{"product_id":"dream-of-the-green-bower","title":"Droom van het Groene Prieel","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat if poems and conversation lead you into a world where pleasure and loss sit side by side?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Yu Da’s Dream of the Green Bower, Jin Yixiang enters the pleasure quarters of southern China. A young scholar of talent and sincere feeling, he befriends gifted courtesans. Their meetings bring poems, conversation, friendship, and love into a world where educated men and talented women find one another.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFirst printed in 1878, this late Qing novel unfolds at a leisurely, episodic pace. Its title points to the houses where courtesans live and work, while its dreams suggest how brief worldly joy can be. The story invites you to linger over each encounter, with pleasure and the possibility of loss close together.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat you'll discover\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eA scholar among courtesans\u003c\/strong\u003e – Follow Jin Yixiang as his sincere feelings draw him toward gifted women and friendship.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePoems that bring people together\u003c\/strong\u003e – Discover a world where exchanging verse forms part of meeting, talking, and falling in love.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eThe southern pleasure quarters\u003c\/strong\u003e – Step into the houses that give the green bower its name and the novel its setting.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eJoy with loss beside it\u003c\/strong\u003e – Explore the dreamlike nature of pleasure through a gentle story of desire and passing joy.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eRoom to linger\u003c\/strong\u003e – Settle into leisurely episodes that make space for friendship, conversation, and the pleasures of poetry.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003ePerfect for readers who enjoy Chinese fiction, social history, and slow stories of friendship and love told through poems and conversation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOpen the first page and join Jin Yixiang in a world of poetry, friendship, and fleeting joy.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Library of Alexandria Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59534629405020,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1027\/9442\/8764\/files\/02552_en_ebook-front_c08.jpg?v=1792174980","url":"https:\/\/libraryofalexandria.com\/nl\/products\/droom-van-het-groene-prieel","provider":"The Library of Alexandria","version":"1.0","type":"link"}