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A review by nereidodelette
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier by Thad Carhart
3.0
I have a mixture of feelings while reading this book that makes me struggle if I should rate it 3 or 4 stars. These complex feelings also make me finish this book a lot slower than I thought. I enjoy this book most of the time, but I wouldn't recommend it to people UNLESS I'm sure that they LOVE the piano and would like to know some history and knowledge of it.
First, the book starts beautifully with the picturesque description of the quartier. The narration of his search for purchasing a piano was interesting as well, that special French culture of the musical atelier the author establishes in the first two chapters of the book intrigues me a lot.
Second, the biggest reason I like this book is that it resonates with my life. Also, the writing style of the author is approachable and calm which makes me feel like listening to a friend who has the same taste, life experience and interests as me.
Last, I'm thankful for the author to list the resources he used for writing this book because I do want to know more about the piano.
You can definitely tell that this author loves piano and music so much. His passion is revealed in the sentences he wrote.
However, quite a few of the chapter are way too technical, he spent too much effort on the history and technical knowledge of the manufacturing of the piano which is not what readers would want to read from a memoir like this. Furthermore, it feels like in the middle of the book, the content becomes off the topic from "the piano shop on the left bank" a bit. Especially since it's a short writing of 239 pages, it's a little bit abrupt to mention a summer trip to an atelier in Italy.
Thankfully, the last two chapters brought back the picturesque atmosphere and allow this book to have a satisfying ending. I wish the book could focus more on the encounter and interaction with those people he met. Instead of the knowledge of the piano, I'd like to read more of the story of his life after having his piano. Plus, I feel like I didn't read much about his practise or the enjoyment with his Stingl, which is a pity.
First, the book starts beautifully with the picturesque description of the quartier. The narration of his search for purchasing a piano was interesting as well, that special French culture of the musical atelier the author establishes in the first two chapters of the book intrigues me a lot.
Second, the biggest reason I like this book is that it resonates with my life. Also, the writing style of the author is approachable and calm which makes me feel like listening to a friend who has the same taste, life experience and interests as me.
Last, I'm thankful for the author to list the resources he used for writing this book because I do want to know more about the piano.
You can definitely tell that this author loves piano and music so much. His passion is revealed in the sentences he wrote.
However, quite a few of the chapter are way too technical, he spent too much effort on the history and technical knowledge of the manufacturing of the piano which is not what readers would want to read from a memoir like this. Furthermore, it feels like in the middle of the book, the content becomes off the topic from "the piano shop on the left bank" a bit. Especially since it's a short writing of 239 pages, it's a little bit abrupt to mention a summer trip to an atelier in Italy.
Thankfully, the last two chapters brought back the picturesque atmosphere and allow this book to have a satisfying ending. I wish the book could focus more on the encounter and interaction with those people he met. Instead of the knowledge of the piano, I'd like to read more of the story of his life after having his piano. Plus, I feel like I didn't read much about his practise or the enjoyment with his Stingl, which is a pity.