About the book: 1988 / The story “The Judge” and the novel “Fata Morgana” make up the first book in the series “Where the lark can’t fly.” In terms of time, the story and novel are separated by a decade, and the difference in their psychological atmosphere characterizes the transition from the “charming deceptions” of a young intellectual of the sixties to the dangerous mirages of public life, behind which lies a social drama playing out within the walls of a large research institute. The development of the main line of the cycle is accompanied by an intensification of the tragic and satirical themes: from elegy and drama to tragicomedy and farce.