The Painter from Shanghai

A Novel

De: Jennifer Cody Epstein

Narrado por: Mary Kane

Reminiscent of Memoirs of a Geisha, a re-imagining of the life of Pan Yuliang and her transformation from prostitute to post-Impressionist. Down the muddy waters of the Yangtze River and into the seedy backrooms of "The Hall of Eternal Splendor," through the raucous glamour of prewar Shanghai and the bohemian splendor of 1920s Paris, and back to a China ripped apart by civil war and teetering on the brink of revolution: this novel tells the story of Pan Yuliang, one of the most talented - and provocative - Chinese artists of the twentieth century.

Jennifer Cody Epstein's epic brings to life the woman behind the lush, Cezannesque nude self-portraits, capturing with lavish detail her life in the brothel and then as a concubine to a Republican official who would ultimately help her find her way as an artist. Moving with the tide of historical events, The Painter from Shanghai celebrates a singularly daring painting style - one that led to fame, notoriety, and, ultimately, a devastating choice: between Pan's art and the one great love of her life.

©2008 Jennifer Cody Epstein (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

An Interesting Historial Novel

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The book is interesting from a historical prospect chronicling the life of a Chinese painter during a particularly difficult time in history. It is well written & well portrayed.

Could have been better with a different narrator

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I can’t believe this narrator narrated so many books. She is just terrible. Forget that she doesn’t pay enough attention to appropriate pace or mood; what’s really annoying is that she pauses arbitrarily in mid-sentences instead of in the appropriate place where punctuation marks should be. It’s very distracting.
The story was nice though a bit confusing in places.

wonderful

This book was so we'll written, I closed my eyes while listening. I was able to see everything my mind. A sad and wonderful story of a strong woman.