the writing's awful.

I hate the short stories of today.

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