{"product_id":"9780241360668","title":"The Song of Kieu","description":"Author: Du, Nguyen\u003cbr\u003eISBN: 9780241360668\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Penguin UK\u003cbr\u003eYear first published: 07 May 2019\u003cbr\u003ePages: 240 \u003cbr\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe greatest classic of Vietnamese literature in a stunning new verse translation.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\\\"This manuscript is ancient, priceless,\u003cbr\u003ebamboo-rolled, perfumed with musty spices.                                    \u003cbr\u003eSit comfortably by this good light, that you may learn\u003cbr\u003ethe hard-won lesson that these characters contain.\\\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Song of Kieu\u003c\/i\u003e is the greatest classic of Vietnamese literature. It tells the story of the beautiful Vuong Thoy Kieu, who agrees to a financially profitable marriage in order to save her family from ruinous debts, but is tricked into working in a brothel. Her tragic career involves jealous wives, slavery, war, poverty and she becomes a nun twice. There are high points, such as when she teams up with a muscle-bound, tender-hearted rebel hero who makes her his queen and summons all her wrongdoers to account, but the ending is bittersweet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'To the Vietnamese people themselves,  it  is much more than just a glorious heirloom from their literary past,' says Professor Alexander Woodside of the University of British Columbia. 'It has become a kind of continuing emotional laboratory in which all the great and timeless issues of personal morality and political obligation are tested and resolved.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'For elegance and sheer readability I doubt if it could be equalled. English readers already familiar with Kieu will be delighted by its musicality. And those who have not previously encountered Kieu will wonder how such a masterpiece could so long have eluded them.' John Keay\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"Ships in 10 to 15 days","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48181147762846,"sku":"UBD-9780241360668","price":26.78,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0400\/9043\/5742\/files\/9780241360668.jpg?v=1787399043","url":"https:\/\/classicbargains.com.au\/products\/9780241360668","provider":"Classic Bargains Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}