Soup of the Moment: A Tale of BARSK (Tales of Barsk)
★ Return to the award-winning world of Barsk: The Elephants' Graveyard and The Moons of Barsk in this prequel that reveals the true story behind the classic bedtime story of Pholo, the Fant who could fly! ★
In the distant future, the galaxy is filled with the descendants of raised mammals created by the long-forgotten human race. Nearly all of these anthropomorphic peoples are furred, except for the Fant — furless beings with enormous ears and bizarre prehensile trunks — who because of their differences were rounded up centuries ago and relocated to Barsk, a wet world no one else wanted.
But the Fant have adapted and prospered in their isolation, having grown accustomed to the near constant rainfall and making the island rainforests of Barsk their home.
On one of these islands lives Pholo, a young scientist with a radical theory: what if you could harness the power of the storms and use it fly‽
To test her theory she has built a prototype, a transduction engine that appears to work, albeit with a sizable radioactive side effect.
Pholo believes she's solved the problems of flying suit but her lovers — a poet named Bindle and a physician named Gavi — are worried about radiation.
Her great great grandmother is concerned she's making a mistake, and is offering her the family soup business if Pholo will just put all this science foolishness aside.
And her therapist fears that Pholo's obsession with flight is blinding her to the importance of the people in her life who truly love her.
Is Pholo's theory right? Can she succeed in flying? And if so, at what cost?