Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang

By: Kate Wilhelm

Narrated by: Anna Fields

Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

When the first warm breeze of Doomsday came wafting over the Shenandoah Valley, the Sumners were ready. Using their enormous wealth, the family had forged an isolated post-holocaust citadel. Their descendants would have everything they needed to raise food and do the scientific research necessary for survival. But the family was soon plagued by sterility, and the creation of clones offered the only answer. And then that final pocket of human civilization lost the very human spirit it was meant to preserve as man and mannequin turned on one another.

Sweeping, dramatic, rich with humanity and rigorous in its science, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang is widely regarded as a high point of both humanistic and hard science fiction. It won science fiction's Hugo Award and Locus Award on its first publication and is as compelling today as it was then.

©1976 Kate Wilhelm (P)2006 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

• Hugo Award winner, Best Novel, 1977

"The best novel about cloning written to date." (Locus)
"One of the best treatments of cloning in SF." (New Encyclopedia of Science Fiction)
"Kate Wilhelm's cautionary message comes through loud and clear." (New York Times)

very disappointed!

This was my last Kate Wilham book to listen to. I'm glad I left it last instead of listening first. I have GREATLY enjoyed all of her books...except this one. Not my cup of tea. I have listened and enjoyed other dystopia themed books, The Hunger Game Series, Divergent, & The Host but not this one. It was depressing, I could not get a feel for anyone. I couldn't care for any of the characters and they could not care for themselves.

Excellent story.

I read this book years ago. in listening I found that I had forgotten most of yhe story. it was fun to rediscover it.

Not my fave

I'm not really a Sci-Fi fan but every now and then I sample a book or two just to see if I have changed or maybe Sci-Fi has.
Since I have enjoyed many of Kate Wilhelm's books and absolutely adore Anna Fields' narration (and continue to mourn her loss) it seemed like this book had a better than average chance of being the Game Changer.
It wasn't.
My apologies to Wilhelm and Fields

Timeless Scifi

A wonderful story of a dystopian world. No horror, no zombies, no violence. You certainly don't miss it in this unique tale. Even though it was written decades ago there isn't any content that dates it. It could have been written yesterday. A delight to listen to.

Haunting science fiction at its best

I never knew where this story was going. I’m pretty good at guessing what is about to happen next, but I was constantly surprised throughout the reading. This will certainly get a second listen in the next few years.

Stands the test of time

One of my favorite sci fi novels that stands the test of time and 3 re-reads over 3 decades. The story still feels original after all these years, which says something. I love science fiction but so much these days is super derivative or so bizarre (structure and/or storyline), that I can’t relate.

Had to get used to the audio narrator (not my favorite) who gives a pretty straight reading, but once I did, I enjoyed the book on audio as much as reading it.

Worth a listen.

I loved the premise and really wanted to love the book, but while the bones were good, there just wasn't enough meat for a satisfying meal. I much prefer the " Giver", which covers the same themes, but gave me characters to care about. It isn't until the last third of this novel that there was anyone to really connect with and that was a weak connection.

I generally do not comment negatively on a narrator, but having Ms. Fields' emotionless delivery only added to the overall feeling of wanting more.

Still as I said in the headline, worth a listen.

Interesting, but dated

I had heard this was an excellent dystopian piece and that it was worth the time reading. I agree, mostly. I didn't find the character development as rich as I had hoped and that left me without strong feelings for any of the characters. And, if a reader doesn't feel a connection to some of the characters, it is hard to care about them or their plight. Still, I found the story interesting enough and I did finish it. Overall, I cannot recommend this as a great book, but it was still worth completing.

unusual premise. I enjoyed it.

unusual premise. I haven't come across it before. a very timely book. I enjoyed it.

An Original Take On A Possible Future

Not much to say. I enjoyed it; an original take on a possible future.

I’m not sure if the existence of clones feels as threatening now-a-days as it might have felt back when the book was written in the 70s, so perhaps it was more of a pager-turner then... nevertheless, I thought it was interesting.