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The Song of the Lark, by Willa Cather, is an inspiring story of the self-making of an artist. Thea, the daughter of a Swedish minister and a girl of exceptional musical talent seems destined from childhood to leave her small town in Colorado for a place in the wider world. As her path to the stage leads her father away from home, her life illustrates to those around her that talent and opportunity are not enough; every artist must have, in addition to these, an intense hatred for mediocrity. When she is a child, Thea’s parents notice a difference between their silent, serious daughter so much the opposite of her six rowdy and demanding brothers and sisters. While her more conventional brothers and sisters fight over sleds and stockings, Thea plays the piano, sings and reads. She loves beautiful things rather than useful or comfortable things. She collects “valuable” stones and admires Dr. Archie’s jewelry. She fixes up her icy apartment with rosy wallpaper and furniture and refuses her parents offer of a warmer room. Her silent and beautiful cell is worth more to her than the comfort of heat. Thea always refuses to settle for the next best thing. As a child she has a tantrum if she is denied a request. If her acquaintan