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Title: The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather, Doris Grumbach ISBN: 0-395-34530-8 Publisher: Mariner Books Pub. Date: 10 May, 1983 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $5.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.72 (29 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: About Song of the Lark
Comment: The book Song of the Lark by Willa Cather is a story about a normal country girl, Thea Kronberg, who has magnificent talents in singing. In the book, Cather describes how Thea went a long way from Moonstone to Chicago to Germany to pursue her dream of becoming a famous opera singer. Most of the other characters in the book all helped Thea at some point along the way. Cather particularly described how each character affected Thea in his own way and how Thea had changed as she pursued her dream.
This book is a rather slow paced one, with large amounts of detailed information. There are many descriptions of nature, which could be somewhat boring to some readers. Otherwise, it is a well written book with many interesting characters.
Rating: 5
Summary: Brilliant American book
Comment: This is the first novel that I have read by Willa Cather, and so I began my reading with no specific expectations. What I found was an extraordinary American writer. Her descriptions, and her ability to sum up the lifetime of a character in just a few sentences or lines are unlike the writings of anyone else I have read. She reminds me most of Henry James, although she is easier to read..
Thea, the subject of this early Willa Cather novel is flawed, and not really a heroine at all. She is an artist; her art is music. Her family and neighbors in Moonstone Colorado barely recognize what this means; most just find her odd. Thea is a loner. She has no friends her own age. Her siblings do not like her. But, she is the subject of attention from the town doctor, a railroad worker, a drunkard piano teacher, and Mexican laborers. All recognize something special in her; all contribute to her early struggle to find her art, and herself.
It is a railroad accident that changes her life. When her friend, Ray Kennedy, dies in a railroad accident, he leaves Thea a $600 inheritance. These funds take her to Chicago to study piano. There she struggles in poverty, and is discouraged, but she also gets her first glimpse of who she is as an artist.
This is a timeless story about struggle. What does it take to be an artist? What does the artistic commitment mean? Thea does not visit her mother before her death because she had a special opportunity to sing a Wagnerian part in Germany. Her response seems selfish, and uncaring. Her sweetheart turns out to be unavailable, he is unhappily married. Thea has little personal life; people are somewhat incidental to her. Her life models that of a true artist. The normal relations that most people need to thrive, are peripheral to her life as an artist. It is that devotion to the art of singing that fills her life.
At the time of this writing, Song of the Lark is number 40,604 on Amazon.com's best selling list. As a brilliant American writer, Cather seems to have been somewhat but not completely overlooked. Perhaps this is because she was a contemporary of Hemingway, and Fitzgerald, both of whom were such public figures. Many of their works were transferred to the silver screen. Perhaps it is due to her gender. Regardless of the reason for this, she is an author worth discovering, and worth reading. I highly recommend the Song of the Lark.
Rating: 5
Summary: Timeless and Timely
Comment: This novel was written in 1913, and ninety years later speaks to this aspiring writer's heart. Thea Kronberg struggles with choosing between personal relationships and persuing her passions. She follows her dream to its realization, and realizes ...well, I won't give it away. The story was slow at times, but the prose was striking. This is a quiet, relaxing bedtime read.
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Title: My Antonia by Willa Cather ISBN: 039575514X Publisher: Mariner Books Pub. Date: 21 September, 1995 List Price(USD): $5.95 |
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Title: Death Comes for the Archbishop (Vintage Classics) by Willa Cather ISBN: 0679728899 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 16 June, 1990 List Price(USD): $11.00 |
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Title: O Pioneers! (Vintage Classics) by Willa Cather ISBN: 0679743626 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 01 December, 1992 List Price(USD): $9.00 |
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Title: One of Ours (Vintage Classics) by Willa Cather ISBN: 0679737448 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 05 November, 1991 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Professor's House (Vintage Classic) by Willa Cather ISBN: 0679731806 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 31 October, 1990 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
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