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Interviews | June 19, 2009

Dave: IMG Jim Lynch Makes Landscape Art... Out of Text



jimlynchIf Carl Hiaasen set one of his novels on a residential stretch of boundary line between British Columbia and Washington, or if Richard Russo's characters had relatives in the Pacific Northwest, the result might be something like Jim Lynch's Border Songs. Continue »
  1. $18.16 Sale Hardcover add to wish list

    Border Songs

    Jim Lynch

Peony in Love

by Lisa See

Peony in Love Cover

ISBN13: 9780812975222
ISBN10: 0812975227
Condition: Standard
All Product Details

Only 3 left in stock at $7.75!

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

“I finally understand what the poets have written. In spring, moved to passion; in autumn only regret.”

For young Peony, betrothed to a suitor she has never met, these lyrics from The Peony Pavilion mirror her own longings. In the garden of the Chen Family Villa, amid the scent of ginger, green tea, and jasmine, a small theatrical troupe is performing scenes from this epic opera, a live spectacle few females have ever seen. Like the heroine in the drama, Peony is the cloistered daughter of a wealthy family, trapped like a good-luck cricket in a bamboo-and-lacquer cage. Though raised to be obedient, Peony has dreams of her own.

Peony’s mother is against her daughter’s attending the production: “Unmarried girls should not be seen in public.” But Peony’s father assures his wife that proprieties will be maintained, and that the women will watch the opera from behind a screen. Yet through its cracks, Peony catches sight of an elegant, handsome man with hair as black as a cave–and is immediately overcome with emotion.

So begins Peony’s unforgettable journey of love and destiny, desire and sorrow–as Lisa See’s haunting new novel, based on actual historical events, takes readers back to seventeenth-century China, after the Manchus seize power and the Ming dynasty is crushed.

Steeped in traditions and ritual, this story brings to life another time and place–even the intricate realm of the afterworld, with its protocols, pathways, and stages of existence, a vividly imagined place where one’s soul is divided into three, ancestors offer guidance, misdeeds are punished, and hungry ghosts wander the earth. Immersed in the richness and magic of the Chinese vision of the afterlife, transcending even death, Peony in Love explores, beautifully, the many manifestations of love. Ultimately, Lisa See’s new novel addresses universal themes: the bonds of friendship, the power of words, and the age-old desire of women to be heard.

From the Hardcover edition.

Synopsis:

Immersed in the richness and magic of the Chinese vision of the afterlife, transcending even death, See's novel beautifully explores the many manifestations of love and addresses the age-old desire of women to be heard.

About the Author

Lisa See is the New York Times bestselling author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Flower Net (an Edgar Award nominee), The Interior, and Dragon Bones, as well as the critically acclaimed memoir On Gold Mountain. The Organization of Chinese American Women named her the 2001 National Woman of the Year. She lives in Los Angeles. Visit the author’s website: www.LisaSee.com.

To schedule a speaking engagement, please contact American Program Bureau at www.apbspeakers.com  

From the Hardcover edition.

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
Cathy from Olympia, Washington, May 24, 2008 (view all comments by Cathy from Olympia, Washington)
Peony is nearly sixteen, and has never been outside the walls of her family's compound. But her life is
about to change forever-- she is to marry a man she has never met, leave her natal home forever, and live with her husband's family. What is much more exciting to Peony, however, is her father's birthday gift-- the chance to glimpse the famous opera The Peony Pavilion, which her father is bringing to the family's villa. So begins Peony in Love, a novel rich in the rituals and traditions of 17th century China, including glimpses into the after life.

A "warning" if you will. For those of you expecting a love story-- no doubt because of the title, and perhaps because you are unfamiliar with Lisa See's writings, this is NOT your typical romance by any stretch of the imagination! That said, a love story IS there, but it is more like a delicate-looking but strong silk thread weaving its way throughout the novel.

If you haven't had the pleasure of reading Lisa See yet, I would recommend starting with this novel rather than her earlier works. For me, Peony in Love is a much "lighter" novel than the acclaimed Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.
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(3 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)

Product Details

ISBN:
9780812975222
Author:
See, Lisa
Publisher:
Random House Trade
Subject:
General
Subject:
Historical - General
Subject:
Young women
Subject:
Future life
Subject:
Love stories
Subject:
Ghost stories
Publication Date:
February 2008
Binding:
Paperback
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
297
Dimensions:
8.01x5.16x.71 in. .52 lbs.

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