Marion Applegate

Listen for the Lark Marion Applegate

Listen for the Lark is a story of compassion, love and survival in the American wilderness. Penelope Van Princis immigrated to New Amsterdam from the Netherlands in 1643. Filled with the promises of the New World, she is shipwrecked off the coast of New Jersey. Upon reaching the shore she looses everything she owns and everyone she loves to an attack from unfriendly Indians, leaving her permanently scared. Having been left for dead, she survives until the Sanhicans of the Delaware Indians befriend her and nurse her back to health. While among these native people, Penelope is forced to accept their cruel form of justice, confront her fears and accept her husband's death while paving a new life for herself in a wilderness that is not always fair. Because of the attack, the fear of carrying a Maqua child haunts her after two people from Fort Amsterdam accuse her of carrying a bastard. Since her life is in constant danger, she questions God's love and doubts she has any purpose in the universe. Pursued by two very different men while she is grieving for her murdered husband, Penelope walks a tight rope while trying to protect her unborn child. Both men have lost their wives and need Penelope to help them rebuild their lives. As if she didn't have enough problems in her life, Penelope has to protect three runaway slaves and a Jesuit priest who have joined her in the Sanhican community because living at Fort Amsterdam was too dangerous. Listen for the Lark is our imaginative journey into Penelope's body, mind, and soul as she lives through the suspenseful drama of her first nine months in the New World. Penelope Van Princis, a remarkable woman, helped establish the country we love today.