The Song of the Lark
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4.5 • 15 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
A small-town girl becomes a world-famous artist in this powerful coming-of-age novel from one of the twentieth-century’s most celebrated authors
From childhood piano lessons to center stage at the Metropolitan Opera House, The Song of the Lark is the poignant story of an artist discovering herself.
Fiercely independent and singularly talented, Thea Kronborg realizes at an early age that she is destined to leave her family and the frontier town of Moonstone, Colorado, behind. In Chicago, she studies with the city’s best voice teacher and begins the long and arduous process of mastering her craft. But ambition alone will not transform Thea into one of the world’s greatest opera singers—she must find the courage to set aside her humble origins and romantic illusions and fully dedicate herself to her art. In the ruins of an Arizona cliff dwelling haunted by ancient voices and purified by the desert air, Thea is inspired to embrace her calling once and for all.
Lyrical, authentic, and brilliantly constructed, The Song of the Lark is a masterwork of American literature. It is the second volume in Willa Cather’s acclaimed Prairie Trilogy, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
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PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Cather's semiautobiographical bildungsroman about the evolution of an artist revolves around young Thea Kronborg, who leaves smalltown Colorado for Chicago in order to realize her dream of becoming a trained pianist and piano teacher. But her tutor, Mr. Harsanyi, soon discovers Thea's talent for singing and persuades her to pursue that path. Along the way, Thea is championed and romanced by Fred Ottenburg, the rich heir of a beer magnate. Christine Williams is an able reader: her narration is clear and clean, though a little dull. More problematic is Williams's rendition of Thea, which feels flat. Additionally, the narrator's speech becomes breathy during emotional moments (e.g., a kiss) a tic that affects every character, even the males. As such, it is often difficult to distinguish vocally between Thea and her beau, Fred.
