For Solo Cello, op.12

by Mary Robinette Kowal

• Word count: 2214

• Page count: 7

For Solo Cello, op.12 is a soft science fiction story by Mary Robinette Kowal. Nominated for the 2007 Nebula Award for Best Short Story it is about a musician who loses his hand in a accident and the extremes he goes to in order to play music again.

For Solo Cello, op.12 follows Julius, a cellist struggling with the recent loss of his left hand. As he and his wife anticipate the pregnancy of their first child, his agent makes him an offer he can't refuse. This short story draws upon the idea that embryonic stem cells may one day prove very useful - whether legal or not.

His keys dropped, rattling on the parquet floor. Julius stared at them, unwilling to look at the bandaged stump where two weeks ago his left hand had been. He should be used to it by now. He should not still be trying to pass things from his right hand to his left. But it still felt as if his hand were there.

Where you can find For Solo Cello, op.12:

• For Solo Cello, op.12 first appeared in the February/March 2007 edition of the Australian science magazine COSMOS.

• You can read a nice HTML version of For Solo Cello, op.12 online for free at an archive of the COSMOS web site.

Mary Robinette Kowal is a professional puppeteer who also writes science fiction stories. You can learn more about her on her website.

(This is a revised version of a post which was originally published on BestScienceFictionStories.com on Feb 4th, 2008.)