Lark Ascending

I always look forward to reading the latest from Kentucky author Silas House, and Lark Ascending did not disappoint. It is a troubling tale set amid climate change and religious nationalism, where a young man loses everything and everyone multiple times as he escapes the crumbling United States for Ireland, which is not the beacon of hope he’d anticipated. Rather than sinking into the darkness, however, Lark Ascending does what the title promises: it fights its way out of the valley and into the light of the proverbial mountaintop. It offers hope—sometimes in such little bites you think you might starve alongside the narrator, Lark, and sometimes in great, refreshing gulps.

I was immediately taken with the voice of Lark. House has a way of conveying personality through narrative that allows you to peek behind the curtain of what the character is saying and get deeper glimpses into what makes them tick.

Lark is an old man retelling his life story to the reader, but his focus on the details around him—even in moments of fear or weakness—reveal that he is a quiet soul who pays attention. The smells, the colors, the sounds, they are more than just a way to paint a picture for the reader; they gradually unveil what matters to this man. And in a world of chaos and pain and loss, what matters are the small moments of beauty and the quiet moments of companionship.

In Lark Ascending, House leans into the fleeting nature of joy, recognizing that love and grief can be one and the same. Despite spending these formative years in hiding—first with his family in Maine, knowing the powers that be will not accept his love of Arlo, and then in the wilds of Ireland as he and Helen scrounge out a path forward—Lark is one of the most open and trusting characters I’ve ever encountered. His kind belief in others, even to a fault, will stay with me for a long time.

House also introduces a second narrator, Seamus the dog. Seamus’s simple view of the world is restorative in its trust. These chapters also amplify Lark’s perspective: one of heavyhearted hope.

Compelling and lyrical, Lark Ascending is both a warning for our future and a sigh of relief that goodness can always be found, even in the most broken of worlds.