{"product_id":"used-the-piano-teacher","title":"Used - The Piano Teacher","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eExotic Hong Kong takes center stage in this sumptuous novel, set in the 1940s and '50s. It's a city teeming with people, sights, sounds, and smells, and it's home to a group of foreign nationals who enjoy the good life among the local moneyed set, in a tight-knit social enclave distanced from the culture at large. Comfortable, clever, and even a bit dazzling, they revel in their fancy dinners and fun parties. But their sheltered lives take an abrupt turn after the Japanese occupation, and though their reactions are varied -- denial, resistance, submission -- the toll it takes on all is soon laid bare. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEnter Claire Pendleton from London. Months after her husband is transferred to Hong Kong in 1951, she accepts a position as a piano teacher to the daughter of a wealthy couple, the Chens. Claire begins to see the appeal of the sweltering city and is soon taken in by the Chen's driver, the curiously underutilized Will Truesdale. A handsome charmer with a mysterious limp, Will appears to be the perfect companion for Claire, who's often left to her own devices. But a further examination leaves her with more questions than answers.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAn intricately woven tale of lives changed by historical events, Lee's debut brings this hothouse flower of a city alive with passion, and imagines characters both unforgettable and tragic.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Publish date - 2009 - used paperback","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53284194124086,"sku":null,"price":6.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0762\/8714\/8342\/files\/IMG-3465.heic?v=1763656481","url":"https:\/\/thenandnowbookshop.com\/products\/used-the-piano-teacher","provider":"Then \u0026 Now Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}