On Wings of Song (Magill’s Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature)
At a glance:
- Author: Thomas M. Disch
- First Published: 1979
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Science fiction—dystopia
- Time of Work: The twenty-first century
- Setting: Amesville, Iowa, and New York City
- Genres: Long fiction, Science fiction, Dystopian fiction
- Subjects: New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, New York City, Twenty-first century, Midwest, Singing or singers, Flight, Fundamentalism, Iowa
- Locales: New York, NY, Iowa
The Plot
From childhood, Daniel Weinreb longs to fly, but in the police state of Iowa flying is illegal. Whirling fans trap the disembodied “fairies” who have left their material forms behind, hooked to life-supporting apparatuses. Fairies achieve escape velocity by singing, so in Iowa all music except simple hymns is suspect. Radio broadcasts and newspapers from outside are forbidden because they trumpet the joys of flying and advertise the means for doing so. Daniel eventually makes his way to New York City with his bride. They register at a flying emporium, and she takes...
[The entire page is 961 words long]
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